[cbloom]

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It's never incorrect to raise with the best hand (ie. it is never -EV)


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This is simply not true. Should I open shove TT preflop? I'm way ahead of everyone's range. Of course I'm not ahead of their calling range and it's -EV. There are also plenty of cases where I can raise a hand like that which is ahead of their range but will only get called by better hands. That's what we call "turning your hand into a bluff". Furthermore, the "showdown value" of a hand does not matter if you can't get to showdown, and there are often cases where you believe you are ahead of someone's range but still folding is the most +EV decision. (an example might be if you have something like 88 on a 7-high flop with flush draw, you bet out and villain min raises in position. You're ahead of his range but should probably just fold).

I agree with Tickner that reraising TT preflop you're basically turning your hand into 22 (it's a semibluff, you'd love to hit a set), but TT has the added bonus that you just might be able to get to showdown and win UI if your villain does something wierd and lets you.