K7o SB on A97r: Second Pair, Thin Value

Hero
K♥7♦
Position
SB vs BB
Pot
Limped Pot
Flop
A♣ 7♠ 9♥

On paired, ace-high boards, second pair with a weak kicker should mostly check; if we bet, it should be a small protection bet, and river should be a big polarized bet or check.

Flop Analysis

Flop A97 rainbow, BB checks. With second pair and a weak kicker on an ace-high board where BB has the nut advantage, checking is standard. Solver prefers a high checking frequency here, and our hand fits well into that bucket.

Turn Analysis

Turn 9 pairs the board and we now have 77 with a K kicker. Solver prefers checking this combo, but a small stab can work as a thin value/protection bet versus overcards and some ace-high hands. The 3bb sizing is reasonable if we choose to bet.

River Analysis

River Tc brings a straight and our hand drops to a bluff catcher. Solver mostly checks here and only mixes in a big polarized bet. Our small river bet is too optimistic and leaves money on the table versus hands that call anyway; checking or using a larger polarized sizing performs better.

Note: River sizing is too small for a bluff catcher on a straight board; checking or using a larger polarized sizing is preferred.

Key Concepts

  • Multi-Street Play
  • Villain Strong Advantage
  • IP
  • Dry Board
  • LEAN TOWARD CHECK