5-10 at the Bellagio

Villains are both youngish and probably pros.
Hero is unknown and they probably think I'm a donk who plays a little bit aggressive preflop. This may be accurate for this game.

I start the hand with about $855 and I'm the effective stack.

UTG +2 opens to 35
CO calls
Hero is on BTN with Ad3d, I call
Blinds fold

Pot is $120 as rake is time-based

Flop is 6c5h3c

UTG +3 checks
CO bets 50
I call
UTG +3 folds

Pot is 220 Turn is As

CO checks
I bet 115
CO raises to 300
I call

Pot is 820 River is 2s

CO shoves for my remaining $470

I call
Will post spoiler later

All thoughtful responses appreciated

pre: I think this hand plays better as a squeeze than a flat call off 85bb

flop: I like call

turn: maybe stuff the last $400 over his checkraise?

as played i’m not folding river either, despite losing a lot of the time we only have to be good ~30%

Preflop is just a fold, as boring as that sounds but you could squeeze occasionally depending how you construct your preflop ranges. If there are some fun players in the blinds and we are deeper I think calling becomes much, much better.

Flop as played I think it's probably close... I'm no expert on multiway spots but I feel that UTG+2 should be checking range on this board, and UTG+2 facing 40% bet from CO, BTN call, he should have a relatively aggressive x/r strategy which really sucks for you. Not to mention CO's preflop flat range is very midpair heavy so it's not like we're in a great spot even if UTG+2 folds. I'd fold flop, but it's close. Versus a 75% sizing I think it's a clear fold.

Turn I prefer a bigger sizing than 1/2 pot. We are betting super polar; we either have sets, Axcc (I guess 2pairs as well) or a bluff. We benefit from more of a full pot sizing. Versus the turn x/r I feel like jamming it in can't be too bad because all his turn bluffs are combo-ish draws or naked flush draws. Calling is fine too.

River yeaaa this is rarely a bluff from the 5/10 population but we have to call; I think many of his turn combo draws simply give up river but it doesn't matter we still have to call.

Will look into this in more detail in a bit, but...

am I really missing out on EV by not defending the 40% bet on flop in a multiway spot with a player to act behind us, with bottom pair, no front door fd, no bdfd, no long range straight draw on a board where we have all the sets and plenty of overpairs and nut flush draws to defend with? I must be nitty in this spot compared to the population, taking into consideration the other feedback about flop play.

I usually play bigger games but here is my two cents. With only $470 left any good player is going to shove river blind because you didn’t ship turning a draw heavy board. This is one of the biggest money makers against average players in big games. I stopped doing it against very bad players though since they can change their mind on the river and call because they are “getting odds”

So the question is why didn’t you ship turn? Did you not like your hand or were you trapping? Trapping on that board doesn’t make much sense so if you didn’t like your hand on the turn easy fold on river especially if the player is not the type to ship every river. If he’s the type to ship every river you should never flat on that board with so little left. Shove or fold.

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

I didn't really want to post anything else about this because I'm kind of embarrassed about my play in this hand. Here are my answers to the questions about my own thought process during the hand.

Preflop:

This call is a little bit loose but I've been 3-betting a lot this session so I'm not inclined to squeeze even though I think all things being equal I should probably be squeezing here like 30% of the time at least? I also thought that I could lose a big pot to a bigger ace but some of these guys just seem arrogant to me, like poker's their one source of pride, and they probably see me as a basic donk who tends to overplay his hands so I think there's a premium on getting a big hand even though I'm not all that deep.

Flop:

I play mostly 5-5 and after the original raiser (UTG +2, sorry) checks behind me the 5/12 pot bet from the button just looks like too much of a steal to fold especially when he knows that this flop isn't going to hit the preflop raiser's range or my range very frequently. I just don't see a lot check-raised flops at 5-5 so I wasn't that concerned about a check-raise. I thought it'd be pretty risky to try that with an overpair that's not aces against two opponents and it could also leave him in a tough spot if he gets 4-bet on the flop with such a wet flop.

