PokerStars, $9.80 + $1.20 - Omaha H/L Pot Limit - 125/250 - 8 players
Replay this hand on Upswing Poker

UTG: 29,108 (116 bb)
UTG+1: 26,500 (106 bb)
MP: 12,554 (50 bb)
MP+1: 24,300 (97 bb)
CO (Hero): 25,475 (102 bb)
BU: 27,550 (110 bb)
SB: 41,851 (167 bb)
BB: 12,296 (49 bb)

Pre-Flop: (375) Hero is CO with 6♦ 5♦ 3♠ A♠
UTG calls 250, 3 players fold, Hero raises to 750, 2 players fold, BB calls 500, UTG calls 500

Flop: (2,375) 9♠ 5♥ A♣ (3 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets 1,500, BB folds, UTG calls 1,500

Turn: (5,375) Q♣ (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets 4,000, UTG calls 4,000

River: (13,375) 4♠ (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero checks

Early doors in this. Thoughts on all streets welcome.

Would bet river

How much and why please?

Yeh river must be a value bet. How much would you bet with some other hand?

For value mostly, since it's very unlikely hero doesn't get at least half and hero will often scoop. How often will villain have 23 for wheel and then not lead river? Otherwise only A526 seems a credible hand that would give hero less than half (how many other 26 hands w/o a 3 can villain really have?). Since hero basically has a lock on high outside of a wheel, it's an easy fold imo if raised. The only reason not to bet/fold here is if hero has strong read that villain is tricky enough to often c/r river with 23 or as a pure bluff. As far as bet sizing, if hero understands why he probably needs to bet here, he should be able to determine a reasonable bet size.

Now that I think about it, I think if you use only very large sizings on wheel boards, betting this would become too thin. For me in cash, something like half pot is standard, but in a tournament it's possible that a smaller bet like third or quarter of the pot is better.

Of course, if we have reads on villain or player pool it might change some things, but also you would probably have told us if that was the case.

How is my sizing before the river?

I admit that I am more of a fixed limit player and this whole "more than minbet" thing confuses me a lot.

I used to play PL 10c/25c 6max and full ring cash and back then, must have been >5 years ago, I pretty much bet pot or checked.

Since then from what I've learnt in NLHE, that is not a good strategy, since it is better ROI to be able to bluff for smaller than pot and also when betting for value, there are many instances players will call a 30%, 60% or 75% of the pot bet, but not call a 100% pot bet, hoping to bluff catch or peel with draws that have reverse implied odds that will make me money later in a hand. Potting discourages players to stay in the hand and from what I've been able to tell over the years, most people are not good at this game postflop.

Where I get confused is when to apply what sizing, particularly because there are so many variables at play to determine what is the correct decision, and I reckon a short book could be written on the subject.

At that stage of the tournament this was already a sizeable pot (>50bb), and to me it seemed the most credible hand for him to have that was check/calling was 23** or some kind of A***

I pretty much figured this pot is ok to win and I didn't feel like he's gonna call with worse if I bet. Maybe I'm wrong. But yeah it was about the fact it was a tournament, and yeah it was a SCOOP so I was playing very carefully.

If it was fixed limit I wouldn't think twice. I would always bet and hope not to get raised!

Mostly agree on his range, but would add some 24** and probably 34** type hands as well.

If you didn't feel like villain would call with worse, then perhaps you have at least a fuzzy read on him that would be pertinent. It's an $11 MTT, so I wouldn't give villain too much credit or play extra carefully based on it being SCOOP.

He's going to have 23** a significant amount of the time heading into the river, but not most of the time, and even then how often is he also going to check the river when he hits wheel? I feel like he has a hand that would be happy if you checked back: A pretty good hand one way, and a fairly weak one the other way, such as AH24, A24L or A34L, 245L, maybe A3LL, 246*, 345* or 346*.

Somewhere around half pot seems about right to me, although I could see anything from ~1/4-3/4 being defensible.