when someone bets on the flop...

[BoKoo]

i got this very big leak in my game where very often, when somebody bets on the flop, i think that they have the top pair or a hand better than mine...for instance, say that i was holding J9 and the flop was K J 5 , i would immediately assume he had top pair...sometimes when i get a read on the player i will call/raise but very often i play tight in these situations, i have this mentality which, i know, costs me alot in a cash game...is there any suggestions how i can improve this leak i have? thanks...

[Dopey]

Based on your example hand, your play isn't always that bad.

If the pot is small:

With no read on the players, your facing a bet with a marginal hand with no pot to fight over or no pot odds to support continuing if you are behind

If the pot is big:

With a marginal hand like J9 the only way to have a big pot is with some raising (but then you probably wouldn't be in) or alot of callers (More likely). With alot of callers you have a very poor draw and more players who could already have you beat or a very good draw to beat you.

Folding on a hand like you described isn't what I would call a big leak unless you have a better example or info you haven't shared.

Dopey /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[BoKoo]

what if the game was short-handed with 3-4 players?

[Dopey]

Shorthanded changes everything, best to post in the shorthanded forum as they have more experience with shorthanded games.

Dopey /images/graemlins/smirk.gif