Boring blind defense A high river decision (Bellagio 15/30)

[felson]

button open-raises, i have A9o in SB and threebet. BB is tight so i know he will get out of the way, although he might come along if i flat call. button is typical player, nothing unusual about his play so far.

flop is twotone rags, ten-high. i have none of the flush suit. i bet, he calls.

turn is another rag, putting the third flush card out there. i bet, he checks his cards and calls.

river is rag non-flush card. bet or check? if i bet, is it mostly for value or mostly bluffing? if i check, i have to call, right?

[bicyclekick]

check call.

[brick]

[ QUOTE ]

river is rag non-flush card. if i bet, is it mostly for value or mostly bluffing?

[/ QUOTE ]

Neither. Check-call.

It's not for value because he will usually fold K high or worse, and many of the Ace-little hands have now made a small pair. Its not a bluff because he will usually call with any pair or good ace.

[W. Deranged]

River-betting is a strange beast. It is often unclear, as in this situation, whether river betting is for bluff equity or value. Sometimes (often in three-way pots, but that is neither here nor there) the combination of the two possible values makes a bet the obvious choice.

Here, though, I don't think that that is the case. A9o is really not that strong, and in a ten-handed game, I'd be shocked if you got called all that often by worse hands, even though occasionally a worse A-high might call. Similarly, I'd be shocked if you got better hands to fold all that often, though occasionally you will be up against something like AJ which will dump to a bet.

So, I think the confusion in this case points out the fact that neither the value effect or the bluff effect is that strong at all, and in this case the two probably don't add up to a river bet.

So, yes, check and call. I don't see folding here to be a real option because A9 should hold up 1 of 8 times here pretty easily.

[felson]

I checked; he checked behind. MHIG.

I thought this hand was pretty standard. On the turn, he checked his cards, so I put him on a no-pair flush draw. On the river, I checked to induce a bluff. Some of my friends told me to bet the river, though, so I put the hand up. Thanks for the responses.