Slowplaying sets

Do people routinely slowplay (bottom/middle) sets against rainbow/uncoordinated boards? And how many opponents do you consider this safe with? I'm talking check-calling the flop and maybe even the turn. Maybe I am risk averse, but I usually lead out and play them fast. My thinking is that
a bet of any size usually disguises a set anyway and there are enough donks that pay me off overplaying top pair, etc. even without having to "protect" my hand because of the draw-unfriendly board.

Not to be too anecdotal, but on the FullTilt live tourney, Ted Forrest slowplayed a set of 7s beautifully in a 4-way flop with 2 diamonds on board only to take much of John D'Agostino's chips by letting him catch an ace to go with his A10o.

Thoughts?

[Nicholasp27]

i'm not letting 3 opps get a free draw against me with 2 of a suit on the board

Agreed. What about a rainbow board?

[downtown]

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Agreed. What about a rainbow board?

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I'll probably check/call the flop and pop the turn.
1) The turn will typically put some sort of draw on the rainbow flop board.
2) If anyone has anything that they're willing to play back with, I want to build the pot. If I just take it down, it's unlikely I would have gotten much more in on the river anyway.

[Unoriginalname]

If there is 2 of one suit or any kind of coordination on the board then I pretty much always bet out. If the flop is something nice like Q72 rainbow and I have 77, then I'll quite often slowplay it. All this could vary, however, due to how many people saw the flop.

[wildzer0]

I think this may be somewhat buy-in dependant. I play the 33s, and there's no reason to slowplay a set as some donk is usually willing to put in all his chips with TPWK. Usually, slowplaying a set in the 33s is the same as giving free cards and missing value bets that would have been paid off anyway. Also, so many people tend to slowplay weaker made hands like top pair, 2 pair, etc. that you're giving a chance for a scare card to come and stop the betting altogether.

In an SNG, I think that if you flop a set, even the lowest set, and there is a rainbow, you must assume you have the best hand and be willing to put all your chips in. In this situation, I never want to shut down the hand, but that doesn't mean I won't bet the flop. I find that People with 2 overcards or bottom pair will tend call if you bet the flop. So, if I am first to act, often I will throw in a bet about half the pot, or even a minimum bet. If it is checked to me, I will give a free card. But, as soon as there are two of a suit out there. I am betting hard enough so a 12 outer (flush draw + overcard) is not getting odds.

Back to betting on the flop. So, 1 reason to bet on the flop is because he is more likely to call with 2 cards to come. Then, when the turn comes, the pot is bigger and he might feel abliged to call again.

I think that typically it is not worth it to check, unless you know he will bet the flop - in which case I will always check. This is because, if he hasn't hit yet, he most likely won't hit the turn, so he will probably fold if you bet then.

So, even though I am saying to bet the flop. It is still a slow playing move. You are pretending to be weak but at the same time, you are building the pot to try and force him to stay in the hand until the end. Basically, in all this I am just trying to say that if you are first to act you should get a bet in on the flop, whether it is inducing a bluff or a bet from him, or leading out yourself.

I know this is not that clear, maybe someone can word what I'm saying better.

-MG

[Al P]

It depends.

[mosdef]

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It depends.

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i agree, although this isn't a terribly useful post.

but, really, it does come to position and reads and so on; you know, actual post-flop poker. you would really have to post hands (i know, i know, that's all anyone ever says) and discuss to develop a feel for when this would work and why. so i guess that i would suggest NOT trying to come up with a one-size-fits-all approach to playing sets (do i slow play, do i lead?) because you're doomed to be wrong some of the time if you pick a static line.

considerations would be the number of people acting before/after you on the flop (if you're last to act, for example, you can bet the flop and it will look like an attempt to steal the pot. conversely, if you're heads up you can use reads on the opponent to decide how he'll handle a check or a bet and act accordingly), stack sizes if you're late in a tourney (if someone might feel pot committed then you obviously just lead and take his chips), coord vs uncoord board (OP knows this, he mentioned it) and more.

i hope this helps, or at minimum spurs more discussion that will help you. i think you really need to approach each flop with the idea that checking or betting could both be right, neither is "standard", and think about what could happen if you do one or the other.

[benkahuna]

Be wary of miracle straight draws from people that have shown the ability to play any two.

The straight draw can be sneaky and dangerous and they'll call without PO, but what are eventually good implied odds, to hit their straight and bust you.

This scenario occurs with generally loose players, but also skilled players that know how to get the most out of playing very loosely and very high risk.

I would expect it as more of a cash game move than a tournament move.