Known for his success in no-limit hold’em multi-table tournaments, Matt “ch0ppy” Kay is regarded as one of the top online players in the world. The Kitchener, Ontario, native has already compiled an impressive resume of tournament scores, including Event 3 of the UltimateBet Aruba Classic for $38,300 in 2007. Even more impressive are Kay’s online scores, which include a third-place finish in Full Tilt Poker’s $750,000 Guarantee, a win in the PokerStars Sunday Million and two wins in Titan Poker’s European Championship of Online Poker. At only 22 years old, the future is bright for this emerging star on the poker scene. He answers readers’ questions this month.

I keep hearing mixed opinions about continuation betting (c-betting). Can you give me some examples of when you should c-bet and when you shouldn’t?

–        C.C. Ryder, Commerce, California

This is a simple question, but the answer is very complex. It depends on a lot of different factors. In some tournaments you can c-bet almost anything, because the fields are easy enough that you won’t be met with resistance unless they wake up with a hand. Some tournaments you c-bet when the board comes such that your opponent likely missed it (example 3-8-K rainbow). However, if you are in a tough tournament vs. a good opponent, he may raise you on the flop because he thinks that you are just c-betting a blank board. I learned through experience. I just try things every so often and see what is working. The game is constantly changing so you need to be able to adapt.

What is the best way to play K-K or A-A?

– High Spade, Thunder Bay, Canada

Well, if I were holding K-K, I’d try to get a board like A-K-9 so that I get paid a lot of the time. But unfortunately, it’s just not that simple. The main thing is to not play it differently than other hands that you are raising with. I see huge errors all the time with big pocket pairs. People adjust their raising size, or just start doing random things that give away their hand because they are afraid of not getting paid. Keep your raises consistent to hide your hand, and don’t try to get fancy by just calling the blinds preflop.

One example of an error is when someone limps early with A-A/K-K (under 20BB) and I have a hand like J-J. There is a chance the limper is just limping because he is not good, but it also raises my awareness that he may be trying to get fancy with a big pocket pair. With J-J I can’t fold to something like that, and I need to get it in regardless of their next action if they are small enough in chips. I also will play weaker hands more carefully. However, if they raise preflop I’ll barely even consider the possibility of A-A/K-K and I’ll be raising if they are short enough, and they’ll get my chips anyway. However, the second way they played the hand is much better, because I can’t put them on an exact hand, I can only put them on a range of hands that are likely and my hand range will be much wider if they raise preflop.

How long does it usually take to move up in limits?

– G. Jefferson, Niagara Falls

This one is a tough one for me to answer, because I have very little experience with it. I was lucky and won something big early in my career, so I didn’t need to concern myself with it. One important thing, though, is that if you win a big tournament, that doesn’t mean you should be moving up in limits. I think you should move up in limits when you feel comfortable and ready. You shouldn’t move up in limits if you are too scared to play your “A game” for fear of losing money. Just take your time and make sure you can handle it before moving up.

I was wondering if you have like a standard way of deciding when to quit a cash game when you’re up?

– nolife1985, the Internet

I have no standard way of leaving a specific cash game. When I play cash, I just stay in all my cash games until I do not feel like playing anymore, or I have played for a predetermined time. Being up or down doesn’t really affect how long I play.

How should I play a table full of tight players? I try widening my range of cards but I usually end up either bluffing into a strong hand, or not getting them to fold their middle strength hands.

– Boulder Brain, Colorado

This is very situation dependent. If you are deep in a tournament and at a very tight table, then you can be a bully and take a lot of blinds and antes. However, if you try this too early at a table, you’ll likely not gain too much and will just run into hands that take away any winnings you may have had. The big thing here is that you are at a very tight table. You should not be trying to make elaborate plays to bluff these guys. If it’s early, I just wait, be patient and find the spots. If you are patient the spots will be there, you just need to find them. I’d focus more on waiting for cards, though, and on being able to get away when you are beat. Try to see some flops very cheap with pocket pairs and suited connectors if you are over 100BB deep and try to hit a big hand. It’s likely these tight players won’t be able to make big folds, and you can get their chips this way.

