What should he do??

[CJC]

Hello,

A very good friend of mine ( and also a very good HE player ) just mentioned this hand that he was involved in to me. He asked me what I would have done on the river.

I am now going to ask the forum.

My good friend open raises on the button with KQd.
SB folds and the BB calls.
Heads-up contest now..
The BB has just joined the game so my friend has no knowledge of his playing charactaristics.

FLOP -- A7J -- all diamonds.

BB checks..friend checks..

Turn -- Jc

BB checks..friend bets..BB calls

River -- 6d

BB bets out..

Does my friend raise or just call?

CJ

[John Gaspar]

I would just call. I don't see how a raise has positive expectation. He will only call or most likely reraise with a full house, 6's full or J's full of 6's and you lose two more bets. He would call with trip J's? but I would think he would have check raised the turn if that was his holding. I think it is as likely that he is making a play for the pot as he has a hand. Your friend checked the flop so the BB doesn't think he has diamonds, so he fires on the river trying to fold any hand not a flush.

[Ed Miller]

Raise. Your friend has the nut flush... and BB will call with any diamond. You really think BB has got a boat? What about the way he played the hand gives you that idea?

[astroglide]

he could flip a coin on this one - in the long run, questions like this shouldn't make any difference on your win rate

Raise. Simple as that.

PokerPrince

[Ginogino]

The only boat BB could have that makes sense of his play of the hand so far would be 6's over J's. Sure, I've played against people whose betting made no logical sense before (and I'm sure they have rightly thought the same thing of me from time to time). Still, I think the chances your friend is up against a boat are small enough to warrant a raise.

Tell your friend to consider betting the flop. There are lots of hands you could reasonably open with that aren't the nut flush -- especially when checked to on the button. Checking out the flop is suspicious, and makes many opponents think "slowplay". If you routinely play your monster flops differently than you play your pretty good flops, you become predictable.

Friend should bet flop. This is the more important problem.

How likely is:

BB to have AxXd vs. AA, AJ, JJ, smaller fh?

I'd say if it's 50/50 or better AxXd, then raise because you can fold to a 3 bet. I doubt a FH slowplays the turn, since it looks like our hero slowplayed on the flop., but who knows?

[budman]

I'd throw in one raise. It sounds most likely that BB has a diamond or is representing one and trying to take down the pot on the scare card. If the BB called him down to the river with pocket sixes, he will win this pot but won't hold onto the chips for long. /forums/images/icons/cool.gif