Alec Torelli: The Subtle Art of Knowing When You're Beat

7 years ago
The Subtle Art of Knowing When You're Beat
17:27
12 Mar

(Photo: Assopoker.com)

Holding top pair and top kicker on the flop, one might think that Alec Torelli wouldn't be in any hurry to toss his cards into the muck and get away from a hand with so much potential.

In fact, Alec wasn't hurried. He tanked for quite awhile, carefully reviewing and analyzing the situation, studying the players involved, their stacks, their actions both prior to and after the flop, and tapping into his knowledge of their playing styles.

The end result? Torelli used his experience and intuition in making a sick fold that kept his chip stack from being decimated.


Every Action Tells a Story

As part of the title to the YouTube video (HOW the #@&! Did You FOLD THERE?) suggests, it's difficult for some to fathom how Torelli can justify his lay down, but Alec takes us through his thought process and the reasoning behind his actions.

The scene was a $25/$50 cash game at "Live at the Bike" with some usual suspects, namely 'Harry,' whose quick, short-stacked shove from the small blind post-flop spoke volumes to Alec. Would such an action speak to you in the same way while sitting on top pair, top kicker?

It certainly didn't to a number of commenters to Torelli's YouTube post who suggested that Alec was out of his mind for letting go of the hand in that situation. Yet other Torelli followers - who may be more in tune with the way he thinks - found nothing out of the ordinary with his successful read of Harry's set. Par for the course, you might say.


How it Went Down

Seated UTG, Torelli raised to $150 pre-flop and was called by four opponents. Post-flop, Alec bet $500 into a $750 pot after SB Harry checked and got two callers before Harry jammed his remaining $3,450 without hesitation.

Mathematically speaking, it was a "clear call" for Torelli. But his poker instincts took over, making the correct fold in a situation where many other players may not have.


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Charles is a Chicago native and long time poker player who dusted off his journalism degree and began writing about poker following the events of Black Friday in 2011. He has written for a number of leading poker websites, offering his insights and expertise on subjects ranging from online poker leg...Read more

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