New Hand...

[jdwanchalk]

This was tonight at PARX (just got back now), philadelphia poker | parx casino | parx poker room

The game is $2/$5 NLHE 1k max. Most everyone buys in for 1k.

I have about $1,400 in this hand and my opponent has ~$2,100.

I am in EP with JK and open to $35 (few people limped).

Player in MP calls, rest fold. He is mid to late 20s; definitely an above average player.

Flop is J77 rainbow.

I lead for $55. I lead because he seemed like he wanted to 3b some of my prior flop leads and because it was a good flop for me to be c-betting. I thought he would also float a lot.

He raised to $185. I wasn't too worried about this because I kind of wanted it to happen, felt like he thought it was a good spot for me to have bricked or at least give up, especially being oop. I called the raise.

Turn is a 9. I check, he bets $340.

I think for probably a minute. Some thought but nothing crazy. I called.

River is a 2. I check again, he bets $630.

Now, obviously he has a huge hand (JJ/7/J7) or nothing at all.


What do you do and why?

[Prenut]

Call. As described he sounds like more than capable of 3 barelling, and probably more likely to do so against you than most everyone else. His combinations of nothing are clearly more than his combos of big hands. Pretty easy call imo.

[parttimepoker]

If he's above average, he should see that a third barrel here is basically lighting money on fire. It is really hard to put you on anything that calls the flop and turn but will fold this mega-brick of a river.

I'm guessing he flips over a better hand, but I def don't think you should fold river after calling flop and turn.

My nit answer is just to fold pre so you don't end up playing top pair for 300BBs. Raising light in EP deep with good players to your left seems like a tough way to make money.

[Spry]

hmm, this is a tough spot. The turn bet feels like a 'go away' bet. He wants you to fold, or he wants you to think he wants you to fold. Depends on how good this guy is. My gut says you are probably beat at this point but it is hard to fold here. The river is a brick so you have to ask yourself did this guy try to take it on the flop w/ a 8/10s gutshot and hit his 9?

I think you are beat.... and probably will quit playing kj from ep.

[pokeraussie]

This hand seems like a bit of a levelling war. He knows that you know that he can't expect to fold any of your turn calling range when the river bricks, so the river bet must represent a value bet. So call. With that being said, I'd want some pretty solid reads this guy is capable of three barrel bluffing. Only you would know that.

[leporello]

I would expect him to raise value hands on the flop as it's often such a fos line. It's also a spot where you will find it hard to fold most of your value range.

It is a spot where if he fires turn (as a barrel) he should always continue his story on the river as betting turn without betting river is burning money pretty much.

That said I think he has a value hand here more often that he has a triple barrel. Without info I would just fold the flop/turn. Based on your read of him wanting to get creative, then calling down can't be awful, but it's such a high variance spot i'd rather just fold.

[pokeraussie]

^ I completely agree he is always taking this line with his big hands. However considering the fact this his pre-flop calling range is super wide in this spot (he was likely expecting a multi-way pot to develop with EP players limping in) I think his bluffing frequency is going to be fairly high in this spot when it becomes a heads-up situation on a paired board and this flop likely didn't help the PFR. If the guy hasn't been getting out of line, fold on the flop, however if he has shown a tendency to get out of line post flop, then folding the river now seems spewy.

[jdwanchalk]

Before I reply with the rest, raising KJ in these games in this spot is an absolute must. I get 2/3 streets of calls from 1-3 players with top pair in most pots. I would never muck KJ there. QJ is close but QJss is always an open too. I get 3-bet pre rarely, I get calls mainly, and it folds sometimes. I also get tons of flop folds with easy c-bets or the aforementioned 2/3 streets of calls with top pair and sometimes with middle pair.

[parttimepoker]

If that's the case, I'd think you'd want to polarize your opening range a bit more from EP, not merge it.

KJ is pretty borderline and playing pots for 300BBs with top pair OOP is going to be high variance even at best.

[jdwanchalk]

If that's the case, I'd think you'd want to polarize your opening range a bit more from EP, not merge it.

KJ is pretty borderline and playing pots for 300BBs with top pair OOP is going to be high variance even at best.

Well if I lead flop, check, check turn, bet river like usually happens, it's nowhere near 300 bbs. This was the complete exception.