Hold'em table

QJo is a strong 3-handed button hand with position; raising builds value and pressures the blinds rather than limping.

Holding 5-2 offsuit, which is a weak hand out of position facing a raise to 250 with 150 more to call, so folding is the disciplined choice.

K7 suited is strong enough to defend the big blind against a button's 2.5bb open, needing only 27.3% equity on the call. Calling preserves its suited playability without inflating the pot out of position.

Check to the preflop raiser on this paired ace-high board. King-high has some showdown value and a backdoor diamond draw, but leading would mostly fold weaker hands while getting action from stronger ones.

As preflop raiser in position on a dry paired Ace board, a small c-bet leverages my Ace-heavy range for fold equity while QJ retains backdoor straight and overcard outs if called.

King-high has some showdown value against a wide button continuation-betting range, plus a backdoor diamond draw. The small bet offers sufficient pot odds to defend without inflating the pot.

Checking keeps the pot controlled with king-high and a newly acquired flush draw. It preserves the option to continue against a reasonable bet without leading into the preflop raiser's stronger range.

Q-high has only weak showdown value on the paired Ace board after opponent called the flop; checking takes a free river and avoids bluffing into a range that often contains an Ace, 9, or a pocket pair.

The river gives me aces and kings, strong enough for a small value bet against pocket pairs and nines after the turn checks through. A modest sizing can earn calls from worse without committing much against slow-played trips or full houses.

River bet after flop call is heavily weighted to an Ace, a King, a 9, a 4, or a pocket pair, all of which make trips or two pair beating my one pair of Aces. I beat only pure unpaired bluffs, which are too few for the price.

Suited connectors like 5h4s are playable from the button in a 3-handed game, and completing for 100 chips is cheap with good postflop potential.

8-3 offsuit is too weak to complete from the small blind, even at this price. It realizes equity poorly out of position, and the big blind can still raise.

Q4o is weak out of position against a button limp; taking a free flop keeps the pot small rather than building it with a marginal hand.

Heads-up with a club flush draw plus a gutshot to the straight, I have strong semi-bluff equity and fold equity against a limped button range, so betting builds the pot while pressuring weak pairs.

I have a pair of fives with a gutshot straight draw to the 6, and calling 200 into a 450 pot gives good enough pot odds against a single bettor's range.

Made a Q-high flush on the turn with Qc; only an A- or K-high club flush beats me, so bet for value against lower flushes and strong made hands.

On the turn with only one card to come, my pair of fives plus a gutshot has roughly 9% to hit a straight, far short of the about 30% needed to call 500 into a 1150 pot against a player who has raised twice. Folding is correct.

Seven-four offsuit is too weak for a standard button open at 100bb with no antes. Folding avoids investing in a hand with poor equity and limited playability.

Completing for 50 into 150 gives 3:1 pot odds; J6o has well over 25% equity against a random big blind hand, enough to see a flop despite being out of position.

Seat_1 only completed the small blind, so checking my big blind is free. T7 offsuit is too weak to raise profitably here.

Jack-high with only weak backdoor straight potential has little value and poor bluff equity on Q-T-2 against a wide big-blind range; checking keeps the pot small and realizes equity for free.

I hold T7 offsuit with a pair of tens on a T-Q-2 board, a marginal made hand; checking is free and keeps the pot small while I see whether seat_1 bets.

J-high has no real draw on this Q-T board and only modest river pair outs, so checking realizes that equity for free rather than bluffing into a wide big-blind range that can call with pairs and draws.

Pair of tens with a queen kicker is medium strength on this board, so checking keeps the pot controlled and avoids bloating it against a player who has checked the turn.

J-high beats missed diamond and straight draws at showdown, while hands beating me like Ace/King-high or any pair are likely to call a small river bet. Checking preserves that showdown value against a capped, twice-checked range.

Holding a pair of tens on a paired board facing a river check, checking keeps the pot small and preserves showdown value without risking a bet that a stronger hand could punish.

Q4 offsuit is a weak, dominated hand even on the button in 3-handed play; folding avoids investing 100 chips with poor equity and playability.

Calling 50 chips to see a flop against only the big blind gives about 3:1 pot odds, which justifies continuing with the weak but cheap 3-10 offsuit.

Seven-three offsuit is too weak to justify raising without evidence the small blind overfolds. Checking takes a free flop and preserves chips.

I have T-high with no pair against an ace-paired board, so I'd rather see a free card than bloat the pot out of position.

A half-pot bluff attacks the small blind's checked range on a dry, paired board. With virtually no showdown value, taking a modest stab can win the pot from unpaired hands.

I have T-3 with no pair against a board of A-A-9, and I'd need to outdraw a likely strong or bluffing bet with almost no equity, so folding is the right play.

Suited 9-7 on the button is a playable speculative hand, and calling 100 into a 150 pot against two blinds gives good odds to see a flop cheaply.

J8 suited has enough playability to complete the small blind at 5-to-1 pot odds. Calling keeps the pot small while out of position rather than inflating it with a marginal hand.

K5 offsuit is too weak to raise out of position against two limpers; take the free flop in the big blind.

I have only jack-high and backdoor draws on a coordinated flop. Checking out of position against two opponents avoids investing chips with little equity or fold pressure.

King-high with only backdoor flush equity and no made hand; checking keeps the pot small and takes a free card in position over the small blind.

I hold a pair of sevens with a nine kicker on a Q-7-6 board, a medium-strength hand facing two opponents, so checking keeps the pot small and avoids bloating it against stronger holdings.

J-high has little equity and no direct straight or flush draw. Out of position against two opponents, checking is preferable to bluffing this paired board.

With only king-high on a paired queen board in a three-way limped pot, betting is unlikely to fold better pairs or draws; checking keeps the pot small and preserves a chance to improve on the river.

We have a pair of sevens with a board pair of queens and no bet to call, so checking to see the river for free is the best option.

With almost no showdown value, I bluff two-thirds pot after both opponents showed weakness on the flop and turn. The river king pressures ace-high and weak pairs, while my lack of diamonds leaves missed flush draws available to fold.

We have kings and queens two pair on a limped, checked-through board; a Q or strong K would often have bet earlier, so this 200 river bet includes missed draws and worse value, giving us enough equity at 200 to win 500.

We hold two pair (queens and sevens, king kicker), which is strong enough to call the river bet of 200 into a 700 pot rather than fold.

Pocket fives are a standard button open three-handed. Raising to 2.5 big blinds can win the blinds immediately while retaining positional advantage if called.

9-4 offsuit is a very weak hand facing a button raise to 2.5bb; calling from the small blind out of position has poor equity and playability.

I'm getting about 2.7-to-1 on a 150-chip call into a 400-chip pot heads-up against the button's wide steal range, so calling with Q-7 offsuit is a reasonable defense.

I have trip queens on a Q-high board, so I want to build the pot for value while the button may continue with worse pairs or draws.

Calling costs 300 to contest a final pot of 1,150, and pocket fives can still beat unpaired hands and some weaker pairs. In position, I can reassess on the turn without inflating the pot against trips or stronger pocket pairs.

We hold a set of queens on a Q-Q-3-K board, so we want to build the pot for value against a possible king or overpair. A raise to 600 keeps the pot growing while the opponent still has calling range.

My underpair is a weak bluff-catcher against a second barrel, and the king improves several plausible flop bluffs. With only two outs to improve against most value hands, calling 600 is not justified.