[Closed] NL5 - KJo

Hi,

Most of the time pot-control lines just lose you money, especially against relatively passive villains. People's check/calling range on the turn is usually still weaker than the range they'll donk into you on the river, so you're at best losing some value (people with hands like pair+gutshot will call a turn bet but not a river once the gutshot misses), at worst getting value-owned (passive players that will donk the river only with hands that beat top pair).

The only players against whom pot-controlling there is useful are crazy guys just check/raising randomly that will put you in a decision for your entire stack against a range you're having a hard time defining, and good players have a balanced turn check/raising range that includes draws and bluffs as well as monster hands (not many if any of those at microstakes). Villain here doesn't seem to fit any of these categories.

So I'd bet the turn for value.

As played who knows what he's donking on the river, given his taggish stats and the fact that he's betting even tho overcards came on later streets, best guess he has KJ beat anyway as he's likely not good enough to valuebet even AQ and certainly not to bet 9x. When in doubt calling is considered "standard" by most people because you "possibly induced a bluff by checking back the turn". I don't like it since you shouldn't be trying to induce bluffs unless you have a good reason to, against regs you'll just talk yourself into calling off way too many of their valuebets.

Hope it helps.