Hold'em table

Open-raising suited connectors on the button in 3-handed play to leverage position and playability.

K2 offsuit is too weak to call a button raise from the small blind with the big blind still to act.

J8s in the big blind facing a 2.5x button open gets good pot odds (150 to win 400) and is suited with some playability, so calling is better than folding or bluff-raising.

Jd8d has only jack-high on a 9-9-3 board. I'm out of position against the button's preflop raise, so I check and keep the pot small rather than bet a marginal hand.

As the preflop aggressor in position on a paired, disconnected board, a small continuation bet applies pressure to the big blind's missed broadways and weak floats.

Jd8d on a 9-9-3 board has only jack-high and 8-high with backdoor flush potential. The bet is 180 into 550, so I need about 25% equity. The button can be betting a wide range, so a call is reasonable, and a raise would risk too much with little value.

Jd8d on 9s9h3c5d has only jack-high with no made hand and no draw, so it is a weak bluff-catcher. Checking keeps the pot small and avoids building it against a button who bet the flop and may bet again.

Turned two pair with a weak kicker gives us medium showdown value, making checking back for pot control optimal.

Jack-high has little showdown value, but the button checked back the turn, which suggests a weak range. A bet of about half the pot should fold out ace-high and similar hands that beat me.

Seat 3 bets over half pot on the river after calling flop and turn checking through. Any 6x counterfeits our two pair, and we lose to all value hands while having better bluffcatchers in our range.

A9 suited is a strong button opening hand three-handed. Raising to 250 builds the pot while preserving position postflop.

2h Ts is a weak offsuit hand. Facing a button raise to 250 with the big blind still to act behind, calling 200 more out of position is not profitable, so I fold.

J9o plays poorly out of position against a 2.5x button open, making it a standard fold.

J9 offsuit on the button in a 3-handed game is a playable hand, and calling 100 to win a pot of 250 gives a good price. A raise would be marginal, so I'll just call and see a flop.

Q5o is too weak to complete out of position even with good direct pot odds.

With 6-4 offsuit against a button limp, I’ll take the free flop rather than build a pot out of position.

Bottom pair and a gutshot are worth a small protection bet against a wide limping range, while keeping the pot manageable on a monotone flop.

Jack-high with a backdoor straight draw and a possible overcard on a monotone-ish 4-2-5 board is weak, but the price is good: 150 to call into 400, about 27% equity needed. Since the small bet may be a probe, I'll call cheaply and see the turn, holding position on the button.

I have a weak pair and no diamond on a four-diamond board. Checking controls the pot and lets me see how my opponent responds.

I hold the Jd, a nut-flush-draw-adjacent hand with a backdoor-free flush draw on a monotone-ish board: 4d 2d 5d Td with Jd gives me the second-nut... actually a made flush, since Jd is one of four diamonds on board. Villain checked the turn, so I value bet small to get called by weaker diamonds and draws.

With four diamonds on the board, my weak pair has little chance to improve against a diamond. Calling the turn bet is unlikely to be profitable.

K8o is a standard open-raise candidate from the button in 3-handed play to steal the blinds and take position postflop.

4-2 suited is too weak to call the button’s raise from the small blind, especially with the big blind still to act.

33 in the big blind has good odds (100 to win 350) against a button min-raise. Calling keeps the pot small and lets me hit a set, and it stays in position-disadvantaged spots with less risk than a 3-bet.

Pocket threes on a 9-4-Q flop is a weak showdown-value hand, and I act first out of position against the preflop raiser. Checking keeps the pot small and lets me see what the button does, rather than building a pot I would likely lose.

C-betting 1/3 pot on a dry Queen-high board leverages our range advantage as the preflop aggressor in position.

A small pocket pair with an underpair to the board has decent equity against a small c-bet from the button. The pot odds are good at 150 to win 600, and calling keeps the pot small and controls the price.

A pair of threes is a weak showdown-value hand on a Q-K-9 board with two hearts. Seat_1 bet the flop small and could have many better hands, so I'll check and try to reach showdown cheaply rather than build a pot.

Turned top pair with an eight kicker on a dynamic board; checking back controls the pot and protects our showdown value in position.

Pocket threes are a weak showdown hand on a 9-4-Q-K-7 board. Seat_1 checked back the turn, so a check keeps the pot small and lets me try to win at showdown. A bet would mostly be called by better hands and fold out worse ones.

I have top pair with a weak kicker on a fairly connected board. Checking behind ensures I realize my showdown value without risking getting check-raised or called by better hands.

K7 suited is strong enough to open on the button three-handed, and a 2.5 big-blind raise applies pressure while keeping the pot manageable.

A8s is a decent hand in a 3-handed pot. Calling 200 more against a button open of 2.5bb is reasonable, and it keeps the pot manageable out of position with the big blind still to act.

Getting 4:1 pot odds closing the preflop action with QJo, calling is standard and profitable.

I hold the nut flush draw with an ace-high backdoor on a Tc 4c Qc board, with Ad and 8d. I'm first to act in a 3-way pot, so a semi-bluff bet of about half the pot builds the pot and can win it now, and I have strong equity if called.}

I have top pair with a decent kicker. While the monotone board and multiway dynamic are tricky, calling the 400 chip lead is standard getting over 3 to 1 pot odds.

With king-high, no club, and only remote backdoor draws on a monotone flop, calling a bet and a call in a three-way pot is unlikely to be profitable.

I hold the nut flush draw's blocker-less ace-high with an inside straight draw... actually Ad with no club, so just ace-high plus a gutshot (8-9-T-Q needs J). The board is very wet with three clubs and I'm out of position against a caller, so checking to control the pot is best.

I have top pair and an open-ended straight draw, but with three clubs on board and no club in hand, checking behind controls the pot and safely realizes equity.

I hold 8-9-T-J-Q, a queen-high straight, and the only hands that beat it are a king-high straight or a flush. I bet about two-thirds of the pot for value against a checking opponent who could hold worse straight-less pairs or draws that missed.

The board has four to a straight and three clubs, and we hold no relevant blockers to straights or flushes. Calling 1000 with just two pair on this coordinated texture only beats pure air.

A7 suited-ace offsuit on the button in a 3-handed game is a solid open; raising 3x isolates the blinds and uses position.

With zero rake and 100bb effective stacks, calling 44 from the small blind against a button 3x open is profitable for set mining and taking a flop.

A6 suited has enough equity and playability to call 200 into a 700-chip pot, and calling closes the preflop action.

Holding an underpair to the two broadway cards on the flop in a 3-way pot, checking is standard out of position.

With ace-high and little immediate draw equity on a K-J-3 flop, I prefer to check in this multiway pot and see what the preflop raiser does.

With the button and the nut-flush-blocker-free ace-high, I hold backdoor equity, and both opponents checked, so a small one-third pot bet takes the pot often and gets value from worse hands like weak jacks and draws.

I have fourth pair with 44 on a board of Jh-3c-Kc, with very little equity or room to improve, and another player yet to act behind me.

Ace-high has little chance to improve on this flop, and calling out of position against the preflop raiser is unlikely to be profitable.