Play Along...... street by street - The FLOP

[zambonidrivr]

getting away from the hand cheaper? no thanks, that leaves me with about 8x BB. i take this biaaatch down and move on.

[rockythecat99]

I'm sorry but I have to disagree with you here. A bet of 300-350 does not induce a push here often enough to warrant a smaller bet. The typical internet player is just not sophisticated enough to push this draw enough times for me to want a smaller bet. A smaller bet here is just asking to get outdrawned.

[djshawk]

With the flush draw out there if MP hit his set he is going to lead out. As will any 2-pair/top pair hand. I think its safe to assume you are ahead.

After his check MPs range of hands can be shortened quite a bit. Any K is betting out, and hands like QJs, QTs would probably fold or raise pre-flop. So I would say likely hands are PP < 9 (but not hit set) or AJ-A8.

Having given him that range I think a bet of ~250 is pretty safe, and I would expect to take the pot down right there.

[nsj]

I bet 425 and go from there, for reasons already articulated by the "punish the draws" crowd.

Edit: to elaborate.... a small bet welcomes draws in, and if button calls with a draw or a T, then that prices in the other two behind us with as little as bottom pair. If it goes to the turn multi-way in a fairly big pot, then it will be very difficult to assess what cards are scare cards, and it will be uncomfortable to put our stack in (only reasonable turn bet considering the pot size) unless a K or non-heart Q hits the turn.

[zambonidrivr]

i agree with everything but the small bet. that size bet attracts all kinds of action that you don't want. you don't have a healthy stack, and we have all established that your well ahead here.

[djshawk]

So let them peel one off for 300 chips?

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I am moving in here

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I absolutely hate this line. You're not getting called by anything you're ahead of. Your best bet is Ax of hearts calling you, and you're not very far ahead of that hand. Pushing folds hands you beat and spews your stack into someone with a hand.

Do you really think someone calls you with AT here? That's about the best you can hope for.

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I bet about T200 here. While it's too small a bet, if no one has anything they want to play with, it's as effective in picking up the pot as anything else.

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This is the play. This hand is about keeping the pot small, until you know where you stand. Betting ~400 leaves us with ~980 in chips. That's pretty damn pot committed, if our flop bet gets called and we go into the turn with a pot of ~1250 or so.

If you bet 200 and get pushed into, you can get away from this hand, depending on your reads. If you bet 200 and get called, and the turn blanks, you can bet him off the hand - with an ~800 pot and an ~1150 stack.

Bet 200. Play poker on the turn.

[zambonidrivr]

because at a bet of 200-300, it is profitable for them over the long haul to make the call. Part of being a profitable player is controling pot odds that are in your favor and force others in mathmatically incorrect situations.

Not sure if it was harrington or not but someone said that our success in poker will be the sum of our opponents mistakes minus your own. action is to me here, i feel i have the best hand, i am charging someone for that next card that is more expensive than they should pay.

[CatfishKing]

bet T400 on the flop, push the turn as long as its a non heart card thats lower than 8. re-evaluate the situation if a scare card falls

[fnurt]

How is it profitable for someone with a flush draw to call at 3-1 pot odds when they are 5-1 to make their hand on the turn? I have no intention of letting them see the river for free. In fact, they will clearly be priced out on the turn.

While a flush or open-ended straight draw is making a small mistake by calling this bet, a small bet will also induce hands like a gutshot or middle pair to make a bigger mistake by taking a card off.