PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t20 (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

UTG+1 (t1480)
MP1 (t2340)
MP2 (t740)
MP3 (t2660)
CO (t3250)
Button (t2565)
SB (t2820)
BB (t7890)
Hero (t3000)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Q, Q.
Hero raises to t60, UTG+1 calls t60, 1 fold, MP2 calls t60, MP3 calls t60, 1 fold, Button calls t60, 2 folds.

Flop: (t330) 4, Q, K (5 players)
Hero bets t200, UTG+1 calls t200, MP2 folds, MP3 calls t200, Button folds.

Turn: (t930) T (3 players)
Hero bets t780, UTG+1 folds, MP3 calls t780.

River: (t2490) 8 (2 players)
Hero ????

This is the first 5 hands or so of a $55 tourney. Know absolutely nothing about villain. And yes, looking at it, I realize I bet too little on flop.

You have to bet here, especially because you don't have a read. He could be calling you down w/ a wide range of hands. I'd say he probably has about KJ or KT, maybe KQ. I'd bet about 1k.

Your losing value about 100% of the time if you check.

You have no reason to think your behind, nor any reason to believe that he will bet if you check.

I bet about 1300, Although you could make a case for pushing.

i would bet about 1200, that's enough that it tells villain that he can't bluff you, and might get you paid off more often than just straight shoving

Okay, this was my dilemma, if I bet 1k, I have to call a push. How often am I beating a hand that pushes? If I check/call river, am I extracting more value by looking a bit weaker than I am, not getting my whole stack in and still letting him bluff or bet hands I have beat? I mean, a logical hand for me to have here is AK and you have to think that KQ is betting this river if checked to.

I mean, I agree I have to bet but I'm just trying to see if there might be a different way to play this one.

I shove river.

Edit: I think he's usually folding to a bet just because there isn't much for him to have, he might make a small bluff with a check and obv bet 2 pr or sets, I think if he is calling a bet though that it doesn't matter the size that's why I'm shoving.

I think that you lose value by checking as villain might have a worse hand that is happy to check behind. There will be times when he has AJ or even J9 and you lose your stack but I think that KQ/KJ/K10/AQ/AK are more likely hands.

Maybe I'm jaded in these 55+ MTTs, but the hands that an unknown player calls down with boggles the mind sometimes. The fact that villain is unknown makes it a better bet that value betting is the right play.

Yeah, I was 80% sure he had KQ here so I shoved the river. He had AJ. Probably just me being a littled jaded to my coolering lately that makes me think I can maximize value to a hand like KQ without losing almost my entire stack to someone that has me beat.

AJ is a tough float, but that board is so unscary that you have to shove.

wow that sucks... maybe a bigge bigger bet on the flop gets him to fold, but then again u just cant get some people to fold

I definitely shove. I think you played it perfectly except for the smallish flop bet that you already pointed out. He probably floats the flop anyway if he is a bad player. I shove there and kill myself/break something if he turns over the straight. Sick cooler but you double up there a very high percentage of the time.

he think he has an inside straight draw with an over. I dont think there is anything wrong with the way you played it. I dont think there is a need for a bigger bet on the flop since its only straight draws you need to be worried about.

I agree with Stuples, he made a call with a gutshot and hit on the turn, you're losing to J9, AJ and KK here and obv the latter is unlikely and so are the other two really. KQ/Q10/AK/K10/poss 1010 are much more likely to show up here than AJ/J9 imo
You couldn't have played this that differently without a flop overbet, i think villain is calling pot sized bet on the flop but its pretty much fine.
On the river I bet like 1.3K and insta-call a shove, or just shove.

I make a smalll bet on the river because I feel like he has J-10 here alot.. he might just pay off a tiny bet.. I feel like if he had 2 pair you would have been all in on the turn.. i would try to extract value with a tiny bet and snap call a shove.