[Vish]

This response really confuses me. A raise here would be Hero shooting himself in the foot. He's out of position, and could easily be dominated.

I don't like the flop bet either. It says to everyone, "I have a jack." If he gets called, he's probably beat. Hero should check and see what the other two do. If they're betting hard, there aren't many worse hands they could have, as it's not a drawing board.

Check-raising the turn sounds even worse, as UTG can't be expected to suddenly bet here, unless he has a four. Paired flops must be played carefully. If you bet out in position, ask yourself certain questions: What does my bet here represent? If you know the answer, how they respond should give away their hands. Out of position, you should play top pair more passively than you would in position.