Daily Hand Quiz

The 6 isn’t the worst card in the deck, but it’s far from the best. It likely at least gives your opponent some additional reasons to continue with the hand.

Your opponent is either floating, on a draw or on some pair with backdoor draws. This turn completes a straight draw and probably adds a straight draw to a lot of pairs that called the flop (T9, for example). If you lead, a lot of those draws are going to be tempted to raise all in – let’s say you go 3k and change. That’s still going to leave you with over 30BBs behind, and it will look like you have room to fold.

I’m probably check calling here and check calling safe rivers. I don’t like leading because of the above, and I don’t like folding because of the number of hands you’re still ahead of, so the best way to keep the pot small is to give up the lead and commit to calling down on reasonable rivers unless you really get the sense from your opponent on the turn and river that your pair is beat.

This is a great example of how tough it is to play out of the SB in blind versus blind situations.

What actually happened: You checked and the BB bet 1500. You call and the turn brought a eight of spades. You checked and the BB bet 4800; you folded.

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Too may river cards are scary. I like to take another stab at the pot in case he was floating or had a weak ten (JT for example). I bet about 2500 and if he raises all-in I can safely fold.

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At the moment there’s a fair chance that I have the best hand so I would bet out here and make him pay to see the river. If you credit him with 10-9 that still only puts him on an inside straight draw so why give him infinite pot odds to draw to it? You’re in a bad situation but you have to accept that and make the best of it. If he’s hit a set/staight already then he calls and you get on with the next hand.

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I think the c/c, c/c line is pretty weak, as our lagish opponent is likely to bet turn with a wide range and there are too many scare cards on river – he can represent just what he wants. BvB TPGK is a monster, we are ahead most of the time. I voted for c/r (and c/r big): its the best play to get value from his middle pair / TPWK / draw type hands IMO as we can be almost sure he will float us. If he has the straight or any better made hand than ours it’s a cooler, if he hits his draw, well be it. Sitting on the left of a LAG with a medicore stack and playing tight postflop is not the way to take down this tourney, IMO. Better gamble now than push 94o all-in with a 9BB stack half an hour later.

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I voted c-c … same reasoning as the staff. The villain’s pre-flop range to call is wide, so top pair just not enough to protect with this board. Oop, keep the pot small with this hand.

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I would lead again for over 3k to protect our hand that is most likely to be ahead – there are only two hands (10 9 and 10 that could potentially now shove over the top (not likely on turn IMO) but far more that called the flop and will now fold. If opp flats again we check call / fold river depending on the card and how convinced we are. If opp raises then we can comfortably fold with a decent M of around 13.

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i lead most of the time here, but im not convinced its the correct play. ive gotten myself into a lot of trouble by “protecting” hands that were behind in these kinds of spots. a lag can call with any number of hands that nailed this board. i vary my play though, and will do the check-call and reevaluate the river thing a fair amount, often getting burned by bad future streets and having to fold, which hurts as well. this is just an uncomfortable spot, and whether you play it right will only be known if you lead and he folds or it goes to showdown and you win. i think a lot of opps will feel that theres something implicitly weak in leading out each street….like youre scared and trying to get them off a hand which they can then represent if theyre in an aggressive mood, or play back with if they actually have it. the more i think about it, the more i think pot control/ higher risk of losing the hand is the better way in general.

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Marginal hand, out of position. Flop check could be draw, flopped set, or hand that is weaker then yours and they are playing badly like JT.

Turn brings in straight draw. Things ain’t looking good! To me a bet here is basically an attempt to get the other person to fold, cos you certainly ain’t betting for value. And you’ve got a big stack, why risk it on such a weak hand?

To me, when you get it positions like this you really don’t want to escalate them cos you’ll just end up spewing chips everywhere. I voted check/fold

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My bet here would be for value. If I thought I was more likely beat then I wouldn’t bet.

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obv. you can’t lead the flop and when the turn bricks weaken. find out with a reasonable bet and fold to action, if he flats, check fold river. if he was on the flush he certainly bets it, if not and he had a ten himself (JT e.g.) he might check behind, because the rivercard scares him as much as you. when he comes over the top at the turn, he definitely has a monster (set, twopair, 98 for a straight). once you check the turn, it is so easy to bluff you out when there is a chance that you are holding the best hand.
even worse: why call a turnbet from him, if you could as well bet as much to find out where you stand?

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