Inside STR8 Draw OK?

[UncleSalty]

[ QUOTE ]
With six (6!) other people in the pot I cringe at the thought of betting here, despite the raggedness of the flop.

[/ QUOTE ]

So, I seem to have trouble knowing when to bet my overcards on the flop. Is the main issue the size of the pot, or the number of opponents? I'm leaning toward number of opponents because multi-handed flops have a higher likelihood of having hit someone. Large pots w/ fewer players might not hit someone as often but offer better odds for drawing hands. (Also, considering that large short-handed pots mean there was significant action pre-flop there's a good chance you're facing large pocket pairs.)

I guess I've kind of answered part of my question, but is there a rule of thumb for the number of opponents against whom it is safe to lead the flop w/ overcards? Clearly six opponents is too many, but what about 4? Five? Totally read dependent?

Thx,

-Salty

[Ian M.]

A flop bet would be terrible. With 7 players seeing the flop, you have to check.

I really don't see how a flop bet is so terrible. A check/call isn't much better, if at all. There are 7 players but the pot is also very large already and a bet could help clean up your outs and trim the field a little bit. If someone raises your flop bet, especially on your direct left, this could be a very good thing since it could put you headsup or at least shorthanded with 6 good outs. I may be a little too aggressive in these spots but I think if you are going to call anyway, you might as well bet it.