5-10 Stud 8 on Bovada, $1.25 ante, $2.50 bring-in

Seat 1: xx7
Seat 2: xx8
Seat 3: xxQ
Seat 4: xx2
Seat 5: (A3)8
Seat 6: xx2
Seat 7: xxK

Seat 6 brings it in for 2.50 with 2
Seat 7 completes with K
Seat 2 calls with 8
Folds to Hero with (A3)8 (Pot = $21.25)

Hero... ?

Just the bring-in is left behind me, who has been playing tons of hands and appears to be a big calling station. No reads on Seat 7 but the utg raise seems credible enough for a big pair, Seat 2 seems somewhat loose.

I like my hand quite a bit against Seat 2, and I feel like Seat 6 is calling the full bet with almost any random bs. If I reraise, Seat 6 will probably fold his trash and maybe low pairs, but probably not folding any sort of low hand and may even call with silly hands.

Seems like my hand plays better short-handed, but I will be shooting myself in the foot if Seat 6 wakes up with a good low. If I think Seat 6 is very likely to call even a raise with crap, is it better not to bloat the pot or am I going for value either way?

Seat 6 can have a good low hand whether you raise or not, and you seem to think he'll call with a lot of bad hands. Since bad hands outnumber good ones, you can raise for value. Some people have a game plan that accommodates playing an Eight door passively, and that's not necessarily wrong but here I'd prefer to shorten the field if possible. Your hand isn't bad, you have an Ace and a two-flush, plus likely the best low starter.

Eh. I see what electrical is saying, but your hand plays only okay vs KKx so I call here and see what develops on 4th. If the bring in has a better low than you he is calling (which is bad for you) and if he has some total crap and he calls (it is good for you).

if you raise, what about the possibility that it folds back to seat 7 who can then 3 bet, possibly pushing out Seat 2?

is that something that we like?

You aren't going to fold out seat 2, but you have a pretty good 2 way hand (seat 2 will vary rarely have a better one). It's a closer spot because of your weak door, but realize you are making a slim value bet and reevaluate on 4th.

It's considerable to raise but here looks like a call, the bring is not folding any playable xx2, for any price.

Just an important note, if the xx8 were some loose high-hand-playing type, I'd be more inclined to raise. (and if that other hand is xx9+, raise every time.)

which would be an horrible play getting > 10:1 immediate odds?? I can't see it being too far wrong. This isn't my game, but with over 1 BB of dead money in the pot, villains are much more correct to play loosely and Hero is much more correct to try to get hands HU on 3rd.

A bring-in who has been playing tons of hands, if he plays versus a K completing and two eight callers is likely going to have a better low draw than we have, save for our Ace. I assume playing lots of hands doesn’t equate to lighting money on fire by calling a K completion and two 8 calls with hands such as 9h As 2c.

If we raise, and the 2c three-bets, the loose 8c with trashy other cards such as 9d7s, or 7d,3h - those and other similar holdings are going to fold, as he will with JcJs8c or other similar speculative high hands.

Even in a "best-case scenario", if we raise and we get it heads-up versus JhKsKh, is that what we want? Wouldn’t it be better to lower variance, get our money in better, and easily make a good fold by simply waiting until fourth street to make a big decision? If we are heads-up, we may likely have less than 45% equity, and if we brick on 4th, we must now put in more money bad, since we bloated the pot.

Isn’t there greater merit to waiting until 4th street to evaluate the hands, get a better price on our hand, and put more money in better than at this moment on 3rd?