1/2 Game - Typical loose, passive preflop.

~$200 effective.

Hero raises to $17 from MP over one limper. with JJ.

V to my direct left calls - he has been the most active.

Flop 933r

H bets $10
V calls.

Turn 8s.

Hero $30
V calls

River As

Hero checks
V snap bets $31

Hero snap calls.

My question here starts with the flop.

I've been experimenting with betting small on flops like this, to keep more hands in, but the only problem with that is you don't know which hand you kept in!

Perhaps betting small on this flop would be better with AA since JJ needs a little protection.

I also think I should have bet more like pot on the turn?

I also did not consider that betting so small on flop could open up backdoor draws and floats.

Some people will call light, and some just play fit or fold.

This guy ended up going runner runner spades with K10ss, which makes sense.

I didn't even think about it.

Additionally, I thought his snap bet seemed fishy as the A should not be in his range except for maybe A9 soooted and he never has 3x.

ALSO, I have heard that betting quickly is a bluff tell because when people have a big hand they tend think about it.

But apparently, this guy just had some chips ready in his hand to bet if his spade comes.

Betting $31 on the river into about $100 means I don't have to be good very often, but how often am I good?

That's a hard thing to calculate unless you really know a player and even then it seems like a guess.

What bluffs can he have? Would he ever bet worse? Like 98? or K9?

Plus, they just don't bluff at these levels hardly ever.

I generally hate paying off, and if he bet bigger I would have found a fold, but it's just so hard when it's so cheap.

In general, I think a bigger on the turn would have been good especially if I saw the backdoor spades.

Thoughts?

you played it fine.

you can check the flop sometimes too.

Preflop is on the large side.

This is an excellent flop for you. I would size up a bit - maybe 20 - get value from a 9, underpairs, and fold out the overcards.

Turn is good as played.

River is interesting. He shouldn't have many Ax. I'm not concerned by the backdoor flush coming in as (1) it's backdoor and most spades hands will fold the flop unless it's 9Xss, and (2) the As is accounted for. The question is whether you should check or bet. I would be inclined to bet small here, folding to a raise.

As played you can't fold to this sizing, but what would you have done facing a shove?

Hey OP, in your hh give pot sizes on all streets. It’s easier for your readers to understand the hand, and you’ll get more responses. Also subtract the rake.

Agree with moxterite about sizing down preflop unless 15 is the standard opening bet. Big open bets are sometimes tells that suggest hero has hands like TT and JJ that hero wants to play fast.

The flop is dry but dynamic since many turn and river cards change the hand, some to your favor, others to V’s. So I agree with moxterite here to raise to 2/3 pot.

Turn bet is fine.

I would be skeptical of reading V’s snap river bet as only a bluff. Any reads on V? GG has written that he is cautious about calling suspected river bluffs. Few players at low stakes bluff the river. V could have planned earlier in the hand to bet out any A if he’s holding Ax.

However, he has to be bluffing only 1/5 times to justify the call. As moxterite writes, he doesn’t have a lot of Ax in his range.

Facing a bigger river bet, I’m folding. Vs just don’t bluff the river with big bets often enough to call. Ed Miller wrote that calling big turn and river bets without the nuts or near nuts is the biggest leak in live no limit hold ‘em.

The only street I have advice on is turn we should go larger, 2/3 or 75% pot. But this villain probably still calls you on turn, so it won't change the outcome of this hand.
River is fine. Basically not folding to this small bet on the river.

Preflop is also a tad big, but not terrible.