1-2NL, Passive play leads to tough river decision

I would 3! preflop, checkraise the flop, and fold the river as played.

A lot of the "thought" for your decisions seem to be "I don't want to raise or fold, so I call" ... this is a common bad thought process.

Preflop your AJo plays so much better vs. SB than it will vs. SB and 3 other people who can be super wide. If it's not good enough to raise SB then just fold, inviting 3 more people (you are OOP against) along isn't going to make it easier. It looks better because you are just randomly donating $8 a bunch of times instead of making it $25 or $32 or whatever and then being able to remember the times you lost that.
You are basically hoping the flop comes JJ8 and someone has a worse J but not J8 or 88.

On the flop, due to the small size I think QTs with BDFD is very possible in multiple spots ... maybe even QTo from V1. Calling just means you never know where you are and never really improve even when you improve.

To follow up, your turn plan to x/r (presumably all in) with 2nd two pair seems optimistic. Either people will be scared and not bet or fold much worse hands to your x/r, or you'll get money in vs. 77 or AK or QT. Would probably lead turn for a decent size, and be very unhappy if a raise happened, then probably look to either bet half pot or x/c most brick rivers.

River easiest fold ever, and you might well have been behind V3 the entire hand.

This set-up pre-flop is one of my all-time favorite spots to 3bet. SB basically lobbed the ball to you by taking a tiny juicer sizing OOP after the whole table limped in (this is never a strong hand IMO). Now you just have to dunk it. Even if he calls, you get to play HU in position with a good hand and sufficient dead money.

River seems like a clear fold. I'm guessing V has 7X. I would rather bet/fold here than check/call though.

Pre - Offsuit aces are terrible hands when you're 250bb deep. Given the limpers and the small size from the SB, it might be worth using as a 3! bluff. However, if you believe you'll get a bunch of calls behind to say a $50 sizing, then AJo is a clear fold. Offsuit broadway cards look a lot stronger than they actually play. Getting that through my thick skull was very healthy for my bankroll.

Flop - This is why AJo is a bad call pre. Where are we? There is a bet and two calls on a two broadway board. The range of our opponents is so wide we could be way ahead or way behind. We can't fold now, but it's hard to see how we are winning money in this hand.

Turn - AP, we have to just lead. The reason being that this is a really bad card for a lot of Ax hands because the obvious broadway draw got there in a 4-way pot. We can't rely on Vs who are IP to bet their hand. Imagine V1 has a hand like AT, betting the flop is reasonable, but now he gets called by 3 opponents and then a broadway card comes off on the turn. Betting again and getting raised would be miserable and he still has ok SDV. As a result, I don't expect 1-pair hands to bet this turn. If a V bets, they probably have a set or better, maybe AK. AQ, AT and weaker Ax hands are happy to check and try to realize their equity. So I would b/f this card, maybe about $40.

River - The best result is checking down. If it was only $20, then we make the crying call, but I think we probably lose a lot against anything willing to bet this river. But pot odds are a thing and $20 into $100 is just a price we have to pay off. We are bailed out when V2 calls - now we know we are behind. When V3 x/raises, we now know we were probably dead the whole way. Thank your opponents for saving you money and fold. Getting away or 3! pre would have been best, but after that call, we lost the minimum.

I would have 3bet pre. If I don't 3bet, I just fold -- it all depends on how tight SB is.

As played, I raise the flop. As played, I lead the turn. As played, I fold the river.

Passive play from the BB is painful with a hand like AJo.

Calling preflop is better than folding. You probably have the best hand multiway.

3-betting is best, because everyone has shown weakness, the limpers and the SB with the small raise. If it goes 3-way, that is OK. You may take it down on later streets representing KK/AA.

SDV? "Straight draw V---?" Sorry, please explain, as I'm not familiar with the abbreviation.

Seems like, based on the feedback thus far, I'm being advised to widen my pre-flop 3-betting range. Generally, I will 3bet JJ+, AQs, AK, and include 99, TT against some villains, and throw in some randoms against certain villains if the situation warrants it. Heck, I've 4bet 88 to iso after raising it, getting called, and then getting shoved on by a super-loose short stack, getting 99 to fold! Also, I'm not a fan of the currently popular A5s/A4s as a 3bet bluff, as I find them extremely challenging to play against the room's player pool.

