[bobhalford]

I don't much like getting check-raise bluffed. In Hand 1, I decided that I wouldn't know what to do if I got raised. I might have to call hoping the villain gives up the charade on the river, or call and fold to a river bet unimproved. At the time, I thought that this villain probably didn't have anything and would bluff the river after I check the scare card ace. He bet the river and showed Kc9c. He could have had KT, which would give him 6 outs. In this case I imagine it's still best to check because you win nearly the same amount (1BB). Instead of getting the BB in on the turn, you win it on the river when villain bluffs. Villain doesn't bluff every time, but when I check this turn, he's got to figure his bluff is good.

In Hand 2 I thought of bet/folding the turn. I had a bad feeling this guy had an ace. But if he didn't, he might bluff the river. I figured that if I bet the turn, he would fold, because the turn is an ace and I stand a good chance of having one. So I checked the turn hoping to hit a Queen or have the villain bluff with a worse hand. He bet and showed Ad7d.

I almost always bet the turn in both hands. But I thought for a second, why am I betting? In hand 1, does villain's call mean a J, 6, or 3? He probably doesn't hold those cards. For that villain to call the turn, you would hope he has 55 or something and wants to show down. I couldn't come up with any hands that had any chance of beating me. I thought that if he had a King, he had 3 outs to win .

Hand 2, I figured anyone in the SB calling an UTG raise would have to have some kind of decent hand. Aces made up quite a bit of his range, which also includes 22-99, K9s+, QTs+, something like that. Again, I figured that the ace on the turn would get him to fold if he didn't have one. If he did have it and check-raised the turn, I would have to fold my hand. If he didn't have an ace, he'd probably have 2-5 outs against me and would bluff the river. Checking the river in this instance gave me the opportunity to hit a set on the river and raise a river bet.

I think hand 2 is probably a bet/fold on the turn. I just feared that his preflop coldcall and flop peel meant an ace of some kind, and if not, his hand was a big dog versus mine.