Re: Is there really any value in calling here?
Okay, after some thinking, here's what I've come up with...
Benefits of just calling the CO's raise: We're in position with a hand that's beating his range. If one or both of the blinds call, we probably get paid off more often when we hit our set. If one of them raises, we see what CO does first, and we can fold if he gets really aggro. Also, there's a good chance that we WILL have implied odds to call a 3-bet from one of the blinds. (These last two points aren't all that relevant, for the most part, but they happen occasionally, specifically, this hand.)
Benefits of 3-betting: We're in position with a hand that's probably beating the CO's range. We can probably fold to a re-raise (though a call doesn't seem very horrible from the way this thread is going...). We take down a bigger pot on the flop when our c-bet works. It's easier to stack CO when we hit our set and he hits also.
That said, I like a call better, not because of results, but because of the word "predictable." I take that to mean you'll know where you stand on the flop. If he c-bets often, I think you'd be ready to raise most flops and take it down there. If he rarely c-bets, you take it when he checks. If he c-bets a tricky amount of the time, then I like a pre-flop 3-bet more (but I don't interpret "predictable" players to c-bet a tricky amount of the time).
As played, I think BB is a little too short to make a call for set value very +EV because you're not guaranteed to stack him when you hit your set. (KK on A9x board...)
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