stacks are all ~300

HERO/BB(400) Young hotshot kid

Villians are all mostly loose-passive mid-old white guys

BTN straddle 6
SB call
HERO call KQ

2 calls behind
BTN checks option

5way
FLOP(30) T95

SB checks
HERO?

I'm raising this hand PF.

As played, lead for close to pot and jam over a raise.

lead and build a pot for when our hand comes in. We don't want to give any free cards right now.

I'd also raise this PF. If/when someone raises and we call we're put in a tough spot OOP. We c/f mostly all flops that are not like this one or one that doesn't contain a K or Q.

Raise pre, cbet most flops, and DB on some turns if called.

why do we not want to give any free cards?

We can't expect the passive guys to bet so let's build a pot.

Oh, and raise pre.

Jesas. Slow down everyone. Ppl talking about trying to get stacks in on flop. Wtf? We have K-hi.

As played, idk if leading here is best play. Because of your lack of money invested and decent equity, it would be a disaster of you were to bet and face a raise and a reraise and have to fold. Epically as passive guys love rag Aces, epically any suited Ace. So by taking a wait and see approach, you can save your stack in a nut flush vs 2nd flush scenario. And if they view you as aggressive, they would expect you to bet a big flush draw, so when you check it, they feel better about their draw. Making it easier to stack them when the flush hits. Also if it checks thru, you can bet any over card (other than a non flush A) or a 2,3,4 as it's unlikely to be in their ranges. And any K or Q is likely good to value with. The straight too. So you have a lot of ways to take down the pot or make the best hand. Especially a lot of ways to make a best hand with a close second best hand behind you. And you have good relative position in that if it checks thru and you hit and see someone rite behind you looking ready to bet, you can check to let them bet and trap the field in for more bets then you come in with the hammer.

Masta--

Why is this a raise pre?

We have a hand that seemingly plays well multi-way, furthermore if we make a TINY raise (in llsnl standards) to 3x that is about 18.

I think that 18 lops off the bottom of their limpnig range in this button straddle pot. Im more then happy to let worse Kx and Qx as well as XYhh come along by limping.\\

Cliffs: bad players think "OMG 18 is a BIG RAISE! im just gonna fold my QT/57h"

because although we have a sexy combo draw we still have K high. Say the turn is a A or a Jx and the flop checked around, how are we going to get stacks in w/o building a pot on the flop?

I don't mind checking if i for sure know someone behind will bet, but in a limped pot with a combo draw and two overs i'd like to build a pot and take initiative myself.

if your villains are as described i believe most of the time they're calling with QT, KJ, KT, QJ, 57hh, etc.

This is kind of like cognitive dissonance.

You say "we only have k hi"

But also want to set up to get stacks in?

Okay I mean maybe this fair.

But I would still contest that even reasonable looae-passives have a preflop threshold. And the btn straddle adds the anxiety that the btn may squeeze the straddle behind them.

If this was an unstraddled pot I might be more inclined to agree

Another thought: If we can agree that there is SOME REAL % that they will fold these hands if raised, but will 100% call. is there really that much value in raising if on occasion when we raise we will be up against alot more hands that crush us OOP?

we have plenty of equity, but that's by the time we get to the river and see all 5 cards... right now we still have K high, and i'd like to lead the flop to maximize our equity when we do do hit which is plenty of time assuming our over cards are live as well.

does a hand like QJo folds to one bet? likely no, does a QJ checks back when the hand is checked to him? likely yes.

I'm more inclined to raise this hand because we're OOP and play with initiative.

the argument i'd make is the times that villains calls with these hands and fold to a cbet or a DB when they miss which happens plenty often.

Pretty much this.

If hero bets $25, and someone raises to $75, then hero can shove. This is why it's important to have multiple BIs in your pocket.

Just open jam flop. You have heaps of outs and stuff.

Grunch:

Limp and see what happens with the straddle. You might find a great spot to squeeze.

As played OTF, lead for pot. Most likely call a raise.

I'm totally cool with just calling preflop. We're going to be OOP postflop (which sucks) so I'd rather not bloat the pot, and instead try to encourage a nice multiway pot where we can play this hand for its multiway properties (and not necessarily TP).

I would probably donk $15 into the pot. It might take the pot down. Otherwise it builds a pot where we have good equity and gives us lots of room to call a raise (and I think I would only call a raise given size of stacks behind, plus my personal belief that most raises on the flop are nuttish, which not everyone will agree with). Pot is fairly small relative to stacks, so it's not worth getting all aggro like I would with a smaller SPR (where I would probably check/shove the flop to maximize my FE).

GcluelessNLnoobG

Just lead flop, as most people agree, to 2/3 pot or so. I don't mind a raise or call pre. I probably just call if a loose-passive player raises me, but it depends on the raise/player/action.