Ye ole river bet. (again)

This is intended as a "should I bet on the river" problem, but any comments on my play would be great, of course.


5-10, I open raise in the 6 seat (4 off the button) with AQo, and called by too ok but loose passive players, one right behind me and one on the small blind. 7sb's in pot.


Flop comes down KQx rainbow, sb checks, I bet, and get called in both places. 5 BB's in pot.


Turn is a K which puts a flush draw up. sb checks, and I bet out, deciding that neither of these two are tricky enough to raise here on a bluff or draw, and I can safely fold to a raise. both call, 8 BB's in pot.


River is a blank. Checked to me, now what?


* Its hard to believe there's a cowering king out there, but possible. I'd been showing down very good cards for about an hour.


* Any Q should pay me off.


* But the underpairs with A kicker and other busted draws won't.


* If I bet, I don't think I have to pay off a raise. It's too late in the hand for these guys to take a shot; it would mean that they spiked a full.


* If I check, It could go Bet, check raise, and I'm in a real bad spot.


In the heat of battle, I just never felt confident about the hand, and that emotion I think led me to backing off and checking the river. But now I think that was a mistake. Because I don't have to pay off a raise (with these two particular players, let me emphasise again) and because a Q is more likely than a K to be out given the turn action, I think a bet is in order.


Comments?

If you bet the river, I can't see anyone with a hand other than a king calling you, unless there are "honesty police" on the table. I would have some doubt about the "any Q will pay me off" statement. You have zero chance of getting a better hand to fold, and I'd put it as pretty unlikely that a worse hand will call. Checking is fine, unless you don't want to show down this hand (which you may not want to do, given that you bet strongly all the way on second pair and have a tight image that you want to maintain). This is the only benefit to the river bet that I can see.


I'd imagine they were both on draws and would not call a river bet no matter what (eg, flush draw and J-10 straight draw).

The River was checked down.


LP behind me had K9s! And Checked! And called _MY_ preflop raise! (that's an entitlement disease joke, please don't lecture me.) Obviously I misread his playing style, but I left it in the post as I saw it.


SB had JTo, a reasonable open-ended draw, and while its a mistake to call a tight player's raise i the sb with that, it fit my profile of him.

I'd bet the river, there's no reason to think you're behind, and pocket pairs might pay you off as well queens.

Bet the river here. Even if no worse hand calls you on the river, it's not that horrible, you still take down the pot. I think a worse Q is the only hand you can ecxpect to pay off here, but if you are talking about online play, then we all know how any hands pay off sometimes; so definately bet river.


A good situation to discuss by the way.


Miles...So What.