The other common thread in the feedback seems to be that I should have led on the turn. I generally "check-in-flow," and have noticed recently this will often cost me. I need to be willing to lead more often in situations where I have not had the betting lead. Got it...thanks! I will be looking to do this in relevant spots going forward.

A little more on this room's player pool. When I play during a weekday morning/afternoon, I am typically both the tightest and the most aggressive player at my table. I play fewer hands than everyone else, but play the hands I enter more aggressively than the limp-happy players at the table, many of whom are regularly limping AA in hopes of winning a high hand bonus. On the weekends, though, the loose-passive players are gone, and in general, it's a much more loose-aggressive player type. I'm much more willing to see flops and play post vs the wider ranges of my opponents with my tighter range. I find these strategies to be consistent with the adage to play a style opposite the table norm, and in general this has worked to my advantage, as I've won 10-12 BBs/hour over a considerable sample size. Admittedly, though, doing so in this hand put me in a spot that would likely have been avoided had I either 3bet pre or led the turn.

I'll wait for another day or so before revealing the result...

SDV - Show Down Value

From the stickied post for the forum: https://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/170/l...

I can't see how playing AJo against probably less skilled players limp/calling with all sorts of junk should be unprofitable.

I think checking in flow is a good default, but I would deviate for two reasons:

* The turn changes the nuts and
* The turn probably doesn't improve the hand of V who bet the flop

In this case, the straight draw comes in making all Ax hands weaker. And in this scenario, the V who led the flop probably didn't do that with a gutshot. As a result, V should check fairly frequently. If we were heads up, I'd donk bet this turn often as a bluff. With two other Vs who could plausibly have QT, I wouldn't try bluffing, but our hand did improve, we can be called by worse and if we get raised it's a hand we can throw away without losing sleep. So all that makes it worth a stab imo.

My suggestion RE: 3bet ranges is to seek out some pre-flop 3betting charts for different positions. The hands you listed are good hands to 3bet with from everywhere more or less. But once you get into wide range spots (BTN vs CO, SB vs BTN, BB vs SB), you should really be widening your 3betting range.

In this specific spot, the SB should be iso-raising a pretty tight range, so I understand why you would be apprehensive about re-raising light. But I think it's really unlikely that he is raising to $10 over 3 limpers with a premium hand. Usually this sizing indicates something like a mid-pair or a nice suited hand that is just looking to take initiative and build a nice pot. I think you can attack that range when you have a playable hand like AJo. Try to take it down pre-flop or at least get it heads up in position where you can win without making the best hand.

Thanks! I wasn't aware of this resource.

Thanks to all for the feedback. Definitely valuable in terms of pre-flop 3betting ranges and when to take the betting lead.

As for the river decision, I tanked. I lose to QT, 7X, AK, and the rare JJ, KK, and AA. I have to worry about all three Vs, as V1 and V2 will still have action after me. V3 (SB) could have the QT, hoping to ck-raise turn when it came in, although he'd more likely just complete pre with this hand rather than raise smallish. Either V1 or V2 would likely have bet QT on the turn, so they shouldn't have it. In this game, there could be some 7Xs out there, but would V1 lead flop with just a 7, and would V2 just call river with a 7? And how many 7s does V3 have as played? As for AK, V3/SB is the only player who could plausibly have it, and slow-played it, given that there's a high hand promotion going, and the hourly winner will get a bonus based on a card draw between $150 and $2500. The overboats are possible, but again only with SB/V3, and only if he's slow-playing post-flop in hopes of hitting a high hand. Plus, if I call, I have to worry about V1 and/or V2 having a callable hand, given their wide ranges. This is my analysis NOW, and other than one or two pieces of it during my 30-45 second tank, most prominently that I had two players behind, after staring both of them down and not getting a read on their plans, I chose to fold. V1 and V2 quickly folded behind me. V3 took the pot without showing, so he didn't have a high hand (aces full or better).

A couple orbits later, I asked V3 what he had, and he claimed that he had a dry ace. He said he was trying to get others off a chop (Aces & 7s, King kicker), and figured it would work if no one had a 7. Ugh! So, as noted, this hand plays much better in my favor if I 3bet pre-flop, or donked the turn. As for the river, as played, we all would have gotten owned.

I mean V is allowed to lie to you.
I guess he is also allowed to have AQo and be tilted on the river and then make a really weird play (maybe it gets through enough). Buuut I'd be very suspicious that your read is off, or something else is.