Raising the Flop with Overcards?

[cartman]

This is in a 5/10 (6 max) context, but I welcome input from any game.

I am constantly astonished at how willing my opponents are to lead out on the flop heads up out of position after I have raised preflop. I am also amazed at how rarely they 3-bet when I raise them (which is often). Recently I have been reconsidering my approach when I have overcards in this situation.

My default line versus and unknown used to be to raise with an Ace and another overcard then take the free card unimproved on the turn and call a river bet unless the flop was drawless or the draw got there on the turn or the river. Thanks to everyone's help, I realized how much money I was pissing away by usually calling with Ace high on the river. I still do it sometimes, but I fold way more often than I call. So my new default is to raise the flop with an Ace and another overcard then take the free card unimproved on the turn and usually fold unimproved on the river.

It occurred to me that, since I am not usually calling the river with Ace high anymore, that maybe my "Ace and another overcard" hands shouldn't be treated any differently than my hands that have two smaller overcards. Until now, I usually called the flop bet and folded unimproved on the turn if I steal raised with T9, for instance, and then my opponent led into me on a 6 high flop. So here are my questions:


Should I also be raising with my smaller two overcard hands and taking the free card unimproved on the turn and folding unimproved on the river?


If not, should I just be calling the flop bet with my bigger two overcard hands (like an Ace and another overcard) and then folding unimproved on the turn?


Should I continue to treat these two categories of overcard hands differently, as I have in the past?


Should I still call the river with Ace high versus an unknown after checking behind on the turn if there is an apparent busted draw that he may hold?



Thank you for any responses or input you can offer.

Cartman

[Alobar]

sadly, the only answer I can give is "it depends" and not cuz im just trying to be a smart ass, but because there are way to many variables. If poker was a game that could be broken down into catagories easily, everyone would be good at it. But it isnt, so hence the reason you always hear (it depends).

[spamuell]

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks to everyone's help, I realized how much money I was pissing away by usually calling with Ace high on the river.

[/ QUOTE ]

How did you realise this? I do it a fair amount of the time HU.

[cartman]

My "folded to a river bet was 28%" and I was informed that that was WAY too low. I brainstormed and asked for reasons why others thought that it was so low and that was the conclusion. Since I changed that, my "folded to a river bet is now about 40%. It is not just the situation that I described above. The two main changes have been

1) to not always fire again on the turn in position with Ace high after betting the flop (checking behind on the turn when I am likely behind and usually folding on the river)

and

2) To check and fold when out of position with Ace high or small pairs when I have fired on the flop and turn and gotten called

[cartman]

I realize that my post is an oversimplification. My assumptions are that my opponent will lead out with any pair, any flush draw, any open-ended straight draw, and a few others. I am also assuming that he will almost always just call the flop bet and then check the turn (I can get the free card when I want it). Is this enough information to answer any of my questions?

Thanks,
Cartman

[spamuell]

[ QUOTE ]
My "folded to a river bet was 28%" and I was informed that that was WAY too low. I brainstormed and asked for reasons why others thought that it was so low and that was the conclusion. Since I changed that, my "folded to a river bet is now about 40%.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hmmm ok mine's 43, I hope it's in the right places.

[J.R.]

its *probably* a little bit too high but you can still wins gobs of cash with a number like that