Hold'em table

A small button open uses position and the king blocker to contest the blinds cheaply. With no rake, opening a wider range is more attractive.

I have 2d 9s, a weak hand that is unlikely to win against a preflop raise. Folding minimizes losses with this speculative hand.

Calling the 100-chip difference in the big blind with 6-2 suited is a cheap way to see a flop heads-up against the button's raise, and it keeps the pot small with a weak hand.

I have six-high with no pair on an Ace-five-queen rainbow-ish flop, and checking is free, so I take the free showdown and avoid building a pot with a weak hand.

This ace-high board favors my preflop raising range. A small continuation bet can fold out unpaired hands cheaply, while my king-high has limited showdown value.

My 6-2 of hearts has no pair and only a weak backdoor flush draw against seat_1's continued betting, so calling 125 into a 575 pot does not have enough equity.

Calling the big blind with J9o in position is a standard play to see a flop cheaply and realize equity without overcommitting preflop.

I'm getting 50 chips to complete the small blind to a 100-chip big blind in a three-way limped pot, which is a cheap price to see a flop with a weak but playable hand.

With 6-5 offsuit against two limpers, taking a free flop is preferable to building a pot with a weak hand. Checking preserves chips while retaining the chance to make a strong hand.

Holding Tc6s on a Ks6cQs flop with no bet to me, checking is the cheapest way to see the next card and I have no strong made hand to build the pot with.

Bottom pair with a weak kicker and no meaningful draw is best checked in this three-way pot. Betting offers little value and risks building a pot against stronger pairs and draws.

The flop is K-6-Q with no action yet. My hand is J-9, which is weak and unimproved. Checking is the safest play to see a free card and avoid building a pot with a marginal holding.

I have a pair of sixes on a board with a king and queen, so my hand is weak and checking is the cheapest way to see the next card.

My pair of sixes has some showdown value, but betting into two opponents would get limited value from worse hands and rarely fold out better pairs. Checking keeps the pot small and preserves the chance to improve for free.

Board is paired with K and Q, and my Jh9d has backdoor straight potential but no made hand. Checking keeps the pot small and avoids building a big pot with a mediocre holding on the turn.

I hold a pair of sixes with no straight, and the board is paired-free with a flush-less, straight-heavy texture, so checking keeps the pot small and avoids bloating it with a weak holding.

My pair of sixes retains some showdown value, but betting is unlikely to get called by worse. With two opponents and no spade blocker on a river that completes several draws, checking is preferable to bluffing.

The board is coordinated with a K-Q-J straight possible, and my Jh-9d gives me a weak king-high with a backdoor flush draw that missed. Checking keeps the pot small and avoids building a big pot with a marginal hand on the river.

Q8 offsuit is a marginal hand, but calling 100 from the button is cheap and keeps me in with position against the small and big blinds.

53 offsuit has poor equity realization from the small blind, even with favorable immediate pot odds. The big blind can still raise, and this hand is too weak to justify an isolation raise.

I have a weak 3-2 offsuit and no action to take preflop; checking keeps my stack intact and lets me see a flop cheaply.

I have a weak 3-2 offsuit with no equity on this A-K-Q board, so I will check to control the pot and avoid building a bigger bet with a losing hand.

Holding 8h Qs on an As Qh Ks flop I have a pair of queens, and seat_2 checked to me, so checking keeps the pot small and lets me see the turn for free.

I have a weak 3-2 high with no pair and no flush or straight draw, so I want to see the river cheaply and avoid building a pot with a losing hand. Checking keeps the pot small and lets me fold if the opponent bets aggressively.

I hold two pair, kings and queens, which is strong on this board, and the opponent has checked twice, so a small value bet should get called by weaker hands.

My hand is 3s2d, completely disconnected from the paired Kh board. Facing a turn raise to 200 with only 100 invested, calling is a clear -EV decision, so folding is the correct play.

A3 offsuit is a reasonable button open three-handed, with an ace blocker and position if called. Raising to 2.5 big blinds applies pressure to the blinds without overcommitting a marginal hand.

