PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.10 BB (5 handed) Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)

UTG ($5.50)
MP ($16.90)
Button ($4.20)
SB ($3.30)
Hero ($10.40)

Preflop: Hero is BB with J, 8.
UTG calls $0.10, MP calls $0.10, 1 fold, SB completes, Hero checks.

Flop: ($0.40) 5, J, 4 (4 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $0.3, UTG calls $0.30, MP calls $0.30, SB calls $0.30.

Turn: ($1.60) K (4 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $1, UTG folds, MP calls $1, SB folds.

River: ($3.60) J (2 players)
Hero bets $2.5, MP raises to $7.7, Hero???

Also, sorry for posting a lot of hands today!

I can't figure out a hand that we beat unless he decided to randomly bluff-raise the river.

hmm, kinda tough with no read on the opponent. I tend to believe on this one that he has the other jack and was just calling because of the potential flush but now believes you don't have a flush and so is confident that his trips are best. I doubt this is a flush as waiting til the board pairs seems to be an interesting spot to raise, but at these stakes anything is possible. Really, it comes down to this, if he's raising with a made hand he has us beat 9 times out of 10 so it's a fold unless you think he's capable of a pure bluff with a naked Ace of clubs or something like that.

I couldn't figure it out either, but why would he flat me on the flop/turn with a only jack? It doesn't make much sense for him to bluff raise the jack since that is at bare minimum what I have represented. Also what do you think of the turn?

aimhigher, just a word of caution, while you may be aiming higher, most people at these stakes are not. very often people can play these stakes while almost doing anything because a loss isnt that bad no matter what.

so putting people on ranges is difficult because you have no clue what this person is doing thinking. He may not be thinking about the hand at all. Hes watching tv, multi tabling. People do alot of weird things at these stakes and i think pyschology comes into play a lot.

he could have flopped the flush, he could be making that play with a king, maybe king of clubs. the jack or air.

um the thing that mainly concerns me is that hes got so much money at these stakes. he's either been there a while and is a decent player or he got lucky. so since he has more at risk, he may be paying better attention than some others. i can definitely see him playing a flopped flush like this.

youre bet on the river, doesnt seem like a missed flush, so i dont really think he would make that play with a king. he could have the jack.....

i think suited flops are some of the hardest to play when youre the aggressor, because your opponent can put you on a wide range and do weird things. theres a lot of mental game played and its tough to see what your opponents thinking.

i mention this because, i dont know if i bet out on the turn (at these limits) because i feel im setting myself up to be bluffed on the river. id rather try and catch a bluff depending on how its played.... yknow?

Nice play on words, .

I'll agree that players at this level do some very screwy things, but I also think that is what makes these players so exploitable. You are right in the sense that I should not be asking myself, "Why wouldn't he make what I think is a correct play for a hand that beats mine?", because a lot of the players at this level are not making correct plays. However, I completely disagree with you that betting the turn sets me up to be bluffed on the river. In fact, if anything checking the turn is more likely to induce a bluff than betting it is. Betting the turn looks pretty strong if you are the villain.

Here's an interesting idea...what do we think of check/calling the river?

I know we've got trips, but I can't see him calling very often with a worse hand, and if we're raised, we're going to have to dump. Definitely odd to think of trips as a bluff-catcher...but just throwing that out there.

In retrospect I like it better than betting. I did think I was value betting the river at the time, but I also thought I'd be in trouble if he raised.

Right.
We just got raised with trips no kicker on a flush board.
Everyone sees the trips there.
Save your money unless this villain bluffs +70% of the time.