[Locohombre]

Originally Posted by Iceman37

...you can't lay down AK suited? Who's the "everybody" who "knows" that? There's no hand I cant lay down except the bullets (and if I'm playing with the mortgage money and the preflop bet puts me allin, I'd even consider throwing THOSE in the muck). Let's remember, you're not on TV and the only person seeing your cards is YOU. So yeah, if your gut is telling you you're behind...or you are too short on cash...or you don't think you can outplay this guy if the hand requires maneuvering...or you have to piss and your concentration is shot--whatever--you can most certainly lay the hand down.

Now let's get something clear. I'm not saying you SHOULD lay it down. I'm saying you certainly CAN. That decision rests entirely within your gut while you're staring at that stack of chips he just threw in front of him. You know the player, you know how you're playing on the night, you know if you're tired or (heaven forbid) drunk or playing with scared money. You KNOW what call to make...and either one may very well be the right one.

One of the great (and absolutely most ignored, especially among today's players) maxims of poker is "choose your battles". If your opponent is the way you say he is (in your second post), then you know he's got a hand. It almost doesn't matter WHAT it is. You're behind versus ANY pair (not much, but behind nonetheless), you're crippled versus KK, you're dead in the water versus AA, and HIS AK could be just as suited as yours...what other hand could he possibly be playing? And you know the liklihood is it's one of the big three, two of which utterly destroy your odds. ANOTHER great poker maxim is DON'T CONTINUE THE HAND WHEN YOU'RE TAKING THE WORST OF IT.

But if, as the other poster says, you see poker as "gambling" (what person who calls himself a poker player thinks that???), then by all means gamble. Maybe if you get clocked by the guy, he'll give you enough money to go play the nickel slots or the roulette wheel or something equally ludicrous.

But first of all, you never fold AA preflop, since the odds are always in your favor with it. Second, why in the hell are you gambling with mortgage money?! It seems you may have a problem.