Satellite Strategy: A Time to Fold Pocket Kings?
We're dealt premium pocket pairs so rarely, it's a joy whenever we look down to see we've been dealt a hand like pocket kings. But sometimes in a satellite we might be better off folding such a hand in certain spots, particularly near the bubble.
But can we?
That's the question taken up by the hosts of The Chip Race podcast in their latest strategy discussion.
As shown in the video below, David Lappin and Dara O'Kearney consider a hand played by PokerNews strategy contributor Carlos Welch near the end of a satellite tournament when there were just eight players left vying for the six seats being awarded.
O'Kearney, you might have heard, has co-authored the recently-published Poker Satellite Strategy, a book that focuses exclusively on how best to approach satellites. As is pointed out near the start of the discussion, the "endgame" of satellites can often involve making some particularly big folds, and that's exactly what Welch finds himself having to contemplate doing in the highlighted hand.
With the blinds 600/1,200, Welch was on the button with a stack of 24,000 when the hand began. Notably, half the players remaining had shorter stacks of around 12,000, meaning Welch was just about at a point where he felt he might be able to fold his way to earning one of the six prizes.
One of those short stacks open-raised all in from under the gun for 12,000, and the player to his left who had 36,000 to start (i.e., more than Welch) called the raise. It then folded to Welch who looked down at K?K?.
Is this a time to fold kings? Could you do it?
Watch the video below and find out both what Welch ended up doing and how O'Kearney evaluates both the situation and his decision.
The Chip Race is a weekly podcast sponsored by Unibet Poker, and can be heard on iTunes and anywhere else you listen to podcasts. Follow David Lappin on Twitter @dklappin and Dara O'Kearney @daraokearney.
