Top pair, turned flush draw, rivered flush

[Delphin]

UBet NoLimit 10c BB

Hero ($10), Shorty ($3), Villain ($12)
Table is generally loose and passive
Shorty is tight and passive
Villain is loose and aggressive

Hero is dealt A [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]3 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] two off the button
folded to hero, hero calls, Shorty calls, Villain calls, SB calls, BB checks

Flop ($.50) A [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] K [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] J [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]
check, check, Hero bets $.35, Shorty calls, Villain calls, fold, fold

Turn ($1.55) Q [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]
Hero bets $.75, Shorty calls, Villain calls

River ($3.80) 9 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]
Hero bets $2.00, Shorty calls $1.80 (all-in), Villain raises to $4, Hero reraises all-in, Villain calls

Comments on all streets appreciated. On the flop I hate my kicker and I'm prepared to lay down to any reraise. On the turn, I'm hoping that a blocking bet will get me a cheap river where I hope to make either the nut straight or my flush. On the river I want to get all-in if possible, but pushing all in may fold the straight or two pair. I bet 1/2 the pot hoping for a reraise, but I'd be happy with just callers, I'm hoping not to fold them both.

[Delphin]

Anyone?

[VandyNDE]

I like the play at all streets. River bet helps you judge where you are and knock out the blinds (and would have knocked out Shorty if s/he had a bad hand). The villain check-call seems uncharacteristic for a loose aggressive player, so you are probably facing one slowplayer and one person on the make at best and two slowplayers at worst.

Thus, the reduction to half-pot-sized after the turn was a good move to, as you say, buy a cheap river. The $.75 is clearly a good bet to get to see a river on what would be a $3.80 pot. Even if shorty folds (which is unlikely with a good portion of his/her stack in the pot), you have a $3.05 and your implied odds on hitting your flush more than pay out here.

The river bet is a good one also. It looks like your previous bets and will thus not attract much attention. Plus, if Villain is slowplaying, which looks more and more likely as the hand goes on, you can count on the reraise to get you all in. I think you played it right all the way down.

The only way you could have lost is to 10 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] and either 7 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] or K [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]. You do have to worry about these as possibilities because I would take a turn with second pair and inside straight draw for only $.35. However, I would have reraised after the turn to prevent getting beating by a different club coming off on the river and I think either a short stack (Shorty) or an aggressive player (Villain) would too. Thus, while I'd worry a little about losing to the straight flush, it's still correct to go all in on the river.

[Delphin]

Thanks for the comments. I was thinking along those same lines during the hand. Anyone think I played it totally wrong?

[Nathan183]

[ QUOTE ]
On the turn, I'm hoping that a blocking bet will get me a cheap river where I hope to make either the nut straight or my flush.

[/ QUOTE ]

You are aware that making the nut straigh would result in a split pot, right?

[rikz]

I've taken to folding Axs where the x is less than a ten. And then, in an unraised pot, I'd open in LP here for a standard raise (i.e. AKs, AQs, AJs, and usually ATs). I limp AQo and AJo in late position, but fold those in EP. I fold unsuited ATo and lower.

I find multiway pots like this one, out of position (at least on turn and river) with TPWK to be -EV for me.