Full Tilt No-Limit Hold'em, $0.10 BB (9 handed) Full Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: ITH Forums)

saw flop|saw showdown

SB ($18.90)
BB ($2)
UTG ($7.40)
UTG+1 ($5.80)
MP1 ($10.40)
MP2 ($2.90)
MP3 ($11.05)
Hero ($10)
Button ($21.95)

Preflop: Hero is CO with , .
UTG calls $0.10, 1 fold, MP1 raises to $0.45, 2 folds, Hero calls $0.45, 3 folds, UTG calls $0.35.

Flop: ($1.50) , , (3 players)
UTG checks, MP1 bets $1.5, Hero raises to $4.5, UTG folds, MP1 calls $3.



I've been playing LAG overall and definitely have a loose image. My question is whether the flop play is good to mix in around 5% - 10% of the time that I find myself in this spot. Normally I just call given the stack sizes. How does your image affect how you play this?

I'd like at least a couple of opinions on whether this is a justifiable play - particularly if it's only once in a while.

My logic was that raising disguises my draw and may get me a free card to the river since I'm in position - possibly letting me see all the cards for a cheaper price than calling, and reducing the chance that I might have had to fold to a turn bet. I would raise with 2-pair, so villain can't be too happy about firing out again on the turn very often can he?

I think posting the whole hand before may have turned people off, but I'm really interested in whether this is a spew without deep stacks (at least 2x the buy in).

No because anything that gives you action on the flop leaves you looking for an eight outer or worse. This is probably a losing play over time.

If you are cultivating an image with people you play with over a long period of time for a lot of money, it MAY be different.

'mixing it up' is generaly just an excuse for you getting bored and getting involved to stop the tedium of folding hand after hand at full ring.

I fold PF, if i was on the button and 3-4 people has already called the raise i'd probably call aswell, but with only two players in the pot so far you're not getting the right situation to call.

I'd probably fold the flop aswell, you're not getting the right odds when he bets pot and you have to consider that if he's betting pot on the flop he's probably not slowing down on the term so your effective odds are even worse.

I hope you realize at this point, the guy has raised preflop, bet the full pot on the flop and called a big reraise and has over half of his chips in the pot. Prepare to go broke unless you improve. Hopefully you've bought yourself a free river card by his flat call. Unless you improve to a straight, hope to be able to check the turn behind. If not, shove.

Is it OK to semibluff sometimes? Yeah.

If you don't make moves like this, you aren't really playing LAG, imho. The chances of your semibluff working go down, however, as you get the reputation as a LAG.

Ive been making the exact same play myself lately on the turn there, and it only seems to work (ie. get them to fold) with hands like Ace King that missed the flop, with most opponents either calling you down or pushing back on the flop. Im not convinced that raising the flop here is right, nor that every time I have done it in similar situations was right either, especially with these relatively small stacks and small buy-in amounts.

Have a more legitimate read for why you're doing this.

He raised preflop. Why'd you call with this hand? If you thought he had AA/KK and you have huge implied odds, that's fine. Otherwise, it's probably best to just dump it.

On the flop, what'd you put him on when he bet the full pot into 2 opponents? He seems pretty strong and you just stuck in half of your stack. I'm not a big fan. I hope you get a free river card because I'm not putting anymore money into this pot.

it's 10NL. you don't need to vary your play to keep your opponents guessing. so, what you did was charged yourself extra for a draw. if you hit your card on the turn/river he probably would've paid you off whether you raised or not based on his preflop and flop aggression.

Yes, you should raise your draws sometimes to mix it up, but I don't think this is the spot to do it. Reads aside, the villain raised preflop and bet the full pot amount on the flop. As you've probably figured out, any raise you make pretty much commits your stack to the pot. He's also played this hand VERY strong, and I wouldn't expect him to fold many hands in this spot. I'd like the play better if a.) you know the villain is a habitual c-better, and b.) he bet 1/2 to 2/3 of the pot, so you aren't investing half of your stack with a raise.