Did I Stop an Angle Shoot or Walk Right Into One?

This session dates back to my ill-fated Christmas trip to Vegas.  It was the night before I headed home.  Well, it was the night before I made my first attempt to head home. As you might recall, that particular attempt ended with me spending the night at Buffalo Bill's in glamorous  Primm, NV. If you've forgotten, you refresh your memory with the post here.

It was a Friday night, and I figured for all the car troubles I was having, I deserved something nice in return.  You know, watching the parade de Sluts  seemed to fit the bill. Since my plan at the time was to be back home the next evening (Ha!), I figured this was my last chance to enjoy the unique eye candy offered as a free bonus to the increasingly put upon poker player in Vegas.  So, MGM it was.

The first table I was sent to was awful.  First of all, it was in the spot in the room that is always the coldest.  And the table was incredibly nitty.  I got a few hands to raise with and never got a call, including once with Aces.  But the table got short-handed almost immediately and I couldn't get a table change.

Finally I got pocket Aces for a second time.  I opened to $10 and kind of assumed that the way the table was running, I'd just pick up the blinds again.  But instead, a guy re-raised to $30.  Cool.  I made it $80, which was more than he had left, but not by a lot.  He tanked a bit and then shoved. Of course I called.

We didn't show.  I didn't like the King on the flop.  The rest of the board was fairly non-descript.  He showed Queens, and I took down a nice pot.

Soon after, another few players left the game and the table broke.  That was fine with me, I got a seat in a table in the front of the room, which was much more comfortable, temperature-wise, and also closer to the walkway where the club-goers would be passing by.  Unfortunately, my seat was facing away from the parade, but I figured I'd be able to get a seat change at some point.

I was card dead at the new table and there was only slightly better action there anyway.  There were couple of regs there talking about getting their final hours in for the "Play for Pay" promo they had going (and still do). If you play enough hours during the month, they just give you cash (instead of having a freeroll).  This guy next to me, an older Asian man, just needed a few more hours to make his next tier for the month.  Since he was a reg, it was surprising I didn't recognize him, though I suppose he might usually play different hours and was just there this time to finish up his hours.

Anyway, I got Jack-9 off in the big blind and of course no one rasied, so I saw the flop for free.  There were a bunch of limpers, maybe 7 or 8.  The flop was Jack-6-2.  I checked and someone bet $17.  I called and it was heads up.  The turn was a 9.  I checked again, thinking about a check-raise.  But when he bet $40, I wondered if he had a set, so I just called.  The river was another Jack.  I glanced over at him and he seemed eager to bet, so I checked.  He did bet, but only $45.  So I made it $100 and he shoved.  I had him covered but not by much.  Of course I called and he turned over Jack-6.  Ouch.  Sucks to be him.

Well that was a nice pot.  I was still stacking my chips as the next hand was dealt.  I was now the small blind. And I looked down at pocket Kings.  I went back to stacking chips as the action went around the table.  After a limp or two, it got to my neighbor, the Asian man, who said to me, "It's ok, I know you're gonna raise, I'll raise first."  Huh?  How did he know I was going to raise?  I looked at him quizzically, He continued, "I saw you grabbing red chips."  Well, I was grabbing red chips to stack them, I hadn't finished that yet.  Did he see that or had I somehow actually given off a sign that I planned to raise?

The comment threw me off.  Of course, I do normally three-bet with the dreaded hand, fool that I am.  But I was now thinking he was pulling some kind of angle.  I mean, if he knew I was gonna raise, why would he raise anyway unless he had a really premium hand, you know, like Aces?  More importantly, why would he tell me?  It seemed to me he was basically begging me to re-raise him and so I decided to ruin his angle-shooting by just calling.  When I just called, he said, "I thought you were going to raise."  I just shrugged.  After the hand was over, I told him I just was grabbing chips to stack them and I have no idea if he believed me.

Anyway, it turned out to be four of us seeing a low flop. I checked and it checked around.  Hmm….he didn't bet with his Aces?  The turn looked harmless enough so I bet $35 and no one called.

That was just weird.  If I take him at his word, why would he raise if he thought I was going to re-raise behind him?  Obviously he might do that with Aces and then four-bet me.  But if he had Ace-King or Queens or Jacks, why would he want raise in front of me thinking I was going to re-raise?

Then I started thinking maybe I didn't stop him from playing an angle, maybe I played right into it.  But saying what he did, he got me to not re-raise.  Was that his intention all along?  Maybe I was the sucker.  I could have gotten more money out of him with a three-bet.  He'd probably call my three bet with whatever he had and at least see if he improved on the flop.  So did he figure out a way to see the flop cheaper than he would have otherwise?  Did I play right into his hand?

Well, I'll never know.  I guess he had Ace-King, Ace-Queen something like that and whiffed the flop.  What is scary to think about is that maybe he had Queens or Jacks and somehow read me as having Kings or Aces.  If he had a big pair he had no reason to fold on the turn—or check the flop, for that matter.  It was weird.  Did I give off tell or just get angled?

Anyway, I was mostly card-dead and was able to book a nice $175 win for the session.  I never got the seat change so I wandered around the club area and saw some provocatively dressed young ladies.  It was a good night but you already know the next day turned out to be a total disaster.