[Buzz]

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My thoughts with this three-bet was to push out most of the other drawing hands, lows and so forth so as to prevent me from being quartered. Good play? It also could get me the whole pot if the person is such a donk that he'd raise a low draw here. I also have a freeroll to the nut flush to scoop the pot if in case he also has QJ

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Boolean - Your logic makes sense. (Except I'd be more worried about getting halved by someone making low on the river than getting quartered).

I'm trying to figure what BB holds to check on the first betting round, check/call on the second betting round, and then check-raise on the third betting round after the ace of hearts appears on the turn. Doesn't make any sense. (Maybe that's the idea, or maybe BB suddenly wants to get all-in for some reason largely unrelated to the cards involved on this deal).

Seems like the most likely possibilities for BB might be (1) a flopped straight that BB decided to slow play on the flop, maybe with the queen, jack of spades, or (2) an uncounterfeit able low draw (234X). (3) But BB could also have a set, or (4) nothing. Whatever. (Doesn't seem like a check raise with any of those would be a particularly shrewd or even sensible thing to do, but maybe I'm missing something).

At any rate, seems like you have played fine up to this point. And now what to do? Call or re-raise? Tough decision.

If you just call, surely UTG+1 and MP3 will call the raise, and might call another bet on the river. If you make it a double bet (with possibly an all-in raise coming from BB), you make it tougher for UTG+1 and MP3 to continue.

You should like to pull in opponents with nothing but non-nut flush draws. You should also like to pull in opponents with non-nut flopped straights. But you should like to either push out or charge anyone else for drawing - and you should at least want give anyone else worse odds for continuing.

And that's the way it is a lot of the time with a hand such as yours and a board such as this. You should want to get your opponent's money in the pot, but how much will they stand for? And you never know for sure.

This time you raise against these particular opponents and they both fold, but next time different opponents might both call - or maybe these same opponents will both call. It's just hard to say.

At any rate, I think the raise was fine.

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This hand, how's the river check? I'm out of position, and if I'd get raised, I've pretty much lost the pot. Thoughts?

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Hand #2: Another close decision. What to do here depends a lot on what you think your opponents would do with a non-nut flush. If there's a chance one of your opponents would fold a baby flush to a bet, then you do better by betting the river. Also if an opponent might pay off with two pair or a set, then a bet seems the best move.

It also depends on how likely your opponents would be to draw to a non-nut flush after this flop. If all five of your opponents who saw the flop would play any flush draw after a flop like this one, then there's about a 70% chance one of your opponents has made a flush on the river.

In a tough game, it also depends on how your opponents think you would react to a raise. If you usually bet with anything in these situations but then fold if raised, an opponent might raise as a bluff, or with a baby flush.

It also depends on what your opponents put you on for your betting. If someone with a non-nut flush thinks you've been betting a flopped straight all along, then you're likely to get raised.

What to do here seems kind of a toss-up in my mind, and it's fine to vary your play from one time to another. Makes you harder to read. Thus I'd bet this some times and check others.

Buzz