Hold'em table

7-5 offsuit on the button in a 3-handed 100bb game is a marginal hand; folding avoids playing a weak hand out of position against two unknown opponents who act after me preflop.

With the button folded, A8 offsuit is strong enough to raise from the small blind for value and initiative against the big blind. A 300-chip total keeps the raise appropriately sized.

With 4c2s in the big blind facing a raise, this is a very weak offsuit hand that plays poorly postflop. Folding avoids putting in more chips out of position with minimal equity.

JTs is a strong button-opening hand three-handed. Raise to 2.5 big blinds to apply pressure while retaining playability postflop.

K3s is too weak to call a button raise from the small blind, especially with the big blind still to act; folding avoids playing a dominated hand out of position.

K9o in the big blind facing a 2.5x button open with SB folded; getting 400:150 pot odds, calling is standard as K9o is too strong to fold but not strong enough to 3-bet for value.

Top pair with a weak kicker out of position against the preflop raiser; checking to the aggressor lets me call a c-bet and keep the pot controlled rather than bloating it with a marginal hand.

A small flop bet can get value from weaker pairs and charge heart draws while protecting my middle pair. Keeping it modest avoids inflating the pot on a king-high board that favors the big blind.

Top pair with a weak kicker on a two-tone board facing a small c-bet (180 into 550); calling keeps the pot controlled while ahead of most of the button's raising range, and raising would mostly fold out worse hands.

Top pair with a weak kicker plus a 9h for a flush draw on a wet KhThJc4h board; checking to the aggressor controls the pot and lets me call a reasonable bet with pair plus flush/straight outs rather than bloating it out of position.

I have two pair and the turn brings draws and pair-plus-draw hands that can call. A substantial value bet charges those hands while getting value from weaker made hands.

Top pair with a flush draw and gutshot on a wet board; pot odds (~28%) plus implied outs and showdown value make calling clearly better than folding, while raising risks getting blown off by made straights/flushes.

Second pair with a weak kicker on a scary river (ace, possible straight with any Q, three hearts); betting has no value and only gets called by better, so check and evaluate against villain's river action.

The ace is an unfavorable river: it improves many hands that called the turn, and a queen makes a straight. My two pair has showdown value, so I’ll check rather than risk a value bet into a stronger range.

With 87o on the button in a 3-handed game, calling 100 closes the action cheaply and keeps position with a hand that can flop well. Raising risks too much against two blind defenders with a marginal offsuit connector.

Button limped; completing from the small blind with J5 suited for 50 more into 250 is cheap and plays fine multiway, while raising out of position with a weak hand isn't attractive.

With weak offsuit 9-4 and three players in the pot, checking the big blind is preferable to building the pot. I can see the flop for free.

Limped pot, I have J5 of clubs with no pair on a paired ace board; out of position against two players, a cheap check keeps the pot small and lets me see what the others do.

I have no pair and only a backdoor flush draw on a paired ace board. Checking keeps the pot small and preserves the chance to improve for free.

I have 8-high with no pair on an A-A-3 board; both opponents checked, so I check back and take a free card rather than bluff into two players who could easily have an ace.

Jc5c has nothing on Ad 3d As 6d with three diamonds and paired aces on board; limped pot checked around, so checking keeps the pot small and avoids bluffing into flushes or trips.

I have only a weak diamond draw, and betting into two opponents risks being called by a higher diamond or an ace. I’ll take the free river card.

With only a weak diamond draw and no pair, checking keeps the pot small and lets me see a free river card.

River gave us aces and jacks on a board that was checked through twice, so flushes and aces are less likely; a half-pot value bet targets 6x, 3x, pocket pairs and weaker jacks.

My hand is only a weak pair of aces with a poor kicker, and a river bet on this board can represent a jack, a six, or a flush. With another player still to act, calling is too risky.

I have no pair, no flush, and only an 8-high kicker on a paired ace board; calling 150 into 450 is not justified given most opponent hands beat me.

7s8s suited connector on the button in a 3-handed game is a standard open; raise to 2.5bb to take initiative and play in position.

Pocket nines are strong enough for a value-oriented three-bet against a button open. Raising to 1000 builds the pot while applying pressure to the big blind and denying equity.

