Alan Keating Releases YouTube Video Discussing High Stakes Poker Hero Call

With an incredibly unique loose-aggressive playing styles, Alan Keating is one of the most entertaining poker players to see in a live-streamed cash game.

Luckily for poker fans, he’s a regular in some of the highest-stakes live-streamed cash games on the planet. In a recent episode of PokerGO’s High Stakes Poker, Keating treated those fans to another memorable moment.

But unlike other huge pots, Keating gave everyone insight to his thought process. The Michigan native released a YouTube video telling the world what was going on in his mind.

Keating picked off a triple barrel bluff from Peter Wang in a pot that totaled nearly $1 million. The hand started with a raise from a player in the cutoff. Wang called on the button and Keating in the big blind.

These were their hands:

Keating: 97
Wang: 63
Cutoff: 86

The flop was AK7Keating checked, the cutoff bet $4,000 and Wang raised to $13,000. Keating three-bet to $41,000 which forced a fold from the original raiser and Wang called.

The turn was the 6 and Keating continued for $58,000. Wang raised to $175,000. Keating called. The river was the 4 and Keating checked. Wang bet enough to put Keating all in for his last $235,000.

Keating thought for a few moments and correctly called, netting a nearly seven-figure pot.

Future Keatings Will Hear About His Call

Before getting to the hand in question, Keating detailed the events leading up to the hand, which appear key to his play.

First, the video detailed how Wang was a part of several high-stakes streams and was known as an aggressive player. Keating and Wang tangled in multiple seven-figure pots on stream like Hustler Casino Live.

Additionally, Wang earned the nickname “Peter the Conqueror” for his aggressive play. Wang has a history of making big calls with weak hands and running multi-street bluffs for large amounts of money.

Lastly, Wang and Keating already had history in this current session at the PokerGO studio.

Keating successfully ran a triple barrel bluff of his own with 84 against Wang’s K-7 on K9310J board.

In the video, Keating said the table “could feel the tension growing” between the two players.

“Everything to this point. The buildup, the anticipation, the fighting, the back-and-forth, led to this hand,” said Keating in the video. “I’m probably going to show it to my grandkids.”

Keating’s explanation of his thought process was somewhat sparse when it came to strategy insight. His overall explanation was that he didn’t think Wang would have much, so he could just three-bet the flop and win immediately.

“What can he have here?” said Keating in the video. “I have a 7. So, maybe if I just raise I can just win the hand on the spot.”

But once Wang’s aggression came on the turn and river, Keating said he just didn’t believe him.

“With as much raising as he had done, he still hadn’t convinced me that he had me beat,” said Keating. “The best part of that whole thing was waiting to show my hand.”

High-Stakes Pros Weigh In On Podcast

Just a few days before Keating released his video, poker pros Matt Berkey and Landon Tice discussed the strategy considerations on Berkey’s Solve For Why podcast.

In their opinion, there were two key points in the hand. Preflop and the turn.

Wang was not the initial raiser in the hand. A player known simply as “Steve” raised from the cutoff and Wang called on the button.

“I think the fact that Peter flatted pre helps him sus this out a lot,” said Berkey the day after the hand aired.

In other words, the preflop call eliminates Wang from having the strongest hands on that flop. It’s unlikely that he would just call the raise with A-A, K-K, A-K and 7-7.

It drastically reduces the number of possible value hands Wang could have down to something like K-7 and A-7. Since Keating has the 7d in his hand, the number of value combinations are reduced even further.

Berkey and Tice both agree that preflop action makes Wang much more likely to have a flush draw as opposed to value hands. However, As-Xs is still a possibility for Wang.

But in their opinion, the likelihood of top pair and the nut flush draw is drastically reduced when Wang raised the turn.

“I just think the turn raise is nonsense,” said Tice.

“He just never has anything,” added Berkey.

“A-X of spades can easily raise the flop in position and call the three-bet,” said Tice. “But when you face the turn bet, you aren’t thinking ‘Oh, my ace is good, it’s time to funnel more money in.’ It’s more like ‘I want to make a flush so I’m going to call.’”

Berkey agreed with the sentiment, saying that once Keating decides to make the aggressive move on the flop, the rest of the hand just doesn’t make any sense. Berkey concluded with some kind words about Keating’s play.

“I think Keating might be a low-key gangster genius.”

Whatever it was. It was certainly fun to watch.

*Photo by PokerGO – Antonio Abrego