Played Day 1a of the Horseshoe Cleveland 300k guaranteed. 40k starting, 40 min levels on day 1. I had an incredible table draw with lots of 1/3 regs who won a seat. Played most of the day taggy never going below 35k or over 55k due to being pretty card dead. Recently doubled up JJ to AK on an AJ2 to 120k.

Villain 1: Guy to my immediate left has been running pretty good and been able to play aggressively post flop and was chip leading the table until recently losing a flip and making a bad call down. He's done well with picking spots to be aggressive post most of the day. He probably views me as Tag, and perhaps a little weak and/or scared because I had been pretty snug, and I had given up after vbetting against him multiple times because I didn't think he would fold and thought there were way easier spots at the table.

BB is only relevant because he calls pre. He's the worst of the players at the table. Open limping lots and I've taken advantage of that in position. He's the live Reg that's super splashy pre and then block bets his weakish hands and bets big with his big hands.

This hand ante 200 blinds 8/1600 playing 9 handed. I have 120k, villain 1 has 100k, bb has 80k. Average is about 80k.

I make it 3600 utg with 99, utg1 calls and bb calls. I think UTG1s flatting range is wider than optimal here... Something like all Broadways (including off suit), any pair, a lot if not all suited Ax, and some suited connectors. His 3b range is probably QQ+ and AK. BB is ATC wide.

Flop (pot 13.4k) is QT9sss. Bb checks. He leads here with any Qx, good spade draws, and made flushes. So when he checks it's either Axss or a hand he's not continuing with imo. Now I know betting here is standard and is profitable, but I also thought about checking to induce from +1, and I didn't think I'd get 3 streets from worse unimproved. Thought I could get a lot worse to put in more money in the hand by checking to him on the flop. I know it's not optimal if it checks through, but I think he bets a ton when checked to. Basically Qx or better, AsX, KsX JsX, random bluffs with no chance of improving. My plan on the flop when checking was to just x/c call, and get him to put more in on brick turns, most likely x/c bad turns and lead rivers improved. I think he'll view my check as a weak hand that is either giving up or might x/c one street. Is this a bad plan/thought process?

I bet here a probably 98% of the time, and I just thought check would be better in this exact scenario vs said opponents. Have more streets to come after replies.

I think we have to vbet here always with 2 others in the hand and such a wet board. Given the dynamics you mentioned between you and utg1 if he perceives you as weak or tag/nitty then I think it's even better spot to be betting and definitely not checking to him because there's a good chance he might try to play you IP with this board.

I understand he might try to play me in position. However, when a TAG raises UTG and then Cbets this board into 2, is he ever light? I don't think it's a good board to cbet with Air, so I'm trying to give the allusion of weakness and then by x/calling, make him think I have a hand I just want to get to showdown without facing much aggression. I also think it makes his continuing range weaker because he'd bet with all the hands he would call a bet with imo, plus hands he wouldn't have called a bet with... Thus he continues wider if I check.

" My plan on the flop when checking was to just x/c call, and get him to put more in on brick turns, most likely x/c bad turns and lead rivers improved. I think he'll view my check as a weak hand that is either giving up or might x/c one street. Is this a bad plan/thought process?"

I personally like your line of checking here if you are highly confident that your LAG Villain will try to raise you when he perceives your weak. However, with this very draw heavy board, I would be planning on 3 betting the full 3X when he bets after the flop... there are just too many ways to end up in with a difficult decision here if the turn produces a spade of completes a possible straight draw. Yes if the turn is a brick you might get more from him on the river, but I think your best to get the value while its still your to get.

Also, I think your 75 BB stack is the optimum stack size to 3-bet in a live tournament.

It is sooooo coordinated I would bet here. It just becomes so much more sticky of a situation to go 3 way to the turn considering how much of the deck is bad for our hand. Let's max value those pair+sd/ pair+fd / AsX / KsX hands. In terms of sizing, I'd probably go for something like 6000.

Getting raised by either player on the flop is not a bad scenario, if that happens I'd call and assess turn card/action. Most often though 1 or both players just flat, and given their positions at the table this flop likely smacks them enough to get to the turn.

The good news is you only have 2% of your game to correct.

Way too coordinated; you have to bet this board.

The only board worse to check behind with is JT9sss. Please bet when multi-way here. Your line has train wreck written all over it.

Thanks for the replies guys. I think the consensus is going to be to bet here every time. It actually worked out tremendously well for me to check the flop, and I got UTG+1 to spew on future streets for his entire stack. I thought I may have been results oriented (in a backward kind of way), so I just wanted to check.

He checked back flop, called my 2/3 pot bet on 3x turn, and shoved Qc over my small bet which I wanted to get called by like Tx or worse on the river with Ax3s. And looking back, I don't get the action if I bet flop, but I thought and do think I may be looking at it in a results oriented way so wanted to make sure.

ummmm
checking here is far from terrible for all kinds of reasons

99 is part of our value range that is very nutted. So what if we get raised, we don't have to continue every value hand we bet the flop with. If we did that, then our opponents would never be incentivised to bluff.

99 on a QT9sss flop is very far from nutted. it's a great trap hand if the board pairs, but has very little relative value if half the deck hits the turn or river and may even be behind otf. a brick or Q,T,9 turn changes the hand completely though and I think that's the point to start extracting value.

if we're forced to b/f a potential double (triple?) up hand on the flop to a LAG multi range, that's the biggest disaster there is. also think it's fine to c/c someone intent on bluffing their way through the hand too.