122NLHE Hand 2: Making a move w/ garbage plus draws

[Ulysses]

Same game as Hand 1. Stacks range from 100-300, except for Mr. Man in LP and Grasshopper to my left. The three of us have stacks of about $1000. Right now, nobody is raising pre-flop.

I open for $5 UTG w/ 2d 4d. Hopper calls. Unknown guy ($130) raises to $10. I suspect he has two high cards or a medium pair. 3 cold-callers. Hopper and I call. 6 to the flop.

Flop 2h 5d 6s

$60 in the pot. I check, thinking I'm probably going to end up check-folding. Checked to raiser. He bets $20 ($100 left). Solid conservative player ($150) calls. Weak player ($250) calls. Folded to me. Hmmmm... $120 in the pot. I raise to $120. Raiser thinks a little and folds. Solid player thinks a long time and folds. Weak player insta-folds.

What do you think of this move?

[Vehn]

Well you had the best hand, obviously.

I would usually just pot it right out instead of getting fancy. Unless your opponents are typically dumb enough to post oak like that with airballed overcards.

[gavrilo]

Agree with Vehn 100%

[Ulysses]

Vehn, gavrilo, thanks for the responses.

You might be right. I considered betting the pot, but I felt like anyone with a pair would call that. Or two or three of them w/ overcards + backdoor draws might also call. As would a gutshot draw. And once any of the short stacks called, they'd be committed to the end. But given that board, maybe I should have been more confident of having the best hand (with outs if I didn't, of course).

I also would have no clue where I stood if anyone called. On the flip side, by checking (and being prepared to fold to a bet), I knew that the raiser would bet small w/ overcards and big w/ pocket pair. No raise back to me made me confident that nobody had a hand that could withstand a big raise. First and third guys definitely had overcards. I think guy in the middle had something reasonable (and quite possibly better than my hand), though, maybe 33, 44, A5s, or 89s.

Anyway, in this scenario, any/enough merit to checking to gain some information before making a bet?

[Vehn]

Well yeah that's fine etc but you really think a pot sized bet is going to get overcards, gutshots, and any pair to call? Where is this game again? [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] If that was really the case then definetly check.

[jen]

I agree with vehn -- I'd pot this one outright.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
Well yeah that's fine etc but you really think a pot sized bet is going to get overcards, gutshots, and any pair to call?

[/ QUOTE ]

A pair + backdoor draw would likely call. AK might just call, but probably not. If a couple of people call, then a gutshot would call. Hard to say who exactly would call how much, since it all depends on what the other guys do.

Anyway, all in all, I think a pot-sized bet right off the bat may well have been the better move. I like the way it worked out, though. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]