Handling scary rivers

[PokerNoob]

Hand 1: Party Poker 0.50/1 (8 handed)
Hero has J/images/graemlins/club.gif, 4/images/graemlins/spade.gif and is BB

MP1 limps, CO limps, Button limps, SB limps, Hero checks

Flop(5 SB): J/images/graemlins/diamond.gif, 4/images/graemlins/club.gif, 3/images/graemlins/diamond.gif

SB bets, Hero raises, MP1 folds, CO calls, Button folds, SB 3-bets, Hero caps, CO calls, SB calls. I felt that I was more than likely ahead here and wanted to charge the drawers the maximum or get them out of the hand.

Turn(8.5 BB): Q/images/graemlins/club.gif

SB bets, Hero raises, CO calls, SB calls. I was very confident I was ahead here when I wasn't reraised.

River(14.5 BB): K/images/graemlins/diamond.gif

SB checks, Hero bets, CO calls, SB calls. When both the straight and flush card appears on the board, is this a check or a bet for value? Particularly when somebody appears to be coming along for the ride.

Hand 2: Party Poker 0.50/1 (8 handed)
Hero has 5/images/graemlins/heart.gif, 2/images/graemlins/heart.gif and is SB

UTG limps, MP2 limps, CO limps, Button limps, Hero limps, BB checks

Flop(6 SB): 3/images/graemlins/heart.gif, 2/images/graemlins/spade.gif, 4/images/graemlins/diamond.gif

Hero bets, BB folds, UTG raises, MP2 calls, CO folds, Button folds, Hero calls. I felt the openended, backdoor flush, low pair was worth a bet, and hoped I wasn't raised on a made nut flush since UTG could limp with anything at these stakes.

Turn(6 BB): A/images/graemlins/spade.gif

Hero bets, UTG raises, MP2 calls, Hero 3-bets, UTG calls, MP2 calls. I might as well tell everybody I have a five and see how they react. They either don't believe me or are hoping for the boat or flush.

River(15 BB): Q/images/graemlins/spade.gif

Hero checks, UTG bets, MP2 calls, Hero calls. I check with the intention of checkraising UTG, but when MP2 comes along, I worry about the flush and just call. Checkraise anyway?

Hand 3 Party Poker 0.50/1 (9 handed)
Hero has Q/images/graemlins/spade.gif, A/images/graemlins/spade.gif and is MP3

UTG limps, MP1 limps, Hero raises, BB calls, UTG calls, MP1 calls

Flop(8.5 SB): Q/images/graemlins/club.gif, J/images/graemlins/heart.gif, T/images/graemlins/club.gif

BB checks, UTG bets, MP1 folds, Hero raises, BB calls, UTG calls. I feel that TPTK deserves a raise to charge drawers.

Turn(7.25 BB): 5/images/graemlins/heart.gif

BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets, BB calls, UTG calls. No free cards.

River(10.25 BB): 6/images/graemlins/heart.gif

BB bets, UTG folds, Hero calls. Make the crying call with TPTK when check/caller awakens on river flush card?

Results later. (Thanks to slavic for his hand converter (http://xref.20m.com/HandConverter/).)

[Homer]

Hand 1 - On the turn, I'd go into call down mode, expecting to be shown 44 or 33 a good percentage of the time (but not often enough that calling down is incorrect, as sometimes you'll see an overplayed J or flush draw). Given the way you played it, it does seem that your hand is best when SB only calls your turn raise. I'd bet the river and either lay it down to or call a raise by the CO, depending on how sane a player he is (the more sane, the more likely I'd be to lay it down, as his coldcalls are more likely to mean that he was on a flush draw). Incidentally, you should in no way fear a straight on the river. Do you really think CO coldcalled twice on the flop with T9 or AT on a J43 board?

Hand 2 - Yes, checkraise anyway. Well, actually I'd bet out since if you check it will likely be checked through if no one has a straight/flush. But given that you checked and someone bet, you should checkraise, as it is extremely unlikely that MP2 has a flush, as almost all players would raise the river after hitting a runner-runner flush. Also, UTG doesn't have 56 as he raised preflop. His play looks like that of AA. He raised the turn hoping that you were betting out with two-pair, and when you three-bet he realized that his top set was no good. Then when you checked the river, he probably figured that you were wussing out with your two-pair or smaller set and bet for value.

Hand 3 - Well played.

-- Homer

[Bob T.]

On all three hands, go ahead and bet and call. There is enough money in the pot, that you only need to win 5-10% of the time for the call to be right. If you fold in these situations, a lot of players will be taking shots at you, and you will certainly face more than 10% bluffs. If someone in EP comes alive, you certainly call, it is a bluff more often than necessary to make the call right.

on the first hand, it is a little scary, but the player could have been hanging around with top pair bad kicker, or they might never release pocket pairs.

On the last two hands, the flush came in runner, runner, and although players hang around with those hands, usually when they had top pair on the flop, you just have to ignore them when it is your turn to act.

[PokerNoob]

Hand 1: SB had K/images/graemlins/heart.gif J/images/graemlins/spade.gif to take it down. CO had 8/images/graemlins/spade.gif 8/images/graemlins/diamond.gif.

Hand 2: UTG had 7/images/graemlins/diamond.gif 4/images/graemlins/club.gif for an even weaker hand than I ever imagined. MP2 had A/images/graemlins/club.gif 6/images/graemlins/heart.gif and I take it down.

Hand 3: BB takes it down with T/images/graemlins/heart.gif 6/images/graemlins/club.gif

[Homer]

Ignore part of my hand 2 comments. For some reason I thought UTG raised preflop.

-- Homer