FPS here on my part, or a good time to slowplay?

[ordnaryjam]

Judge,
there is a time and place to slowplay, and there is even a good definition for it, and here it is. The time to slowplay is when the next card has a good posibilitie of making a strong second best hand (against your hand) and only a very small possibility of you beating your hand.
In this hand you have the opposite scenario, anyone who improves their hand is likely to make a flush which beats your hand, and there are not many cards that can make a second best hand good enough to call a raise. When the three comes the flush draws will get out, but you also let another queen catch up to your kicker for free. (well for cheap since the button bet).

[sfer]

You're right on the pot size. I should concentrate on work or the forums, but probably not both simultaneously. Or just work on rudimentary math skills. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Ed Miller]

Your errors, in order of badness:

1. Calling on the flop, instead of raising
2. Checking the flop, instead of betting

These errors have absolutely nothing to do with giving cheap cards to flush draws or the guy with the other queen. In fact, I disagree with everything almost all of you said in this thread. I don't disagree with Henke's post. I don't have time to explain further. Hopefully someone else will.

[Guido]

I always bet and raise trips on the flop, especially when the board is a two tone or there is a possible draw. Your opponents won't expect this because they don't play this way. Don't let them see the turn cheap. For starters always bet/raise the flop when you have trips and there is no reason to believe someone has a flush.

Guido

[StellarWind]

Judge,

Thanks for posting an interesting hand.

My general philosophy for microlimit hold'em can be summarized as follows:

1. Wait for the best hand (be tight).
2. Make everyone else pay (value bet very aggressively).

That's all you need. Everything else is just icing on the cake. You have sinned against #2. You have the best hand and you are not using it to make money.

Checkraising the flop would be great if you knew the last guy would bet. Since you don't have reason to know that, you need to bet the flop. When you bet your opponents will call. They call because they have a queen, a three, a pocket pair, a flush draw, an ace, or simply a compulsive calling disorder. When the turn comes you can bet and charge them again. Betting the flop actually helps you make money on the turn because the bigger pot entices people to call again. There also seems to be a psychological factor that a lot of weak players are more likely to stay with a pot if they have put their own money in it.

As others have noted, a special feature of this hand is that flop betters are often presumed *not* to have trips. Which is another great reason to bet them.

Note that I have not mentioned improving your chances to win the hand. As is so often the case, there is little you can do about this. If there is going to be a flush you cannot stop it. Ditto for the case queen upgrading his hand. Even the pocket pairs are unlikely to fold because they suspect you are bluffing. Not that you will cry if your flop betting does drive out a live draw. I'm just saying don't plan on it. You are betting to build the pot and make money. Period.

[Gravy (Gravy Smoothie)]

I believe what Kong is trying to say is:

Get as much money in the pot on the flop as you can. You have the best hand and should be betting (checkraising?) for value.

Flush draws won't go away on the flop if you bet, but backdoor flush draws might.