Good fold or bad fold?

[Table Manners]

Hey there. I haven't posted on here in a while, but an interesting hand just came up which I'd like people's opinnion on. It's earlier stages of a multi-table, 3000 starting stack, this is the second level . I've just moved to this table so have no information on anyone.

[edit: just realized, it was the 4th level (full tilit has a shallow structure). Still, it makes no difference since it doesn't change the blind/stack size ratio]

Full Tilt Poker Game #1721074768: $18,000 Guarantee (12315450), Table 30 - 40/80 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:41:28 ET - 2007/02/02
Seat 1: KpKelly (11,855)
Seat 2: kbicol (2,915)
Seat 3: Yriel (8,135)
Seat 4: eigib (2,100)
Seat 6: manypizzas (3,475)
Seat 7: SCTrojans08 (5,650)
Seat 8: tantrika (2,635)
Seat 9: StegSteg (3,035)
eigib posts the small blind of 40
manypizzas posts the big blind of 80
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Yriel [ ]
SCTrojans08 raises to 180
tantrika calls 180
StegSteg folds
KpKelly folds
kbicol folds
Yriel calls 180
eigib folds
manypizzas folds
*** FLOP *** [ ]
SCTrojans08 bets 425
tantrika raises to 1,935
Yriel folds
SCTrojans08 folds
Uncalled bet of 1,510 returned to tantrika
tantrika mucks
tantrika wins the pot (1,510)
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1,510 | Rake 0
Board: [ ]
Seat 1: KpKelly didn't bet (folded)
Seat 2: kbicol didn't bet (folded)
Seat 3: Yriel (button) folded on the Flop
Seat 4: eigib (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 6: manypizzas (big blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 7: SCTrojans08 folded on the Flop
Seat 8: tantrika collected (1,510), mucked
Seat 9: StegSteg didn't bet (folded)

[DrJarvis]

Me personally, with a hand like  on the button there, it depends on the action before me, pre-flop, with a smallish raise from utg and no calls after that leading to me, i usually prefer a call, as u r in position and can make a decision on the flop on whether you're are ahead or behind, (or wud be able to make him lay down his hand etc), but in your position here, with a smallish raise from utg and a caller from 2nd position, id would usually prefer a reraise from you for the following reasons,

1\ its a squeeze play and makes you look even stronger than you actually are, although you may well have the best hand now, you dont really want to be playing too many people and by calling you are givng the blinds decent odds to call with their suited 6-4 and you dont want that. By reraising, the player utg is in a sandwich, so needs a REAL hand to call/reraise,the caller has seen you show real strangth in the action before him so will usually fold unless hes sneakly played a big pair or fancies a loose call (which you wouldnt mind).

2\ you now become the agressor in the hand and combined with your positon this is a very stong place for you 2 b, and in the case where you get 1 or even 2 calls, unless the flop hits your opponents massively, as long as you continue to show strength on the flop, you will take the pot down there and then,

3\ by reraising you will gain more information about your opponents hands, i think you're worried about the player utg the most, and when you put the decision back on him, if he has a hand like QQ you wud expect him to reraise to eliminate the caller, AK wud probably call, as wud a sneakily played aces or kings, nearly all other hands wud probably fold depending on the player, but if that was me utg id reraise with aces or kings as its obvious you have a real hand and are going to play with me.

however, after the flop i think the fold is the correct play, having seen the action in front of you and this time, its you in the sandwich, and you dont know what the original raiser is going to do behind you after being faced with a raise to his continuation bet, its difficult to narrow his hand down has all you have seen him do is raise utg and bet the flop.........
as for the raiser on the flop, that would be a perfectly feasible rasie with trips as the utg raiser could easily have an overpair in which case he will be paid off or the original rasier will have missed the flop completely with a hand like ak,aq and is never  going to be involved after encountering rersistance on the flop........

with regards to how much to reraise to, i like about 600 or 650, giving your opponants between 2 to 1 and 2.5 to 1 to call out of position against a very strong play from you.....

thats my opinion anyway........JARV

[Table Manners]

Thanks for the analasys Jarv.

After thinking the hand over, and reading you're post, I think I definitely made the right lay down. But I think you're right about re-raising pre flop. As it stood, I had no way to know weather i's up against a bigger pair or not, but a reraise would have gotten me that information.

Cheers again.

[elblondie]

This is a very difficult hand to play early in the tourney and there is 2 ways to look at it.
I would agree with DrJarvis comments at all other times in the tourney from say level 5 onwards, and I would suggest if you were any later in the tourney then I would agree that you played it wrong. I'd rather re-raise and try and take the pot (chips from a raiser and a caller). However 650 would be a little low. I would call 180 and re-raise another 650/750
As we are in the very early stages though I think either way is correct as you have good position.
The way you played it meant that you only lost 180 and took very little risk. You may flopped a set of Jacks and doubled up. They may both check and allow you to take the pot with other flops as well.
I think both options are equally correct at this stage.

[Table Manners]

wow, a reply from elblondie himself  Much obliged, thanks for the analasys.

If it had been later in the tourney I would have definitely put in a pot-size ish raise to try and take the pot there or take a short stack all in. I obviously wouldn't like going all the way with a big stack (assuming I was a big stack too) with this hand.

As an aside, I ended up coming second in that tourney for 3.8k! Woo Hoo!