Reraising Instead of Calling: Randy “nanonoko” Lew Analyzes an EPT Grand Final Hand
The 2016 PokerStars and Monte-Carlo® Casino EPT Grand Final €5,300 Main Event continues today with 74 players remaining from the 1,098 who began the event. Team PokerStars Pro Online member and Twitch star Randy “nanonoko” Lew is among those still with a shot at the title, as he returns on Wednesday to a stack right at the average heading into Day 4.
Since Lew is known for his clear and helpful analyses of hands, our Sarah Herring spoke to him about a hand he played back on Day 1. It was a short discussion, but nonetheless highlighted a number of important concepts including player image, position, starting hand selection, the importance of aggression, bet-sizing, continuation betting, and an awareness of stack-to-pot ratios.
Lew explains how the hand began with a player min-raising to 1,000 from early position and having a later position player call him (someone from whom Lew had just won a pot). The small blind calls as well, and Lew in the big blind looks down at Kx10x-offsuit.
As he points out, many players would instinctively call in this spot, insofar as king-ten is a good drawing hand (a couple of big cards, straight potential), and the pot odds being offered are too good to pass up. However, Lew adopts a different approach, reraising to 4,500.
That knocks out the original raiser, though the other two players call, and following a Kx8x7x flop with two diamonds, Lew and the player he’d just tangled with before end up getting the latter all in on a draw for his tournament life.
Watch to find out what happened next, and also to hear Lew explain his reasoning behind the preflop reraise, his postflop bet-sizing, and his decision to play for his opponent’s small stack.
Day 4 of the EPT Grand Final Main Event is already underway, so check the live updates, chip counts, payouts, and more right here at PokerNews.
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