NL25, top pair vs donk and I'm lost ...

[powderman]

Party Poker - No Limit Hold'em Cash Game - $0.10/$0.25 Blinds - 6 Players - (LegoPoker HH Converter)

SB: $31.23
BB: $30.58
UTG: $75.78
MP: $17.46
Hero (CO): $24.70
BTN: $21.47

Preflop: Hero is dealt J[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] A[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] (6 Players)
UTG folds, MP calls $0.25, <font color="red">Hero raises to $1.25</font>, 2 folds, BB calls $1.00, MP calls $1.00

Flop: ($3.85) T[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] A[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] 8[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] (3 Players)
BB checks, <font color="red">MP bets $1.75</font>, Hero calls $1.75, BB folds

Turn: ($7.35) 7[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] (2 Players)
<font color="red">MP bets $2.00</font>, <font color="red">Hero raises to $6.00</font>, MP calls $4.00

River: ($19.35) 4[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] (2 Players)
MP checks, Hero ????





Villain is 65/10 over 100 or so hands.
He has limp-called all my pre-flop raises OOP since he sat down.
I'm playing 25/20.

I considered raising flop, but thought he was most likely on a FD and I could take the pot down on a blank turn. Is this terrible?

Is the turn raise terrible??

Can I value bet river???

[traz]

against a 65/10 I'm raising the flop all day

[TheBobn]

Raise the flop to about $4 at least. If he leads the turn, pot will be approximately $12 at this point leaving him $12 left, and I'd shove on that (relatively) blank turn. If you decide to call the flop, I hate that small raise on the turn, which leaves him with $8-$9 left in a near $20 pot, you are really giving him odds with most hands on the river since you almost have to call.

If you raise the flop and he checks the turn, you have the option of checking behind and picking off a river bluff or shoving the turn if you think he'd call with a draw. Either has merit, depending on your opponent.

And given how you got to the river, I'd shove and hope he called with 8x of diamonds. I know many people will say to check behind the river, it looks like he had a draw and missed it, but against a lot of donks on the river, putting him AI is a good move because he may put you on a bluff and think your hand has no showdown value and he'll call with third pair or something. I mean, given how you got to the river, it's unlikely your beat, but I would play it either of the two ways listed above.

[Dan Bitel]

raise more on turn, shove river as played

[jspring86]

Although I'm new here, I'll attempt to give you my brief opinion of this hand, others can feel free to jump on me if they feel I'm totally off-base here.

I like your preflop raise though I might have bet a bit more, perhaps $2.00, with a hand like that. On the flop I think you did the right thing by calling his bet, though considering how weak his bet was I would've considered raising him. At that point in the hand I'd put him on a straight or flush draw. When the turn comes out with that 7, you have to be moderately worried that maybe he got his straight but considering that he called your bet instead of reraising, I think we can safely but him on the flush draw and not the straight.

As for the river, when that 4 comes out I'd bet if he checks, but its all a matter of the read you have on him, some idiots will check-raise even when they have nothing so its up to you, but my advice would be to raise on the river, my best intuition from the data you gave is that he was playing for a flush and never got it.

[ama0330]

Wow dan is back!

I think the flop call is fine, you can't really raise here for value but you can on the turn because his betting is so weak, and now you have to protect your hand. I like some kind of a river bet, probably 1/2 pot or so

[Ramana]

Interesting hand.

I was gonna say raise flop, call turn, chk river behind.

But as I read the other replies I finally figured out that call flop, raise turn well and shove river is indeed the optimal way to play this hand.

[powderman]

Thanks guys. One of my pet hates at NL25 is when villain leads out on the flop with a pathetic bet like above. I find it very difficult to interpret. Maybe that's why it's such a good play [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]