Stacks are about $275 effective. $2-3 game.
UTG seems fairly aggressive, but not very good. Not much more of a read than that. Hero just sat.

Pre ($8) Hero is MP w. AQo.
UTG live straddle to $6, fold, UTG+1 raises to $20, Hero raises to $50, fold, fold, SB folds, BB folds, UTG calls, UTG+1 calls.

Flop ($158) A97
UTG checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero checks

Turn ($158) 2
UTG bets $100, UTG+1 folds, Hero calls

UTG then places the rest of his stack in the middle prior to being dealt the river

River ($358) 3
UTG bets $125 and is all in, Hero calls.

results posted later.

What's with the title? I guess that line is okay, although I would probably just bet the flop myself when checked to. If you are going to 3bet AQo without reads, you kinda have to get it in on this board.

title is just f-ing around (i already know the answer, and it's not 'really good' lol)

I would bet flop in a raised pot, pretty much always, since I cbet air. But in a 3bet pot, I am not alway cbetting my air and misses. Instead, I am thinking we can still play for stacks by betting any two streets, which is why I decide to take off the flop- plus I might either induce a bluff, or else encourage calls with hands I beat, that I might normally fold out by betting the flop then turn or river.

Definitely bet the flop, standard C-bet amount if you have one. I would make it about 40% of the pot which is in the small end of my C-bet range. I would choose this amount to make it look bluffy. Hopefully your opponents hold A10 or AJ. Much of villains range contains mid to small PP, which you want to make fold.

Bet flop to get value from AX less than your hand and put pressure on any PP or draws (I guess 8-10 suited could be out there, but unlikely IMO).

SPR is less than 2 and the flop is right in the sweet spot so the only question is how to get all the money in.

Hero will lose to AA or AK (a cooler), or to sets that called without set-mining odds (another cooler), or to a hand that improves on the turn or river. In the first two cases what is written is written, but don't give a free card to the third case.

With no read on Villain I see no reason to play other than straightforwardly, so bet flop, turn, and river to get it all in. Maybe shove the turn to deny the straight and backdoor flush draws.

that's the thing, there will be no 3 barreling on this board. I only need two streets betting half pot to get it in, and I am not betting less with the immortal nuts than I would a bluff - too easy to pick up on that and I play this casino regularly.

I like calling against an UTG raiser, especially with no history. If UTG+1 opens a fair amount than I'm obv fine with the 3b!, though I would make it slightly bigger. As played, bet the flop to set up a turn shove.

I would probably just bet the flop but it is pretty dry so I guess slow playing isn't terrible.

Once we 3-bet pre the cat is out of the bag that we have a big hand.

The only reason to slow down on the flop is if V is aggro enough to turn his hand into a bluff and/or V called us with some weak sauce suited Ace rag and once we check flop he will not put us on an Ace and think his Ax is best and will stack off.

To be honest, the above are legitimate reasons to slow down even after we 3-bet preflop. But we need villain to be very aggro to the point of borderline monkey ******ed aggro. Either that or he is all decked out in poker gear, has a WSOP cap, Beats by Dre headphones, and hoodie and is just staring at us radiating poker awesomeness. Then yeah, go ahead and check and feign weakness so he can have the green light to "out play us".

But for all other villain types, ABCs, OMCs, tight-passives... We are better off just betting because those players aren't turning their hands into bluffs, they will just check it back hoping to either bink their miracle two outer or get to showdown without putting any more money in the pot.

Lastly, obviously we get owned by AK, but if V is aggro, his range is wider than JJ+, AK so we should be alright as long as OP description is accurate

I'm voting for station

Given the stacks well played. It is either cbb or bcb line.

Agree with betting the flop, don't agree about wanting hands we beat to fold. Although we are unlikely to get multiple streets from a non-set pocket pair in a 3b pot, we would like to get at least one.

The question is do we get more by checking or betting this flop when checked to? Without reads I'm going to say we have to bet the flop, otherwise we aren't going to have much idea where we are when we fire later streets.

I think 3-betting the UTG+1 open with AQ is probably the biggest mistake in the hand.

Thanks, guys. I thought the villain that was raised would come along pretty wide, and he should know that I am pretty aggro and will 3bet decently wide myself, especially since I am going to be trying to steal his steal a bunch, which is why I 3bet it.

As far as checking back flop, that wasn't so much my question, even though it seemed the focus of this thread, but in game it felt like the best way to play for stacks. I really didn't think there is much out there that is calling a flop bet and turn shove, and the only way to get two street from something like TT or AJ was to take the flop off. My question was more about the call from the turn bet and river shove, but it sounds like most of you feel that when I induce a spazz, I have to be ready to face the consequences.

UTG was sitting with 24ss. Probably one of the worst plays I have ever seen.

was a little disappointed that no one analyzed his 'throw his stack in the middle before the river even hits' move. It just screamed bluffy to me. Why would he ever do this with a set or AK?

You ask in the title "Am I a station?" then proceed with a hand where you check flopped Top/Top. Everybody's like "Uh, you shoulda bet there", yet you argue.

Would it be tragic if V had 23 instead of 24? Then maybe you'd be crying "I shoulda bet the flop!"

normally yeah I agree, however OP did say Villain was aggro and not that good so I'm more or less fine 3-betting with AQ if we have confidence V's opening range is much wider than the typical EP raise at this level.

I see players do this with any hand that they decide to "go with". For those player who do do (lol) those types of things, I really don't see why they would specifically decide to not do it with a set or AK. It's usually inexperienced players that don't want to have to deal with the stress of having to make a tough decision on different board run out's.

As for it being "one of the worst plays you have ever seen"... You made this hand to ask whether you should call on the turn and river right? That indicates that you were considering folding. I don't really think that we can fault a player for making an aggressive move to win the pot with a bluff and call it the worst move I have ever seen. FWIW, once you 3bet AQo and get this flop with this SPR, there should be almost zero debating in your mind whether or not you should be ever folding of not.

It seems that you are focused on the least important and most trivial part of the hand. Once you check the flop, you can't fold unless both Villains shove, show you their card, and you can confirm you are behind. Pre-flop and the flop should be your focus.

Correct, but the opener is UTG+1, not UTG.

Turns out UTG+1 doesn't play a role post-flop, but he is of course the biggest consideration by far pre-flop.

Also I don't hate the flop slow play.

With such small stacks, there's certainly a benefit to giving a hand like KQ a chance pick up a pair that will lose more chips to us, or let a hand like TT get suspicious and call down after we check the flop (and it could pick up a very weak gut shot on the turn), or let a villain bluff into us, etc. We can definitely get stacks in against worst on turn and river, and by checking we help widen stack off ranges and also encourage bluffs.

Love this.

Not to mention how good it is for balance, assuming we rarely/never have pure air here but often have PPs. NH OP

You didn't give any reads on UTG+1. Without reads, not a big fan of 3-betting his $20 open. People tend to play tighter in straddled pots, and I don't think AQo does that well against an unkowns UTG1 raising range in a straddled pot.

Bet flop u donk

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Are you a station or really good, i guess depends on your villain. Against aggro spazz you are good, against tight passives and this line you are a station.

NH WP. Check flop imho is almost mandatory IP after your pre play and this V.

This too: when I induce a spazz, I have to be ready to face the consequences.

U gave him a free card and he hit his set on the turn
Lol

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