A million-dollar tournament, and your AA gets cracked by......AA! What would you do?

[Propane Goat]

The 2014 wsop Big One for One Drop was a tournament with a $1,000,000 buy-in where Connor Drinan went all-in pre-flop against Cary Katz, and both players held Pocket Aces. Four hearts hit the board, giving Katz a flush, and Drinan was knocked out of the tournament.

Imagine that you were in Connor Drinan's shoes, with multiple backers who had put up stakes to buy you into the tournament. Some of these backers are furious, saying that you could have played the hand differently and saved your tournament seat. What do you say to convince them that you made the right play?

 

[Andyreas]

Some of these backers are furious, saying that you could have played the hand differently and saved your tournament seat. What do you say to convince them that you made the right play?

I know this is rhetorical but everyone who goes on saying this hand should / could have played differently has to learn a lot with regards to poker. 🤪

Ofc one could try to "trap" the opponent by not 3- or 4-betting but at seeing the two hearts flop, this was probably the moment where more/most/all chips would have went in anyway.

This is the sickest bad beat/cooler one can imagine with loosing with 98% equity pre-flop, 95% on flop, 80% on turn. Anyone not happy with having gotten his chips in with those numbers is just blinded by the buyin. 😅

 

[Goggelheimer]

I think I can understand the backers, but AA can lose against AA, as we see in this nice video.
The chance of AA meeting a villain with AA is rare, and the chance that one of them makes a flush is rare too.
Not going All in Pre-flop would have been the only option and would say I am not strong,
but I was AA is the strongest starting hand.
I would ask backers if they would fold AA on a K high flop if the villain goes all in with his aces,
this would look like he is trying to push me out with his AK.

 

[dzsire]

Two years ago I sat down to play a cash game with $10 and I experienced the same thing. The result is -10 dollars in half a minute.
I haven't sat down to play a cash game since, only MTTs.
The guy in the video experienced the same thing with a slightly higher stake, but approx. I can imagine how he must have felt.
This video shows that there is no nuclear-safe starting hand.

 

[Andyreas]

The guy in the video experienced the same thing with a slightly higher stake

Slightly .... Love your irony. 🙊🤣

 

[fundiver199]

I would expect people backing someone in a $1 million tournament to know enough about poker to understand, that bad beats are part of the game, and that getting it all-in with the nuts is never a mistake. This hand played itself, so there is really nothing to regret or explain to anyone.

 

[pentazepam]

Some of these backers are furious, saying that you could have played the hand differently and saved your tournament seat. What do you say to convince them that you made the right play?

I would ask them if they wanted to back me with more or less money/shares if they knew that this amount of chips would go in when I hold pocket Aces.

I'm sure the answer would be a loud YES!!!!!

And if they would think something else they should read "Hold'em for Kindergarten Kids" or some other beginner-friendly book that explains that it's NEVER wrong to go all-in with aces pre-flop (unless you play a satellite tournament and are almost guaranteed to get the ticket without playing anymore).

Before telling the backers to never be involved in a business they don't understand I would also (for fun) ask them how they would play this hand and why.

There is no scenario, except if both players slowplay until the river (or maybe the turn in extreme cases with very little money invested), where you could avoid an all-in.

And why should you avoid getting it in with the nuts?

I hope the backers know it is impossible to predict the future.

 

[lyki67]

Nothing. In this case another player had some more luck and that is o.k.. It's much worse if someone win with J9 against AA, or similar case.

 

[Tero]

He was dropped at 18th place and he was not even ITM yet. It is totally understandable that he wanted/needed to double up.

And what would have been the alternative? Just call or fold when more and more hearts appear on the table? At that point who knows how much would have already been put on the table?

 

[A kiravio]

It may be a bit brutal my advice, but as a professional player you should be aware that you have put your strong hand within the reach of chance, that is, you pray that the opponent is not lucky and be a result consistent with your hand. Why are we prolonging it? Did you risk it? This is the result, nothing was certain!

 

[WhiskeyFix]

Can't really get it in better than that, ask your backers what they would do in that situation

 

[antonis32123]

AA against AA , it can happen , cannot be avoided , and these bad beats , bad luck is also part of the game . cannot be avoided . If the backers have played poker , they wouldn't have said anything about this hand . also i think it was only 2 players in the hand , not deep stacked , and not in the bubble . Its 1M $$$ buy in , frustration is understood , but they will need to understand that you didn't make any wrong move .

 

[ADRI7HO]

Even in a million dollar tournament, playing AA with a stack against an opponent is a profitable situation (although there are not many million dollar tournament opportunities to eliminate short-term fluctuation).
I'm sure I would have played a similar game, but the outcome would haunt me for a long time.
This is poker, if someone wins then someone has to lose.

