[PokrLikeItsProse]

I tend to focus on player reads and exploiting tendencies, so one thing I would like to discuss is what kinds of players it makes sense to try a free showdown play against. Since the free showdown is intended to put in more money on an earlier street with the hope of not having to put in any more money in on the hand, then you want to avoid players who will try to make you put in another bet, such as those who will three-bet the turn lightly or who may call the turn raise and lead out again on the river unimproved, whether as a bluff or as a value bet. You also don't want to use this play against a habitual bluffer because you are tossing your hand's bluff-catching value out the window and turning your hand into a bluff.

It feels like the purpose of a free showdown raise is to get a value bet in on the turn because you will have a hard time getting it in on the river. This usually occurs when there are a lot of scare cards that can come (usually, with a drawy board). Also, because the board is drawy, you are raising to prevent a river bluff.

So, I probably disagree with James that the purpose is partly to get better hands to fold. I think the purpose is to get a worse hand to call (you are, after all, betting based on plans to go to showdown), so I do not make a free showdown raise unless I think it is unlikely that my opponent will fold.