What is the fastest way to build a bankroll?

– Broke in Boise

I can’t really say the fastest way to build a bankroll, besides winning a big tournament. Everyone plays different, so the fastest way to build one’s roll will be different depending on how you play. I’d be less concerned with speed, though, and more concerned with keeping your money. When I try to do things too fast, that’s usually when I get burned. It’s a long process and you need to have patience.

When is a semi-bluff shove (all-in) the correct move? In what situations would it be acceptable?

–Tired of Sitting, Detroit

I’ll semi-bluff shove if I think it’s profitable to do so. Easier said than done. I’ll try to explain the math way but it’s not that simple. The math way also requires a decent amount of experience to do. For example, I have a flush draw with an ace. I think if I hit my ace, I will be good as well, so I have 12 outs. If I’m semi-bluffing the turn, I have 12 outs out of 46 cards remaining (26 percent). Now it can get much tougher, because I’d need to determine how often they are folding. Now since I think the ace is good if it hits, it means that I do not think they have a very strong hand, so it is very likely I’ll semi-bluff and obtain a fold quite often. In this case I’d shove up to a pot-size bet on the turn. That was just a simple reaction based on my experience. (To be more complicated, you can take the range of hands you think they could have, and then determine what percentage of that range they are folding. You can then determine the exact amount of chips you can shove to be profitable). However, NEVER shove more than the size of the pot on the flop or the turn with a semi-bluff. It is more obvious than you may realize.

I am a short stack and have to go all-in within a few hands. What are the best hands to go all-in with (assuming I’m not going to get a premium hand): ace-rag, king-rag, or a hand like 9-7?

–        Raggedy Ann, New York

I just know which hands to go in with and which to not. It’s not a decision for me anymore; it’s just what is profitable. It depends how many chips you have, and your position at the table. You can find resources online that will tell you: “In this situation you can shove A-x, K-8s+, K-To+, Q-8s+, Q-To+, etc., etc., profitably…” I believe pokerstove and SnGWiz do things like this, and there are many more online.

I recently played a tournament with the loosest group of players I have ever seen. Can you really afford to be super tight and wait for a good hand? How can you make sure you won’t be blinded off?

–        Leatherass, Tulsa

In this situation I would just wait for a hand if you can. That would be the best and easiest way to chip up. Otherwise you need to watch players very closely. You’ll be able to spot the really crazy ones, see which people really don’t fold and just keep on betting. So if you have a hand like 9-9 on a K-7-2 board, you’ll know they likely don’t have a king, and they are also likely to bet this flop, and probably the turn also. DON’T RAISE! Your hand has value here! If you raise you give your opponent a chance to raise you back, and then what do you do? Call the flop. Call most turns, if they are crazy, and if an ace comes on the turn, they will likely try to represent the ace every time with any random hand that they may have, so you have to call if they are crazy. Few people do a full bluff all the way to the river. Many give up and check the river, however, there are exceptions. This is tough to teach; you just gotta learn which types of players you can do this against.

When is it OK to take a race? Is it ever OK to race in a cash game deep-stacked? What about in a tournament? When are you correct to go up against A-K with a hand like 8-8 or 9-9?

– Willing to Die, Reno

Sometimes in tournaments you have to take a race, and if you don’t you’ll just be blinded down. If you don’t like racing, don’t play tournaments, because you won’t be successful if you are unwilling to race. Deep-stacked cash games you should race much less often. I wouldn’t want to have a big race, but at the same time, they could occasionally happen (J-J/Q-Q vs. A-K). In a tournament when I shove 8-8/9-9 over a raise, I’d likely hope to get a fold and increase my stack by a good amount, but sometimes you’ll get called and be in a race situation. It’s just unavoidable with how today’s game is.