17 left in a £225 end of series closer. 10 paid with a relatively big min cash of £800
2k/4k blinds
Table playing very snug nothing too outrageous and I have 0 history with opp in the hand but from what I've seen he seems very competent.

I have ~75k
MP has ~110k

I open to 8k UTG +1 with AQo
MP calls 8k
Folds round

Flop A99r
I bet 6k, MP calls

I think at this point I have the hand pretty much locked. OP shouldn't have any 9s and there's only 1 A9s left.

Turn 2 (A992) no flush draw
I check, MP checks


River K
I check, MP bets 6k, I raise to 26k, MP goes all in....
I have ~34k (9bbs) left if fold.

I check with plans to c/r big which happens. I think a bet never gets paid by worse, and the c/r can get him off some chops if he value bets a worse A. I think I'm never ever behind, until the jam...

What to do?

We’re less than 20bbs effective here so we need to be trying to get this in for the full double. I think the best way to accomplish this is bet-bet-shove. Checking the turn is reasonable for deception but then we need to find a river line that looks bluffy enough to get either all of the chips in OR at least a very big bet called. That’s a bit too fancy for my tastes so I’m going with bet-bet-jam. As played I think you should have just check-jammed the river. You left yourself crumbs behind and now you don’t know what to do. Not a good plan.

There are a few 9Xs hands Villain can have (like T9s, J9s, Q9s, K9s, 98s, 97s along with the remaining A9s and 99).

Personally at this stage I think that a call on the flop indicates an A or a 9 or possibly a PP. I would think that a UTG+1 open would have some Broadway opens like KQ/KJs/QJs/QTs/JTs maybe. So it is possible that Hero has no pair on the smallish flop cbet.

By checking the turn and river it does indicate that Hero doesn't have an A and Villain does block bet the river. But here is where I diverge from the strategy. I would just call the 6k. A c/r is never getting called by worse than Ax. In general people rarely bluff c/r the river. And the 6k sizing is indicative of a hand that is a KQ type hand hoping a PP will call, a bluff, or a monster that is hoping to get called by Kx.

If you think Villain doesn't have a 9, betting the turn is critical in terms of doubling up in case he has an A. Sizing is tricky but making it a smallish 1/3 pot type bet of about 13k allows a river shove that is polarized.

Given the way the hand played out by the river it looks like hero has no Ax or 9x hands and Villain has no Ax or 9x hands. Which is kind of clever by both of you. However at that point if I am Hero I would make a large pot size bet of like 38k on the river. That looks like it could be a bluff. And Villain will jam like he did and its a call for Hero in case its a chop.

As played on the river its 34k to win 41k so if you still believe Villain has no 9 then its a call. Villain will likely believe Hero doesn't have a 9 as well so could be shoving with any A.

Yeah, I think this is right. (Also right: Mr Rick's observation that villain can certainly still have some 9x.) And you chop with every ace now so I'm not really sure why you'd set up a check-raise on this board when your kicker doesn't play anymore and you aren't really that nutted.

In before 99.

This. Action seriously looks like Quadzilla.

Thanks for all the feedback, yes agree i tried to play this one a little tricky which when the river jam comes in it backfires a little as ive put myself in an unnecessary difficult spot.

i tanked enough to get a clock called, i just couldnt think of a hand i was losing to eventually figuring that all really strong hands that want to put it in on the river following a c/r (A9s, 99 etc) bet more than 6k and so eventually called and he had turned his KTs into a bluff thinking the same with my river check

Fun hand

I call Balderdash on your results post, OP.

If this hand resulted in you doubling up, then you'd already know that you played it just fine and made the right decisions at the crucial moments, and that means that your post is just a humblebrag that belongs in BBV.

Unless you want us to believe you would ever fold that river with over 30bb in the pot and only 9bb back?

Oh no, random Internet forum user thinks I lied or thin bragged. Devastating.

Maybe just try accepting things for what they are going forward, not everything is a conspiracy

Then please explain to me in simple terms what the strategy or tactical question is here, because I find none. The hand is pretty basic, as you tell it: you flopped top pair with your Ace, which means that with only about 15bb's back you want very much to get chips in the pot. You did so and you won. So what makes this hand thread worthy?

BTW, it is perfectly okay if you called and ran into better. If that was the case, I could see someone asking "Did I misplay this hand?" But if it played out as you said, why have you wasted our time with it? Almost everyone is going to make a crying call when he jams. There is nothing to be ashamed of.

No thank you.

If you think this is basic and no strategy ok, feel free to not worry about it.

Thanks again to those who did reply.

Late but the bluff alarm bells rang when I saw V didn't bet the turn when checked to. Trips is such a monster late in a tournament that not at least putting in a small bet would make little sense.