Top pair in an unraised pot, turn donk

[Greenfield]

Hero is BB with J4os. No reads.

UTG calls, SB calls, I check.

Flop (3sb) is J[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]T[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]6[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]. SB bets, I raise, UTG folds. Raise was to isolate him and for value too.

Turn (3.5bb) is 3[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]. SB donks, I..???

I was completely thrown back by this donk on an apparently blank card. Raggedy two pair, flush draw, better jack? Is my hand good enough for a showdown?

[Peter Harris]

[ QUOTE ]
Hero is BB with J4os. No reads.

UTG calls, SB calls, I check.

Flop (3sb) is J[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]T[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]6[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]. SB bets, I raise, UTG folds. Raise was to isolate him and for value too.

Turn (3.5bb) is 3[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]. SB donks, I..???

I was completely thrown back by this donk on an apparently blank card. Raggedy two pair, flush draw, better jack? Is my hand good enough for a showdown?

[/ QUOTE ]

If you had reads, this would be easier. Villain is stop-and-going you, so if they know what they are doing this is defence against you raising the flush draw for a free card.

If villain is bad, they may have a J or T and are donking for sheer pleasure. Villain may have picked up a pair to go with a flush draw and is donking, this is fairly common.

My preferred line here would be to raise, folding to a 3bet. If you're 3bet here I imagine against all but the laggier players you're behind to all, except maybe AT.

If the raise is called and the river is fairly blank, i'd value bet. If the river is a bit dodgy i could make the turn raise a free showdown raise and check behind.

Without reads this hand could play several ways and the donk mean several things. This just goes to show the importance of reads.


EDIT: If you were unaware of this little gem, you need to read Theory of Poker - the chapter called "Defense Against the Semi-Bluff". You need to add this to your own repertoire.

[Greenfield]

I would have reads, but for some reason poker tracker and pokerace HUD doesn't work at interpoker, well it works but means I can't clear the bonus as it doesn't seem to give me any player points when I have it running.

I have TOP I may give that section a read. Thanks for advice.

[MacGuyV]

Meh, I can let this go. If the pot were slightly bigger I'd call down.

[Dendrite]

donk4pleasure.

[lank4ever]

I call this down because of the 10. If it were a card < an 8 I think it's a fold. I think that at least some of the time Q10 K10 and A10 play exactly like this.

[dirk]

That's really strange. I haven't played at Interpoker for around a month but I always used HUD and cleared the bonuses

[RocketPiquette]

Grunch: I call down from here. But I sure don't feel comfortable doing so.

[Disconnected]

You're right, the donk could mean many things, but this probably isn't a spot where he would semi-bluff, since we could have been raising with the flush draw ourselves. Readless, I'd assume the donk is with a marginal made hand that wants to deny a free card.

If villain has a draw, he doesn't need to semi-bluff here, and probably doesn't figure to have any fold equity. That's if he's good. If he's not good, I don't want to fold to his donk, since we do have showdown value.

With TP, I'd want to show this down cheaply, and would just call the stop and go. If our kicker were strong, I would be more likely to raise. By calling, a lot of hands we beat would be inclined to bet a blank river, whereas they get away if we raise the turn. And, no better hands are folding.

[MrEngenic]

I'd like to know if we should raise the flop in the first place.
I would just call this down unless UTG raises or something like A [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] comes on the turn.