Hero just recently moved from one of the main games from a must move table with a stack of 825. Hero is a mid 30s mut/rec player who has been at the table for maybe 3-4 orbits and has folded everything. Table has 5 old regs and 4 young players.

Villain 1 (small blind) - European in 20s who I have never played with before. I have seen him three bet three times since I sat down and on one occasion he showed Ace garbage after betting the flop. No one has given him much resistance at the table. Villain 1 with starting stack ~2000.

Villain 2 (button) - Young Caucasian in his late 20s/early 30s. I have played with him several times but have not tangled with him much in the past. Usually plays solid but I have seen him punt off his stack (like me). Villain 2 with starting stack ~1300.

On to the hand...

Preflop
Folds around to Villain 2 on the button who raises to 20. Standard raise in this game has been 30-35.

Villain 1 in the small blind 3! to 85.

I look down at 7s7c in big blind.

Question 1 - what is the best play here?

I cold call villain 2's 3!. Villain 1 folds.

Flop
Jh2s3s (Pot 190)

Villain 2 checks.

Question 2 - check or bet? If bet, how much?

I check behind.

Turn
6d (Pot 190)

Villain 2 checks.

Question 3 - check or bet? If bet, how much?

Thanks!

1 - fold
2 - check
3 - bet 1/3 pot. Just for equity denial.

Fold Pre

Flop I think checking back is fine

Turn - Definitely value betting/ protection betting around 90ish

I bet 100 on turn. Villain check raises to 400. Hero???


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crappy spot, I thought this would happened occasionally, I'd just fold.

Pre-flop is an easy fold.

I think I'd check flop, but I wouldn't hate betting like 55 or so.

I'd bet about 55 on the turn and plan to check back rivers (bet is just intended to prevent AK,AQ,AT,KQ,KT, other hands with overcards from getting a free look). Probably fold if he check/raises, even though I don't think a 3bet; check; check/raise line from him really makes much sense. If he is taking lines like this a lot, then I may change my mind (and if we get to see his cards some of those times, that would obviously help).

1. A call is probably fine here, I think. If the players are positionally aware at all, then the BTN will be opening super wide and the SB will have a wide 3B range--especially if V1 has been as spewy as you say. You could very easily be ahead. You're also super deep, and flopping a set could easily get you doubled up.

2. Really not a bad flop for Hero. A Jack isn't the scariest overcard, and he's unlikely to have connected to the deuce or trey. The problem is that it's hard for you to have strong value, too. In principle, you'll have better hands in your pre flop calling range to bet with here. AJs, even though it blocks AK or AQ (which you would prefer for him to have, and which he could very reasonably 3B), is probably a good candidate, but AJs is also a fine check-back, as you're only afraid of a K or a Q and an A will most likely get you P-A-I-D. With the 77 here, I probably check it back and bluff-catch if the board doesn't come an A, K, or Q.

3. The bet isn't terrible, but it's another situation where you'll have better hands to bet. If you always bet your calling range down to 77 here, then that's probably too many bets. You could bet JJ down to 99 and AJ for value, balanced with a very sparse selection of low-equity spade draws that you decide to call with pre (now's a good time to bet 87s), and check back 88-77 along with any AK-AQ you called with pre. If you don't have any pocket pairs left in your check flop/check turn range, then you'll be too easy to bluff off in these spots.

Once V check-raises, what can he have? The problem is that even his most likely bluffs (AK-AQ suited) have good equity against us--a whopping 15 outs. Even if he's bluffing 98 spades, he's got 15 outs to the winner. I wouldn't personally advocate three-betting overpairs (or even a set of Jacks) if I had decided to check them two streets, but if that's what Villain is doing, then we're dead to two sevens. Fold here, and check the 77 next time.

What is the villains range with this line?


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Nobody wants to 4-bet/fold preflop? I think JJ-99 seem better as flats than 77 so this is one of the strongest hands we don't want to call with, so 4-betting seems good? 88, AJs/ATs, and AQo seem reasonable to have in that 4/bet fold range too along with QQ+, AK for value.

As played I think this a check down and hope we're good spot. Maybe deciding between call and fold OTR, probably fold.

I certainly think the line is suspicious for value meaning it seems like a better line for bluffs but we also have to play a river here and we don't have many good cards to get us to showdown. If villain is bluffing now he should realize that bluffing will be his only option on the river with a lot of hands and I think our line caps our range to non-drawing hands which make spades clean bluffing outs for villain. I like some of the other hands you listed as 4-bet fold candidates for blocker effects and easier playability post flop.


It really depends a lot on how villain constructs his 3 bet range and how he reacts to 4 bets.

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Not even at all. I think it is a pretty bad hand with which to 4bet bluff; no blockers, not usually much playability post-flop if called (unless a 7 flops of course).

Spoil results

I fold and the villain shows a8 off suit.

Thanks for all your posts!


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Ok, you are exploited if your range of this size on the turn is under pairs.

lol owned

Cold call pre-flop.

Check back flop without more information.

Bet turn and it sounds like you can do it for 3 big reasons: you want to get value from AK type hands, you want to induce K9s type hands that didn't continue on the flop to check-fold, and to go to war if you're check-raised.

Like others have said, your bet size to accomplish all this on the turn doesn't have to be large.

An interesting idea is that now that you've checked back the flop and plan to bet this turn with hands this weak that you may want to tweak what used to be your flop betting range

Fold pre. You've invested 1 big blind and have to call 16 to continue (w/ the chance of being squeezed out behind). Just no reason to enter the pot here.

Definitely check flop

I like turn bet/fold. You don't have to defend against a raise w/ this hand, since I assume you'll have stronger hands too (like AJs).

imo you can make an argument for calling or folding pre flop. i would lean towards a fold but i don't hate calling. as played i check back flop and turn. i am just looking to get to a river and hope he shows AK or AQ.