Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 18: Getting Inside the Head of Poker Pro Brian Rast
One of the best parts about being a live reporter for PokerNews is that oftentimes I get the chance to watch some of poker’s best in action. It’s an unparalleled learning opportunity, and one that I try to take advantage of whenever possible. Most recently that was at the 2015 Aussie Millions Poker Championship in Melbourne, Australia.
In my last Hold’em with Holloway, I told you about a hand from Day 2 of the Aussie Millions Main Event between Richard "nutsinho" Lyndaker and Jack Salter, a hand that you can read about here. But this week I want to rewind a day and go back to a big hand I witnessed between Brian Rast and Manny Stavropoulos, players who went on to finish fifth and first in the event, respectively.
The hand took place in Level 6 (250/500/75), and I picked up the action with around 5,000 in the pot and a flop of 6♣9♣K♦. Stavropoulos checked from the big blind and Rast bet 3,500 from middle position. A third player then put in a huge all-in raise to 34,900 from the cutoff. Stavropoulos thought for a considerable amount of time before shrugging and moving all in over the top for 42,000.
Rast couldn’t seem to believe what happened, and soon enough it became apparent he had a legitimate hand — and a not-so-easy decision. He took out his earbud, grabbed his eyeglasses out of their case, and got an accurate count of both his opponents’ stacks. He stated he would have called the cutoff’s shove, no problem, but the push from Stavropoulos had given him pause.
Rast would spend the next few minutes in the tank, and seemed to agonize over the spot. Sometimes he looked as if he were going to call, and at other moments he appeared as though he was going to give it up.
“When the [first] guy shoved, I thought he could have any two clubs, any king, an open-ended straight draw, or any combo draw obviously, so he was super wide,” Rast told me during the next break.
“[But] the guy who overcalled, it was tough. He hadn’t really put in any big money postflop, but he had been playing a lot of hands. He said this after, but I was pretty sure he was aware that the other guy was tilting. I didn’t really think there were any value hands I could beat. I thought at best I’m chopping with the AxKx. [With] all the other value hands, he would have three-bet aces and kings, and also sets and two pair. Then I thought maybe he would have enough draws where any nut-flush draw, maybe any combo draw [were possible]…. The former is really good for me, because it’s just a pure flush draw as I’m blocking the ace.”
You could see the wheels turning in Rast’s head during the hand, and while talking to him after the fact I discovered that he and I had the same read on Stavropoulos.
“I also made a bad live read. You have to be careful sometime putting too much stock into them,” Rast explained. “[Stavropoulos] took over a minute [before going all in] and looked like he was really thinking about what to do, which made me think he was less likely to have a set. So even if it was two pair, I have an ace, or like a king and an ace, a running pair, to still win. I can’t imagine he could fold 6x9x in that spot.”
Rast ended up making the call, and discovered the bad news when all three hands were tabled:
Rast: A♥K♣
Stavropoulos: 6♠6♦
Cutoff: K♠Q♦
Rast had flopped top pair with top kicker, and just as he expected he was ahead of the cutoff. Unfortunately for him, Stavropoulos had the best hand with a flopped set. Still, Rast explained the basis for his call — expected value.
“I was unhappy with my call. Obviously results-wise I have to be, because I got it in basically dead. But part of what made me want to call was chip-wise I don’t think it’s that huge going back down to 45,000 at that point in the tournament,” said Rast. “I thought putting in 42,000 to win 80-something, I need to be 33% — I thought maybe I was there. The truth is I’m never going to know unless I know exactly what draws he would and wouldn’t play. Obviously I wish I had folded.”
He went on to add: “It was a chance for me to get like 160,000 if I won. So I was making the decision based only on equity. If calling and losing made me go down to like 20,000, then maybe I want to be a decent favorite to make such a big call, but because I thought chip-wise it was reasonable, I was just going off straight up whether or not it was +EV, so that was my thinking.”
The 3♠ turn actually left Rast drawing dead, and he watched helplessly as the A♠ completed the board on the river. The player in the cutoff hit the rail, Rast’s stack was cut in half, and Stavropoulos nearly tripled up to 125,000, which was a massive stack at that point in the tournament.
