Top pair weakish kicker, 100NL

[Dantheman104]

100nl, 6 players.

UTG folds, MP folds, CO calls, button calls, SB calls, I raise to $5.5 with AQo. UTG calls, everyone else folds.

Flop: A 9 6 rainbow. Pot: $12

I bet $10, he calls. Turn : J (no flush possible) Pot: $30

I think and bet $20, he insta-calls.

River: 9 (Pot $70)

I bet $35

Is this standard bet sizing, etc for this hand? To date, villian had been a bit of a donkey, and quite passive, even with big hands. i felt that villans most likely holding was a weak Ace, although a reasonable amount of his range I assumed I was losing to.............

[NoahL]

I like the flop bet. On the turn, I like to go for a check raise or check for pot control. And then on the river, I put in a value bet.

[Grunch]

Stacks?

I'm raising preflop to 9. 5.5 isn't enough especially considering your postflop relative position. With lots of limpers like this, the first person to call your PFR tends to set up a cascade of calls after that, each one getting a better price than the last. Raising a bunch more preflop makes these calls less likely, makes them much bogger mistakes when they do make the calls, and cuts implied odds substantially.

I 3-street like you did in this spot, but I might bet just a tiny bit more. Making it 25 on the turn, then slightly more than half pot on the river.

I wouldn't assume you're losing to a large portion of his range. Unless he raises someplace.

[Dantheman104]

stacks effective 100bb - i did raise a little small here, usually i would raise to about 8. I do think that I'm ahead the majority of the time here, but after I bet on the turn im slightly worried that im turning my hand into a bluff on the river - i didnt view the villan as a massive station (and whatever he had, he folded river)

[Grunch]

I think you'd be suprised how often typical opponents (not aggressive, not calling stations) show up at then end with a pair of eights or something. Betting the river isn't a bluff, it's a moderately high-variance value bet.

[toohigh]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm raising preflop to 9. 5.5 isn't enough especially considering your postflop relative position.

[/ QUOTE ]

Betting $9 here PF seems very wrong to me.

A standard raise, like OP made, is fine in this spot w/ his holding. It's not like the entire table limped, 2 LP players and the SB did. Plus, what is the purpose of inflating the pot with AQo OOP? Not to mention you are losing value to Ax by raising so much PF.

[Phytopath]

I think the PF raise should be a bit more 5.5 is pretty small from the blinds.

As for the river play this is usually a C/C, to induce bluffs unless you have read that this guy is a pay off wizard, then you can bet 1/2 the pot like you did for value.

[Grunch]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I'm raising preflop to 9. 5.5 isn't enough especially considering your postflop relative position.

[/ QUOTE ]

Betting $9 here PF seems very wrong to me.

A standard raise, like OP made, is fine in this spot w/ his holding. It's not like the entire table limped, 2 LP players and the SB did. Plus, what is the purpose of inflating the pot with AQo OOP? Not to mention you are losing value to Ax by raising so much PF.

[/ QUOTE ]

The purpose is to reduce the pot to heads-up. In fact if the entire table had limped, I wouldn't raise at all.

[Dantheman104]

1. the thing is with the cc call on the end is that theres barely a hand he could bluff with, only 87 - otherwise he would probably check down his mediocore holdings - he is passive. so betting seems to get value from weak holdings without losing more to strong ones (i plan to fold to a check raise)
2. Prelop, i raise this perhaps 75% of the time - i was multitabling and made a digit error - i would normally make it about 8 - trying to get headsup v. players who have show weakness