Turn:

After he checks the turn absent a soul-read I think I need to bet. My hand is quite strong and it looks a lot like I might also have a draw and just be trying to force him out of the pot. Against the check-raise, I think with kind of a donk image maybe this is where I should have known better, honestly. There are some players that are just going to call you down so light that a bluff check-raise never makes sense. Only one guy at the table had seen me before and I was giving a lot of action that session based just on having pretty strong cards so I may have looked kind of LAG. After all the card removal there's only 2 combos of A4s and A5s, Ah4h and Ah5h, maybe Ah3h for a chop but he might have raised some of those hands as good bluffing candidates preflop. Other than that there's 7 combos of sets assuming he never has AA here which I think is a good assumption. My reason for just calling the check-raise was kind of thought that this guy was a barreler, a player who when he bluffs tends to bluff multiple streets, and if he had a draw he wasn't going to give up on it but I think if a third club comes on the river then I can probably find a fold and if I raise he's probably calling with clubs, which are probably higher clubs given the board and he might think that if he pairs those cards they're good and and he might think he might be ahead anyway with his AcXc or KcJc whatever.






SPOILER:



He had 66 for a flopped top set.

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

I didn't really want to post anything else about this because I'm kind of embarrassed about my play in this hand. Here are my answers to the questions about my own thought process during the hand.

Preflop:

This call is a little bit loose but I've been 3-betting a lot this session so I'm not inclined to squeeze even though I think all things being equal I should probably be squeezing here like 30% of the time at least? I also thought that I could lose a big pot to a bigger ace but some of these guys just seem arrogant to me, like poker's their one source of pride, and they probably see me as a basic donk who tends to overplay his hands so I think there's a premium on getting a big hand even though I'm not all that deep.

Flop:

I play mostly 5-5 and after the original raiser (UTG +2, sorry) the 5/12 pot bet from the CO just looks like too much of a steal to fold especially when he knows that this flop isn't going to hit the preflop raiser's range or my range very frequently. I just don't see a lot check-raised flops at 5-5 so I wasn't that concerned about a check-raise. I thought it'd be pretty risky to try that with an overpair that's not aces against two opponents and it could also leave him in a tough spot if he gets 4-bet on the flop with such a wet flop.

Turn:

After he checks the turn absent a soul-read I think I need to bet. My hand is quite strong and it looks a lot like I might also have a draw and just be trying to force him out of the pot. In retrospect I think the sizing might be a little small. Against the check-raise, I think with kind of an unknown image maybe this is where I should have known better, honestly. There are some players that are just going to call you down so light that a bluff check-raise never makes sense. Vegas tourists who play 5-10, in general might be one such demographic. Only one guy at the table had seen me before and I was giving a lot of action that session based just on having pretty strong cards so I may have looked kind of LAG. After all the card removal there's only 2 combos of A4s and A5s, Ah4h and Ah5h, maybe Ah3h for a chop but he might have raised some of those hands as good bluffing candidates preflop. Other than that there's 7 combos of sets assuming he never has AA here which I think is a good assumption. My reason for just calling the check-raise was that I kind of thought that this guy was a barreler, a player who when he bluffs tends to bluff multiple streets, and if he had a draw he wasn't going to give up on it on the river but I think if a third club comes on the river then I can probably find a fold and if I raise he's probably calling with clubs, which are probably higher clubs given the board and he might think that if he pairs those cards they're good and and he might think he might be ahead anyway with his AcXc or KcJc whatever. I'm not saying this was a good reason in retrospect.

RIVER:

I don't think the 2s changed much. I can't think of any hands with a 4 in them that he might have except maybe Ac4c and he might raise/folding that preflop. 3 combos of 64 suited, 6 combos of 44 but I just don't think those are in his range. I think my hand is probably underrepresented. He might have been going for a steal on the flop with like AJ and just hit the ace on turn like I did or it might be clubs and he might figure it's no good after I called the check-raise on the turn. It sucks either way but I think if I fold it's just too exploitable.






SPOILER:



He had 66 for a flopped top set.

and that's why u dont draw to 2 pair / trips

I raise/fold the flop