Interestingly Rast’s supposition proved true — losing that pot didn’t hurt him too badly. As previously mentioned, Rast went on to make the final table and ultimately finished in fifth place. Even more interesting, Stavropoulos, a popular Melbourne local, went on to win the tournament for AU $1.6 million.
It’s rare to catch such a big hand so early in a tournament, and the chance of it being between two players destined to make the final table (not to mention the eventual champ) is damned near impossible. Obviously I was thrilled to have captured this hand, and even more appreciative I got the chance to get a pro’s perspective on it.
It’s a prime example of what one of the best poker players in the world thinks about when put to the test in a complex hand. What did I take from the hand? Do the math, determine your expected value, and act accordingly. Of course, much of the time that proves easier said than done.
As a bonus, check out this video with Rast in which he analyzes a different hand from the Aussie Millions:
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In this Series
- 1 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 1: Making Reads and Trusting Them
- 2 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 2: Playing in Poker Charity Events
- 3 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 3: Throttle Back Before You End Up Punting
- 4 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 4: Punish the Satellite Bubble
- 5 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 5: What is Proper Accumulator Strategy?
- 6 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 6: A Chip and a Chair Story with “SirWatts”
- 7 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 7: 15 Things About Poker I Wish I’d Known Sooner
- 8 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 8: Examining the Largest Overlay in Poker History
- 9 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 9: Differences Between Rebuys and Reentries
- 10 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 10: Five Must-Read Poker Books of 2014
- 11 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 11: When Will You Finally Break Through?
- 12 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 12: Dealing with a Target on Your Back
- 13 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 13: Knowing When to Call It Quits
- 14 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 14: Embarking on a Year-Long Weight Loss Journey
- 15 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 15: Navigating Multiple Decision Points in a Poker Hand
- 16 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 16: Chris Moorman Tells Me How Badly I Play Poker
- 17 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 17: Richard “nutsinho” Lyndaker on Getting It in Marginal
- 18 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 18: Getting Inside the Head of Poker Pro Brian Rast
- 19 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 19: Stupid Calls & Lucky Draws in MSPT WI Championship
- 20 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 20: Talking Ante-Only Strategy with Greg “FossilMan” Raymer
- 21 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 21: Contributing to Jonathan Little’s New Book
- 22 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 22: Consequences of Acting Out of Turn & Tossing in Chips
- 23 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 23: When It Comes to Chops, Do What’s In Your Best Interest
- 24 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 24: Accepting Bad Beats & Lessons in Selling Action
- 25 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 25: Heinz’ Ace-High Call Shows Why He's a World Champ
- 26 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 26: Is Keeping the Short Stack Alive Collusion?
- 27 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 27: Great Laydown or Bad Fold on Poker Night in America?
- 28 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 28: Calling Hellmuth with Jack-Deuce Offsuit
- 29 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 29: The Philosophy of "No-Chop" Chad
- 30 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 30: Preparing to Play the World Series of Poker
- 31 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 31: Staying on Your Grind at the World Series of Poker
- 32 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 32: The Perilous Decision to Call Off with Ace-Queen
- 33 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 33: Using Poker Skills in Reality TV Competitions
- 34 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 34: Esfandiari Explains How to Recover from Bad Beats
- 35 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 35: Tilly vs. Brunson in Super High Roller Cash Game Hand
- 36 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol 36: Unconventional Play Leads to Good WSOP Main Event Start
- 37 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 37: Lessons in Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Low w/ Evan Jarvis
- 38 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 38: Things to Say and Do When You Bust a Poker Tournament
- 39 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 39: How Much Did I Have to Raise to Get You to Fold?
