8 p.m., Friday night, $2/$5

Hero (CO): ~$650, semi-reg. Viewed as competent but running pretty bad today.

Villain (BB): ~$600. Competent. Also running a bit bad (2 big hands on flops that lost to runner/runner).

Fish (HJ): ~$800. Super-loose. Willing to raise / play ATC / get it in with naked draws, etc.

2 limps to Fish, who makes it $35 to go. Hero has AJ and makes it $105. Hero hasn't 3-bet villain yet (but has planned to since moving to villain's left). Folds to BB, who cold-calls the $105 fairly quickly. Fish folds.

At this point, it's hard not to put villain on QQ/AK+.

Flop (~$250): Q44

Villain checks, hero checks.

Turn (~$250): K

Villain checks, hero checks.

River (~$250): 7

Villain checks, hero checks.

I thought his range smacked the flop and turn and I looked sufficiently weak by the river that any pair would have to call.

Thoughts? Too passive / too much credit?

i'd continue with a bet of 125-150otf. V has to give you credit for a strong hand since you haven't been 3betting frequently, and there are many hands he will have to let go. if called then i'm shutting down

after checking flop i'm firing the turn. only hand that can continue is AK (and possibly KKs but thats a lot less likely) and he will have to let something like 99s-JJs go.

AP i'd check the river.

I assume we are 3betting for value here...vs a calling station with these stacks id prefer a flat.. but i guess i dont hate the 3bet.


Def cbet flop....def bet turn.

If you continuely 3bet and check it thru on boards like this its vry exploitable.

I would bet 100 on the flop and double barrel on that turn if called. As played betting the river would be spew.

My brother says it's not bad for you, if you only do it once.

reg just cold called 1/6 of his stack and chose not to shut out the fish. no one in this thread gives a **** though. if you have the initiative its autobet time amirite.

if youre going to 3b light, do it with suited kings or queens. 3! with AJ is for value. as played fire flop and turn, villain has AK or TT-JJ and will fold to turn bet

As played just check river obv. But I'm betting 105 on flop and barreling a lot of turns. Turns I will check back are T, J, Q, and A.

Checking the flop is fine as long as you plan to delayed c-bet most turn cards, and the K on this turn is the perfect card for you. After a call, shut down.

This mostly is not true....


The only time we are adding suited kings and queens...which im assuming you mean broadways to 3betting light is for value. And we do this when we know villians are continuely opening light...

I only dont like 3bet bc villian is a calling station stacks arent deep.

Also hands better for 3betting not for value are hands with smaller equity vs our value hands where the flops are easy decision time.

We should be always cbetting flops like this

no, i do not mean suited broadways for value. i mean turning hands like k8s or q7s into 3bet bluffs (3betting while intending to fold to a 4b), a technique we should generally be employing, as you correctly state, if our villain is opening light a lot. since the OP claimed he was 3betting 'light' i assumed that 3betting as a bluff was his intention - but AJ is too strong a hand to be 3betting as a bluff. since our fish is described as willing to raise and call with ATC then AJ is probably ahead of his raising and calling a 3bet hand range.

Apologies...i concur

The preflop action is fine once in a while, I just don't agree with the flop and turn play. I would argue that JJ and TT is folding to a single flop Cbet as long as it's 2/3 since he's competent. You get AK to fold easily as well. I think if he continues on the flop it's with TPTK+, this is assuming your image is clean.

As played on the turn I think I like 1 stab at it, a 1/2 PSB would do the trick, as JJ and TT are snap folding, AQ is fairly hard pressed to call.

As played OTR you definitley need to check behind, as you aren't repping anything but air.

bet flop, bet turn, the end.

Your 3betting somewhat light, got an A+ board texture OTF, a perfect turn card and checked twice.

Can't be gunshy just cause its a 3bet pot. People have 910ss here sometimes.

like the 3-bet considering the raiser. not sure why you think it's light though. when the bb cold-calls i would think he has something like 9's/10's/a-qs. hard not to see a competent bb not 3-betting qq/ak+ pre with only $600 given the situation unless he is really passive.

after he cold-calls pre though i vary it up 50/50 with making a c-bet on most flops, but given this particular flop texture, i would check it back because if he has a pair 8-8+ he is imo probably not folding to one bet on that flop and will c/r you all-in with a-q. also if you have shown down light 3-bets prior to this hand with hands like 6-7 they are definitely not folding to a bet on this flop with a pocket pair.

so i would check otf and then fire like $175 on almost any turn after you're checked to because there is a chance that since you said the bb was competent he could give you credit for pocket queens, i mean, most players would assume you would check the flop with queens on a q-4-4 flop. but the king turn was especially good for a bet imo since he could certainly give your line credit for a-k so long as you haven't had to show down light 3-bets with rags.

You can 3 bet light as a bluff, as a semi-bluff, or for light value. Against the described villain who raised, 3 betting AJ here for light value is 100% correct.

I might have fired a c-bet, but I have no problems with the Hero's play of the entire hand. When a preflop plan goes awry, as it did here, there's nothing wrong with shutting down, rather than shoveling money into the pot trying to salvage a screwed up situation.