Facing a 3-bet with a weak offsuit hand (T7o), folding is the clear choice. Continuing would require investing 900 more with poor equity and out of position.

Facing a 4x 3-bet from the SB with 7s8s in position and 100bb deep; getting 1350:750 pot odds (~36%) with a hand that plays well postflop and has good implied odds against a strong range, so a call is reasonable while folding is also close.

With 99 on a paired board containing a jack, I have useful showdown value but little need to inflate the pot. I’ll check and keep weaker hands and bluffs in my opponent’s range.

7-high with no draw has zero showdown value; the 3-bettor's check on a dry paired J33 board often signals AK/AQ-type hands that will fold to a small stab, so a 1/3-pot bluff needs to work only ~25% of the time.

Pocket nines are a likely best hand against a small continuation bet on this paired flop, and the pot odds make calling preferable to folding. Raising would isolate against stronger hands and bluffs can continue anyway.

Nines are a useful showdown hand on this paired, jack-high board, but betting is unlikely to get called by many worse hands. Checking keeps the pot manageable and lets me respond to a river action.

I have 8-high with no real draw on 3-J-3-4; the 3-bettor's check-call line often contains overpairs or big aces that won't fold to a second barrel. Checking takes a free card to pair up and keeps my losses capped.

With 99, I have a useful bluff-catcher but little value against the opponent’s likely calling range. Checking lets worse hands check behind and leaves room to respond to a river bet.

8-high has zero showdown value; opponent's 3-bet range that check-called flop and checked twice looks like AK/AQ-type air or weak pairs, so a ~70% pot bet representing a 3 or a straight only needs to fold ~40% to profit.

99 is a reasonable bluff-catcher on this paired, low board, and the river sizing gives a favorable price. The line can include missed draws or weaker pairs often enough to justify calling.

AQ offsuit is a strong button opening hand three-handed. Raise to 2.5 big blinds to take initiative while keeping weaker hands in the pot.

T5s is too weak to defend out of position against a button raise, especially with the big blind still to act behind me.

65o in the big blind facing a 2.5x button open with SB folded; getting 400:150 (~27% equity needed) and closing the action, a call is marginally profitable with a connected hand that plays reasonably well postflop.

I have 6-high with no pair or draw on K-8-2 after calling a button raise from the big blind; checking to the preflop aggressor is standard and I can fold to a bet.

A small continuation bet uses the preflop raiser’s advantage on this king-high board and can fold out hands with little equity. If called, I still have two overcards and position.

6-high with only a gutshot (need a 4 for a wheel-ish draw? actually 6-5 on 8-K-2 gives no straight draw, just backdoor) on a K-high board facing a c-bet; no equity worth continuing with, so fold.

With a small pocket pair on the button and deep stacks, calling the 100-chip big blind is cheap and keeps the pot controlled while allowing me to flop a set in position.

Pocket nines in the small blind after a button limp is a clear value raise; isolating the limper and taking initiative beats completing out of position.

J♥4♥ is too weak to continue against a substantial raise and a caller; the 3-big-blind call is unlikely to have enough equity, especially out of position.

With a small pair on the button, I have good odds and deep implied odds to set-mine against the small blind's raise, so calling is preferable to folding or bloating the pot.

We raised preflop as SB vs a button limper and hold 99 on Qh 3c 8h; a half-pot c-bet for value/protection against flush draws, 8x, and overcard floats is reasonable, and we can fold to heavy resistance.

Flopped bottom set on a draw-heavy board; raising for value and to charge flush/straight draws.

Pocket nines on Qh3c8h faced a flop raise from a limp-caller whose range includes many flush/straight draws and some Qx; at 27% pot odds we have enough equity to call once and re-evaluate the turn, folding to further aggression on bad cards.

99 is a marginal bluff-catcher on Q-high board after villain raised flop big; checking keeps pot controlled and lets me evaluate his turn sizing before deciding to call or fold.

I flopped a set of threes and the turn is a blank; betting for value and to charge flush/straight draws.

Villain limp-called, check-raised the flop large and is now barreling big on the turn with a Q-high board; 99 is a weak bluff-catcher against a range heavy with Qx, sets and two pair, and calling commits us to a river shove. Fold.