[converted_hand][hand_history]Poker Stars, $0.10/$0.25 No Limit Hold'em Cash, 6 Players
Poker Tools Powered By Holdem Manager - The Ultimate Poker Software Suite. View Hand #23434671

BTN: $44.04 (176.2 bb)
SB: $46.81 (187.2 bb)
BB: $11.68 (46.7 bb)
Hero (UTG): $42.48 (169.9 bb)
MP: $25.85 (103.4 bb)
CO: $56.10 (224.4 bb)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with A K
Hero raises to $0.75, 2 folds, BTN raises to $2.25, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.50

Flop: ($4.85) J T Q (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $2.25, Hero calls $2.25

Turn: ($9.35) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $6.25, Hero raises to $14.50, BTN calls $8.25

River: ($38.35) 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $23.48,

Villain was a 25/20/5.4 over 200 hands.

I thought there wasnt much value in raising him pre since I was playing 14/11 and raising UTG would give me a superstrong range.

Once I make the nuts on the flop I rather c/c to keep his bluffs in and on the turn I raise to eventually get stacks in against a smaller straight, 10s, JJ, QQ..

Would any of you play this differently?

Thanks in advance.

xr flop
xr'ing turn makes no sence

well when you xc flop then xr turn you say you have a flush which is kinda weird, xc turn as played esp with draw to 2nd nut flush

not sure about flop, prolly XR

Raise that flop, a LOT of hands will have problems getting away from this (TT+, AQ)

I'd donk the flop.
Villain is going to be pot controlling and checking behind with so many hands.
Just my take, could be wrong.

But if we check, it's to c/r.
This villain is unlikely to be 3 betting your (I presume not super loose) UTG open very light.
So If he is 3 betting only for value w AK+ QQ+ or AQ JJ+, he hardly has a hand that he will find it easy to get away.
And he is almost never double barreling without a real hand on that board so we don't need to bluffcatch.

The problem with C/R is IMO that villain can easily check behind KK AA AQ which leaves only sets and AK that we get it in against if we go for a c/r.

is 4bs pre not something we should seriously consider here? We don't have AA - we have AK. A 5.4 3better will likely have a LOT of hands with great equity against us, and will have position. Feels like we're turning the top of our range into a marginal profit against a range that we're a significant favorite against

Why are you playing 14/11?

^ this is more important than any hh

It hadn't played much hands yet that session.

But to be honest I do have lots of trouble constructing decent opening ranges, I get in lots of trouble opening marginal hands from MP

The problem is we are 170bb deep and Hero is playing 14/11.
I 3 bet a lot more than villain but I wouldn't 3 bet less than KK for value against 14/11 opening UTG. Add in some bluffs, sure, depending on how hero reacts to 3 bets.

But the basic point is I doubt villain is very wide, 4 betting just turns AK in to a bluff which is meeh, but perhaps better than flatting OOP with the offsuit version.

Just folding to the 3 bet isn't horrible either IMO.

This was the big reason why I didn't want to 4b my AK, since I hate getting 5bet in this spot.

Anyway, being results oriented I was horribly wrong about villains range

If you get 5 bet you are beat.
it's either a call, fold or 4b/f this deep with your stats and position.

So he had a bluff then? I doubt he had JJ or similar "thin value".

4b/f is pretty bad imo

AdXd? It fits reasonably on his sequence obviating the 3bet bluff.

Edit: I hadn't seen the spoiler, LOL

Lead or c/r flop.

Hell of a lot better than 4b/c

Yes it's turning AK into a bluff and bluffing out his bluffs . But if you don't want to play OOP without inititative, it will get a hell of a lot of credit.
So much credit that there is no way to continue if villain 5 bets.

You probably don't play 14/11 (I sure don't) but nits do get credit, villain isn't5 betting QQ let alone AQ 170bb deep v UTG 14/11. If he happens to be 3 betting for thin value, he will either flat IP (deep) or fold.

I'm still not convinced that 4b/f isn't better.

First: because of cardremoval and our nitty image it's going to happen very rarely. And when it does we just shrugfold because AK is crushed by villain's range, seeing a flop with AK vs QQ+ isn't really that valuable. More reverse implied odds, than anything

Second: I think that while we're mostly folding out hands with worse hot-and-cold equity than ours, we're still not exactly bluffing. His bluff range is going to play really well against our AK and he's going to have initiative, so while we're folding out hands with worse hot-cold equity, when you take villain's "playability equity" into account, we are, in some sense, folding out better.


Whenever I see a villain do this preflop I instantly hear Phil Galfond's gentle nasal drawl saying "That being said, you can never really go wrong 3betting in position and deepstacked"