Interesting hand SKP... I would have raised preflop on the button with A9s because your hand wins more than its fair share, and also because if you flop a big draw you tie people to the pot (also you probably have the biggest ace). I might raise in this spot with any suited ace as well.


Besides the preflop play I like the way you played the hand, because you said the checkraiser played well, indicating that there was a decent chance he was checkraising the flop with a draw. I'm curious what you would do if you got threebet on the turn by the good player, do you fold right there because of the high likelyhood that you are drawing dead? (I think this is correct even though you could be up against a hand like AJ). Even though I like your play of the hand, I don't think it is nearly as "correct" as some of the posters believe, because your play looks somewhat like a bluff because any powerful hand that you would have raised the turn with you most likely would have threebet with on the flop to try and kill the field behind you, making your raise on the turn look rather suspect to a great player. However I think this bluff is likely to work against your typical good but not expert player, who is holding a hand like 78.


Also keep in mind that the chance that your opponent has a draw is lowered by the fact that you have clubs, and that he might not raise in that spot with an openended straight draw (except 78s) because he fears he is against a flush draw and drawing to six outs.


Shawn