- 40 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 40: Practicing Patience in My Deep PPC Poker Tour Run
- 41 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 41: Analyzing a Questionable SHRPO Main Event Hand
- 42 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 42: Analyzing the Play of Neymar Jr. at EPT Barcelona
- 43 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 43: The Value of a Reliable Poker Reputation
- 44 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 44: John “KasinoKrime” Beauprez Rips My PLO Game Apart
- 45 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 45: Satellite Dilemmas -- To Call or Not to Call
- 46 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 46: Seiver Leverages the River in Super High Roller Bowl
- 47 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 47: What Untraditional Moves in Poker Might Mean
- 48 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 48: Thinking About the Future with Sam Grizzle
- 49 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 49: WCOOP Champ “Coenaldinho7” Offers Up His Biggest Hands
- 50 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 50: The Peril of Shoving Weak Aces
- 51 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 51: The Importance of Not Giving Up in Poker Tournaments
- 52 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 52: Does Asking “Check” Actually Constitute a Check?
- 53 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 53: Thomas Cannuli Impresses Even After Main Event Bustout
- 54 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 54: Dealers Aren’t Always Right
- 55 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 55: Don’t Get Married to Pocket Aces
- 56 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 56: Bazeley’s Survival Instinct Leads to Continued Success
- 57 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 57: Playing “Deuces Wild” on the European Poker Tour
- 58 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 58: The Wildest Hand in European Poker Tour History
- 59 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 59: Death, Zombies & Spending Time w/Phil Hellmuth
- 60 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 60: How the Unstoppable Fedor Holz Managed to Win Again
- 61 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 61: Lessons To Be Learned When You Hit the Big Stage
- 62 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 62: Steve O’Dwyer Explains the “Oreo Cookie Tell”
- 63 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 63: What Would Happen to a Chip Stack If a November Niner Died?
- 64 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 64: Forgetting One Chip -- Should It Still Be an All-In Bet?
- 65 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 65: Todd “sharkslayerrr” Breyfogle on Bankroll Management
- 66 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 66: Cash Game Pro Daniel Arfin Offers Sound Bankroll Advice
- 67 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 67: Honeyman Plays Kings to Keep in Opponent’s Bluff Range
- 68 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 68: Why Do I Even Bother Drinking at the Poker Table?
- 69 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 69: Is Your Favorite Poker Pro Left- or Right-Handed?
- 70 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 70: In Order to Live You Have to Be Willing to Die
- 71 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 71: How to Amass a Big Stack Early in a Poker Tournament
- 72 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 72: Answering User-Submitted Poker Scenarios
- 73 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 73: Saying Goodbye with a Top Five List
- 74 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 74: We're Back, Baby!
- 75 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 75: Jivkov on Exploiting Capped Ranges
- 76 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 76: Matt Bretzfield Gets Tricky With Aces
- 77 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 77: Joseph Cheong Gets Crazy with a Pair of Ladies
- 78 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 78: Wyoming Poker Action & Wild South Dakota Hand
- 79 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 79: Calling Controversy at WinStar
- 80 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 80: Going for Value with Matt Hunt
- 81 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 81: Bracelet Winner Ryan Leng on Bad Call
- 82 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 82: Romeopro33 Recounts XL Eclipse Victory
- 83 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 83: Men The Master Doesn't Get Paid
- 84 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 84: Harman Hits Back-to-Back Miracle Turns
- 85 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 85: Jamie Kerstetter on Dealing with Bounties
- 86 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 86: Matt Stout Develops a Limp Dynamic
- 87 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 87: Matt Alexander Caught in Between w/ Two Red Aces
- 88 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 88: John Beauprez on Why He Folded a Set of Jacks
- 89 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 89: Alex Aqel Lets Opponent Hang Himself with Aces
- 90 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 90: David Peters Makes Beastly Call Against Will Givens
- 91 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 91: Poker Lessons from a Game of Risk
- 92 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 92: My Upstuck Diagnosis by the CLC Squad
- 93 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 93: Alex Foxen Coolers Nick Petrangelo in SHRB
- 94 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 94: My $25,000 PSPC Experience at 2019 PCA
- 95 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 95: The Equity of Leveraging Time Extensions
- 96 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 96: Dan O'Brien on Developing Healthy Routines
- 97 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 97: Big Hands From the WSOP-C Potawatomi
- 98 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 98: Simon Deadman Rips Apart My NLH Tourney Play
- 99 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 99: Shoving 10-6 Smack Dab Into Pocket Aces
- 100 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 100: The Revived Re-Entries Debate
