Showdown Hold'em table

45o is far below the published preflop raising threshold, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak hand.

My 4-5 misses this A-T-9 flop with no pair or straight draw, so raising 2x would put extra chips in with very little equity. I check and will reassess on the river.

My 4-5 offsuit missed the board entirely, leaving only a weak pair of nines with a five kicker. The dealer qualifies with any pair, and almost any dealer holding (ace, ten, nine, higher kicker, or pocket pair) beats me, so raising 1x has strongly negative expected value; folding limits the loss to the ante and blind.

4c7c is far outside the published preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak, offsuit low-card hand.

With 4c7c on Qh3c8c, I have only a flush draw and no made hand. Checking the flop lets me see the turn and river for free, then raise 1x on the river if the flush completes or fold cheaply if it misses.

3h5c is far outside the published optimal preflop raising range, so I check and preserve chips rather than raise into a weak offsuit holding.

My 3-5 offsuit missed this flop and has only a weak gutshot; checking keeps the hand cheap and lets me fold the river if I do not improve.

My best hand is only a pair of sixes with a weak kicker; the dealer will almost always have a better hand, so raising would risk more chips with very low win probability. Folding limits the loss to the already posted ante and blind.

Q2 offsuit is below the published preflop raising threshold, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak hand.

With Q-high and no pair or draw on an ace-high flop, raising 2x would risk extra chips with very low equity against the dealer's qualifying range. Checking keeps the hand alive to see the turn and river at no additional cost.

With a board pair of sevens and Q kicker, the dealer must have a higher kicker, a paired board card, or a pocket pair to beat me. My win probability is about 31.5%, making the 1x river raise better than folding (-12.5 vs -20 expected chips).

Pocket sevens are a strong preflop pair and fall within the published optimal 4x raising range, so I raise the maximum to build value against the dealer.

8h4c is well outside the published optimal preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak offsuit hand.

My 8-high hand with no pair and only weak backdoor straight/flush potential is far too weak to raise into a dealer who qualifies with a pair or better. Checking preserves the option to fold on the river if I do not improve.

8-2 suited is well below the published preflop raising threshold, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak hand.

I have a king-high flush, losing only to an ace-high flush (about 0.6% of dealer hands). Raising 1x is clearly +EV.

AKs is a premium preflop hand and falls squarely in the optimal 4x raising range, so maximize pressure and value now.

Ac3d contains an ace, which is in the published optimal 4x raising range, so I raise preflop to maximize expected value.

84o is far outside the published preflop raising range, so I check and preserve chips rather than raise into a weak offsuit hand.

9-6 offsuit is well outside the published preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips in with a weak hand.

With only bottom pair and a weak kicker on a coordinated board, I prefer to check and see the turn and river, preserving the option to fold if I don't improve rather than committing 2x now.

K7s is within the published optimal 4x raising range (K2s+), so raising maximizes expected value with a suited king and good play-bet leverage.

Ah2h is an ace-high hand, which is included in the published optimal preflop 4x raising range. Raising maximizes value with a hand that has favorable equity and blind-paytable potential.

93o is well outside the published preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips in with a weak offsuit hand.

With only 9-high and minimal flush potential, raising 2x on the flop would risk extra chips with a very weak hand. Checking preserves the option to fold or raise on the river depending on the runout.

Ace-King offsuit is a premium starting hand and falls within the published optimal 4x raising range (any ace), so raising maximizes expected value against the dealer.

J3o is well below the published preflop raising threshold, so I check and preserve the option to raise on the flop if it improves.

J-high with no pair or strong draw on a K-Q-6 flop is too weak to raise 2x; checking preserves the option to fold or raise on the river depending on further cards.

Q6s is exactly at the published optimal preflop 4x threshold (Q6s+), so raising maximizes expected value against the dealer.

9-8 offsuit is below the published preflop raising threshold, so checking avoids putting extra chips in with a weak holding.

87o is outside the published optimal preflop raising range, so checking preserves chips and lets me evaluate a cheap flop.

I have a pair of sevens plus an open-ended straight draw on a coordinated flop, which is strong enough to raise for value against the dealer's qualifying range.

4h8c is far outside the published preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak offsuit hand.

My 4-8 offsuit missed the flop except for a weak gutshot; raising 2x would risk too much with little equity, so I check and will decide on the river.

T8o is below the published preflop raising threshold (JTo/Q8o+ etc.), so checking avoids committing extra chips with a weak offsuit hand.

Weak pair of queens with a ten kicker on an A-Q-Q flop; the dealer often has an ace, king, jack, or better kicker, so raising 2x risks too much. Checking preserves the option to fold on the river if the hand does not improve.

Even though my QQQAT is often beaten, folding loses 20 chips outright, while raising 1x has positive relative EV because I win about 35% and tie about 8.5% of the time.

Ace-eight offsuit is in the published optimal preflop 4x raising range (any ace), so I maximize pressure with the strongest legal raise.

J3o is well below the published preflop raising threshold, so checking avoids putting extra chips in with a weak offsuit hand.

According to optimal Casino Hold'em strategy, any pair on the flop is a 2x raise. Our pair of jacks is vulnerable but still has positive expected value against the dealer's random hand.

J6o is below the published preflop raising threshold (JTo+/J8s+), so checking avoids committing extra chips with a weak offsuit hand.

J-high with no pair or strong draw on a Q-high flop is too weak to raise; checking preserves the option to fold or raise on the river depending on how the board develops.

2c3d is far outside the published preflop raising range and has very low equity against the dealer, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk before seeing the flop.

With 2c3d on an A-Q-8 flop, I have no pair, no draw, and little chance to beat a qualifying dealer hand, so I avoid raising and take the free check.

My best five cards are just A-high from the board (A-Q-J-T-8), and I cannot beat any dealer hand that qualifies with a pair or better. Raising only risks 10 extra chips, since a non-qualifying dealer merely ties me, so folding is the better play.

7-3 offsuit is far outside the published preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak hand.

My 7-high with no pair or strong draw is too weak to raise for value; checking keeps the hand alive to see the turn and river at no additional cost.

My 3-7 makes only a pair of fours with a weak 7 kicker, while the dealer always qualifies due to the board pair and will usually have a higher kicker. Raising 1x has negative expected value compared with folding, so I fold.

KQo is a strong preflop hand that falls within the published optimal 4x raising range (K5o+), so maximizing pressure with the maximum raise is best.

Ah2d contains an ace, which is in the published optimal preflop 4x raising range. Raising maximizes value with a hand that has strong high-card and ace-blocker equity against the dealer.

K5o meets the published optimal preflop 4x threshold (K5o+), so raising maximizes expected value with this marginal but playable king-high hand.

T5o is outside the published optimal preflop raising range, so checking avoids putting extra chips at risk with a weak offsuit hand.

With only ten-high and no pair or draw on a dry flop, checking avoids adding risk and keeps the option to fold on the river.

My hand is only king-high with no pair, so I lose to any qualifying dealer pair and often lose high-card showdowns even when the dealer misses. Folding avoids risking an additional 1x bet with negative expected value.