15-30 hand

Full table. I am in the cutoff with As-Qd. UTG, a loose passive limps, UTG2, a loose agressive limps, player to my right limps, I raise. Both blinds fold and the three limpers all call. 4 players. Pot = 145.


Flop is Qs 8d 3c. All check to me. I bet. Only the UTG2 loose agressive calls. 2 players. Pot = 175.


Turn is Kh. UTG2 checks. I bet. UTG2 raises. Pot is now 265. I fold.


Comments please.

If the raiser has a king, then you have 5 outs with any ace or queen. A five-outer is an 8-to-1 shot. There is $235 in the pot and it costs you $30 to call so your pot odds are slightly less than this. But if you hit, you rate to collect another $30 on the end, so maybe the implied odds are there for a call. However, if he has specifically king-queen, then you have only three outs with any ace which is a 15-to-1 shot and a fold would be in order. If has two pair, kings-up but not kings over queens, you still have all five of your outs working. If he has a set you are drawing dead. I would call because the player is loose, aggressive and the likelihood of him check-raising you with just a top pair of kings is higher than with a more passive player who might fear you have ace-king.

do you think it would be a mistake to check behind a loose agressive player headsup in this situation when an overcard to your ex-top pair falls on the turn? (As it keeps you from getting raised out of the hand for now and you get to see the river card and take it from there)

I'd call and fold to a river bet. If I were UTG2 with JTs, I would have played it the same way as UTG2 did. I think check raise semibluffs on the turn are very effective; you have to consider this possibility (as well as the chance you will improve to two pair or better on the river).

I also like a check here. [Ain't it nice to agree on this one? :-)] Loose aggressive will probably now bet no matter what comes on the river and thus you lose the minimum if the king beats you (or he already had you beat) and you might cause him to bet a hand worse than yours on the river.


I don't put him on K-Q as I think we would have heard from him on the flop, nor can he have A-K. So I think, given the action as it was, I'd call the raise on the turn, even though a set of 8s or 3s is certainly possible.

It can be the right play against a loose, aggressive player since with these guys I frequently fear their checks more than their bets. Also by checking it down you might induce a river bet by him which you can beat. If checks the river as well as then you can bet and get a "curiosity call".

Why possibly check the turn here? If he has called with a hand on the flop that does not beat pair queens, checking on the turn means you are giving him a free card to improve to 2 pair on the river?


The attitude of checking on the turn and auto calling on the river just seems too weak for me. Intuitively it does not fit with my tight aggressive style. I do appreciate though that many things in poker are not initially intuitive, and am keen for more thoughts on this.


Miles...So What.

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