Cowboys vs. calling station

[private joker]

Live 3/6 game, 9 handed, one-blind structure (BB is left of button, no SB). I have a very good read on the Villain in this hand, MP3. He is a weak-tight calling station.

Preflop: Hero is UTG with K /images/graemlins/club.gif K /images/graemlins/spade.gif
<font color="red">Hero raises </font> , 4 folds, MP3 (Villain) calls, CO calls, <font color="red">button 3-bets </font> , BB folds, <font color="red"> Hero caps </font> , Villain calls, CO calls.

Flop: Q /images/graemlins/heart.gif J /images/graemlins/diamond.gif 9 /images/graemlins/heart.gif (4 players, 17 sb)
<font color="red"> Hero bets </font> , Villain calls, CO calls, button calls.

Turn: 7 /images/graemlins/spade.gif (10.5 BB)
<font color="red"> Hero bets </font> , Villain calls, CO folds, button calls.

River: 2 /images/graemlins/club.gif (13.5 BB)
<font color="red">Hero bets </font>, Villain calls, button folds.


Looks pretty straightforward, so I'll post the results immediately and ask a hindsight question. The Villain turned over 77 and MHING. I don't think I misplayed this by never check-raising on any street, seeing as how the flop was coordinated. I didn't want to check-raise the flop and accidentally give someone a free card to draw out on me. But in hindsight, a check-raise would have forced Villain to cold-call 2 SB with nothing but an underpair after a capped PF. He would probably have folded. But how could I know that? Is this just a case of bad luck and poor decisions by my opponents?

[Rubeskies]

You going for a check/raise on the flop doesn't protect your hand because the pot is too big and you do fear giving a free card.


A calling station is loose passive, not weak tight. It is a contradiction in terms to call a calling station weak tight. If he is weak tight he folds too much. A calling station does the opposite.

[MastiffPaul]

You can't not bet at a calling station just because you're afraid he's caught a miracle card, or that he might have AA when you have KK. That's party of the beauty of playing against a passive opponent; they're not going to milk profit out of you when they DO catch that miracle card. The other day, I was silently cursing a passive opponent who beat my set with a better set--then I realized that I could have lost much more money than I did had I been playing against a more aggressive opponent.

[edthayer]

Where can you checkraise this? Not on the flop-- it's too dangerous to risk getting checked through. Not on the turn, after you showed aggression preflop and on the flop, and not on the river when the blank falls.

[private joker]

[ QUOTE ]

A calling station is loose passive, not weak tight. It is a contradiction in terms to call a calling station weak tight. If he is weak tight he folds too much. A calling station does the opposite.

[/ QUOTE ]

True. By tight I meant he usually only plays good starting hands (pocket pairs, big broadway, some suited connectors) and by weak, he rarely raises to protect his hand -- but I guess that's more passive. If he were truly tight he'd have made the right decision to fold this preflop when it was 2 more bets back to him. He had to know his 77 was a 2-outer at best.

[edthayer]

I know what you mean Matt. The main reason I think it's so frustrating is because you THINK you're going to take down a pot with your set against an opponent who has shown little or no aggression, but then suprise! They had top set all along!

It wouldn't be nearly as frustrating if they were betting/raising you all along (although it would be much more costly), because then you would be mentally prepared to lose when they show you a monster at the end.