Seat 1 opened to 250 with 9d8h, a hand that plays well postflop. Calling keeps the pot manageable and preserves my stack while realizing equity.

Facing 150 more to call into a 600 chip pot (about 4:1), and as big blind with 3-K offsuit the price justifies seeing a flop without raising.

I have a middle pair on a paired board with a possible straight draw, so I want to control the pot and see a cheap turn. Checking keeps the action open and avoids building a big pot with a marginal hand.

Checking is free and I hold only a pair of threes with a king kicker against a paired board, so I'd rather see the next card than bloat the pot.

Our paired three has showdown value, but betting into two opponents gets limited value from worse and risks running into pocket pairs or trips. Checking back keeps the pot controlled and lets us reassess in position on the turn.

I have a set of 8s on a paired board with a 6, giving me a strong hand but vulnerable to full houses. Since the pot is small and no one has shown strength, checking keeps the pot controlled and allows me to assess opponents' intentions on the river.

I hold two pair (eights and threes with a king kicker) and both opponents have shown weakness by checking, so a value bet builds the pot before the river.

Our pair of threes is only a weak bluff-catcher against a two-thirds-pot bet into two opponents. With another player still to act and few reliable improvement outs against value hands, calling is unlikely to be profitable.

I have a middle set with 88 on a paired board, which is a strong hand on the turn. Calling 500 to win a 1250 pot is a profitable decision, and I want to keep the opponent's bluffs in the hand.

The board is paired with 8s and I hold a middle set of 8s with a 9 kicker. Checking allows me to control the pot and potentially induce a bluff from seat_3 on the river, while avoiding building a big pot with a marginal second pair if they have a stronger hand.

I have two pair (threes and eights) with a king kicker, which is good but not a clear value bet into a player who called a turn raise and then checked. Checking takes the free showdown.

I have pocket Tens on the button, a decent hand to see a flop. The pot odds are favorable, and I want to keep the small blind's 50-chip investment in the pot.

J9 offsuit is a marginal hand, but completing the small blind for 50 more is cheap, and seeing a flop in a three-way pot with the big blind still to act is reasonable.

K7 offsuit is too weak to routinely raise against two limpers, particularly with the button holding position. Checking takes a free flop without inflating the pot with a potentially dominated hand.

I hold a pair of jacks on a J-7-6 board with no bet to call, so checking keeps the pot small and lets me see the next card for free.

Middle pair with a strong kicker has showdown value but limited value-betting potential against two opponents. Checking keeps the pot manageable and lets us reassess if the button bets.

Top pair on a dry board with no action yet; checking keeps the pot small and allows me to control the hand on later streets.

I have three jacks on the turn, a very strong hand, and the board has two paired-card risks, so I bet about two-thirds pot to build the pot for value.

Our seven with a king kicker has enough showdown value against weaker pairs and draws to call this turn bet. Raising would mostly isolate us against stronger hands; calling keeps the pot manageable while we assess the button's action and river.

Top pair on a dry board with a backdoor flush draw is strong enough to call a turn bet from the button, keeping the pot controlled and avoiding unnecessary bluff pressure.

I hold Js with Jc and Jd on board, making jacks full of sevens, which is very likely best here. I bet about two-thirds pot for value against two players who called the turn.

My full house beats missed draws and weaker value bets, though any jack beats me. Calling costs 600 to contest a 2,100-chip pot; raising would mostly isolate stronger hands and drive out bluffs.

Seat 3's river raise to 600 with a paired board (J-J-7-7) and my weak Ten-high hand makes continuing -EV; folding avoids a likely dominated call.

On the button with 9-8 offsuit, a raise to 300 steals the blinds with good playability, and the small blind and big blind both fold often enough to make it profitable.

A2 suited is a useful three-bet bluff against a button open: it blocks strong ace holdings and retains nut-flush and wheel potential when called. Raising also discourages the big blind from entering while compensating for our positional disadvantage.

Q3 offsuit is a weak hand and I'm out of position facing a raise and a re-raise. Folding preserves my stack for better spots.

Nine-eight offsuit facing a 900-chip call after a 3-bet is below the roughly 36% equity needed against a strong 3-bet range, so folding is the better choice.