Top pair on the turn, no limit cash game

Game type: No limit cash, 6 max table
Your image: You have won a few pots without a showdown
Misc notes:
Your hand: A♥K♠

The Setup: Preflop, Player A folds and Player B limps. Player C raises the minimum, and you call. The SB folds, the BB calls, and Player B calls. The flop looks good:

K♥7♦J♦

… and when the table checks to you, you decide to bet $70, just a bit under pot. The BB folds, Player B flat calls, and Player C now check raises you for the minimum. You decide to call, and Player B calls as well. The turn bricks with the 3♠, and, somewhat to your surprise, Player B and Player C both check to you. What’s your play?

10 COMMENTS (Jump to comment form)

Scott

Definitely do not check-giving a free card in this spot is terrible I think.
I’d probably try to take this pot now-put both players all in

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lespat

I think you’re getting suckered here by a strong hand. You think they are both on a draw? I don’t like building a pot with just top pair and little chance of improving. I’m checking

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John B.

Check. I have no idea where I’m at or who may have what. The pot’s fine for a pair of Kings (if I win). Why put more money in?

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Mary

OK, once again, I start off with a mistake, limping with my strong draw, and then I called a minimum raise to my pot sized bet when I had top pair and best kicker.
Of course I’m in a jam here. As last to act, I;m checking to see if: flush fills out, straight completes or there really is KJ two pair out there. The best I can hope for is that C has been slow playing queens. I am probably throwing away my kings without improvement.

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Kyle

I’m pretty certain B is on a flush draw here maybe a straigh draw. Player C’s checkraise to the minimum on the flop seems like a bet to keep the pot small with a hand like KQ or maybe even QQ trying to get a feel for what he’s up against. If he had flopped trip jacks, kings, or sevens there’s just no way he can check to two preflop callers. It would be insane to let two possible draws see a free card if he had one of these hands. I think we have to put another bet in and keep the pressure on. I’d bet about 150-200 here to protect our hand. I’m pretty confident we’re in front and if we aren’t we’ll find out quickly if he checkraises again. If we get called by one or both players and it gets checked to us again on the river, I’d check here because of the low expected value of a bet. It’s too hard to value bet top pair in a multiway pot. Ideally our bet will get at least one of the players out and the river will be another K, but thats pretty eutopian thinking. Even then we could be up against a boat, but I’d be perplexed at the way B or C played a set. Check-calling a set with possible flush and straight draws on the flop and fourth street is just suicide and seems very unlikely. I’d be most worried about KJ at this point, but I still think we can’t afford to check here and have the A of diamonds pop up on the river giving us top two pair whilst letting every possible draw hit.

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Joe

With a blank hitting on the turn and two checks to me, I’m betting the pot to take this down, as I would be convinced my Kings are best. I’m not giving a free card here, b/c it’s clear they’re drawing. I’m not worrying here that someone’s milking trips.

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Anonymous

“John B. 12.13.06 / 12pm

Check. I have no idea where IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢m at or who may have what. The potÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s fine for a pair of Kings (if I win). Why put more money in?”

With all due respect, this is a stupid response. The point of betting would be to find out where you are in the hand…checking will only leave you with the same amount of information as you had on the turn, while displaying serious weakness that either of the opponents could capitlize on and win the hand with the worst cards. BET AND FIND OUT WHERE YOU ARE!

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Bill

A lot of people like to check-minraise with flush draws and then check the turn in hopes of getting a free card. I would bet about $300. Also, this should be an automatic reraise preflop. AK is a bad hand to play multiway in no-limit. Reraise to $85 and make the blinds and players B & C pay up if they insist on playing a pot out of position against you.

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Mikey

I think player B could be holding a very strong hand here… He checked the flop, expecting a bet from the pre-flop raiser. He checked the turn, expecting a bet from the check-raiser. If you bet pot now, he may call again, and you will have exactly the same amount of (incorrect) information that you had before, ie you will still put him on a probable draw, maybe one with a large number of outs, such as ATd.

Then, if he leads out on the river (expecially if it bricks), you may be tempted to make a rather expensive mistake to defend the big pot that you so willingly helped build. At best, you will fold and lose the 400-odd bucks that you bet on the turn.

I’d rather take a chance and check, praying for the brick. If the brick comes and player B leads out strong into two opponents you should believe he has the goods and you can fold and save your money. If he doesn’t bet, then you know he has nothing, as he wouldn’t risk another round of checks with a strong holding.

Given a check by player B and a bet by player C (presumably to try and take advantage of the weakness shown by his two opponents), you can just snap it off with a call.

Of course if the river brings a scare card and any action you’re out of there, but I think its worth the risk to save you alot of money…

A key factor here may be that it is not as bad to show weakness in a multiway situation as it is to show weakness heads up, as the aggression of your foes will be tempered by the presence of multiple opponents.

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Bob

This is a very very easy 3 bet pre flop and bet pre flop.
We get a stronger idea of where we are if we do this!

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