[yvesaint]

i think it really depends on the opponent. against passive, calling station-esque opponents, a blocking bet should be used more, in more situations. these are the kind of opponents that like to get to showdowns, and like to get there cheap. when i have a hand, i dont want to see it get checked behind by a passive player on the river, when i could definitely squeeze in another bet.

when a passive player raises on the river, you can be sure you're beat, and just toss your hand away. a lot of these passive players might also just call with a stronger hand at the end, but will also call with much weaker hands, looking to see if you really have something or not.

against more aggressive opponents, blocking bets should be used less - they are easily identified by thinking players, and can be raised with a larger range of hands, inflating a big pot when you have some sort of showdown value. especially if your opponent is likely to bluff the river with a missed sort of draw, or some weird mid-pair, i think check-call is better in those situations. you have a hand that you think is good, but you don't want to be pushed off of it.

i just think opponent aggression factor comes into play a lot with the decision to use a blocking bet.