 

[ramdon p358]

I honestly don't know what my reaction would be. This player took it very calmly, in an interview this player said that he did not lose a million dollars because he had qualified through a satellite and then sold a percentage of this tournament

 

[MK_]

I think if I have to convince them I made the right play I need to find some new backers who know something about poker... I have lost like this before and it's not fun but it's the right play. To look at it another way imagine being a backer and seeing your player fold AA hu pre😉....

 

[mattiebumpo]

Once Katz 4-bets to $2,000,000, I don't think Drinan has any other move than the all-in shove. This is just one of those brutal beats that the poker gods deal out sometimes. I don't think his backers should be furious because he is trying to win them money, not play scared. If he had just called preflop to try to trap, I think he might have gotten away from it but it's doubtful. Plus, I would not trap in this situation. I think they both played correctly and it was just a bad runout.

 

[Risto234]

What would you do? Well that's easier than i thought

Not Something Intelligent - such thing ^ probably gives more than enough reasons to transform to Rage Monster ...

 

[Sebbour]

Imagine that you were in Connor Drinan's shoes, with multiple backers who had put up stakes to buy you into the tournament. Some of these backers are furious, saying that you could have played the hand differently and saved your tournament seat. What do you say to convince them that you made the right play?

We both are in the middle of Day 2 and with around 50 BBs (he is covering me slightly). I have re-raised Katz's raise for value and he re-raised me again. Since I have the best hand preflop, now was the time that I go all in since I was pot commited (because if I only call him I'm already 50% in the pot).

If I didn't go all in pre flop I would definitely go all in after the flop for value and for protection (if I suspect that he has flush draw or top pair (K) ). So, whatever play I was going to play here (either pre flop or post flop) unfortunately the outcome would be the same in the end. I simply don't see a situation where I would fold with those cards after the flop.

 

[puzzlefish]

Explain to them that the purpose of the $1M buy-in is to try to win the tournament and not to try to keep sitting in your seat as long as possible. Aces all-in, heads up, pre-flop is a standard play that any poker player should be comfortable with, including the backers.

 

[YLAN]

Some of these backers are furious, saying that you could have played the hand differently and saved your tournament seat. What do you say to convince them that you made the right play?

I would understand if they'ld be furious because it is a lot of dough & they're not probably poker players that understand the risky business. So first is to analyze the hand with them. We have AA preflop & UTG raised. Certainly cannot just call here with AA so re-raised & villain re-raised to 2M. The alternative play that they talk about is probably to just call at this point & see the flop for scare cards. Cannot tell the blinds & stacks from the video but if I have to convince that the all-in play was correct at this point is to tell them that AA are the best cards PF against any other cards except against AA. So are we nits or are we sharks? Unfortunate that villain had AA & hit the flush. Next time we could be lucky.

 

[Luvepoker]

If they were really furious, they really would don't know poker.

I would explain to them why i make the best possible play here. I was able to get my competitor to go all in while I am holding the best hand in poker that will win 83% of the time. No other hand can get it in better. Not yes, he and I got it in with the same hand which is so rare its odds of 49000 to 1 to happen. Once we had gotten it in, we both had about a 2% chance of winning the pot out right or 86 chance to split the pot. The fact that I lost is not on how I played but it's just something that can rarely happen in poker.


So what could I have done different, yes I could have just called his 2 million chip bet but once that flop hit and he cbet would i really have been content to just call or reraise him? If I had folded on the flop, it would be criminal. Even if we both checked the flop, or I called a small flop bet what would you think if he went all in on the turn and I folded? Even at this time he was not winning the pot only splitting it and to be honest it still a split pot 80% pf the time here.

There really was just no way to not go broke here unless we both were just checking the flop and turn and then he jammed the river. Yes then I could have gotten away from it but really there is no way that is happening.

 

[bullkk]

I would go to breathe fresh air in the park.

 

[Marcwantstowin]

I would say "That's life" - remember the opponents name, (mind your for a million, I don't think I would forget in a hurry), I would bust him with 44 and tell him 44 is always the nutz

 

[gena31]

I would tell them that if they think that I play poorly or make the wrong moves, then they should look for another person in whom they invested their finances.

 

[zorro222_zorro222]

He played the hand perfectly and was super unlucky, it was pretty obvious Katz was super strong given the speech and the way he put his chips in when he 4-bet and therefore would probably call an all-in which is what you want when you have AA. If some of your backers are mad then such is life, all you can do is play the best you can.