Defend pre, check flop and turn, then bet river for value with two pair on a paired board.
Flop 6h 8d Tc rainbow in a 3-way pot: LJ checks, MP bets small, and we have middle pair with an A kicker. This texture is very draw-heavy and connects well with LJ’s range, so checking our entire range is preferred. Once MP bets, calling with A8o is fine—our hand has decent equity and we’re getting a good price, and raising would mostly run into our own overpairs and strong Tx while folding out worse hands.
Turn 4c: LJ and MP both check. With SPR ≈1.2 and a shallow stack behind, we should continue checking our range—betting now would mostly get action from Tx and overpairs while folding out worse hands. Checking our range also keeps our line consistent and avoids overplaying a marginal pair on a very connected board.
River Th pairs the board: LJ and MP have checked twice, and we now have two pair (8s and T kicker). This is a very strong hand on this paired board, and we should bet for value. A small bet (≈25–33% pot) targets Tx and better 8x while still allowing worse hands to bluff-catch. Solver prefers a mix of check and small bet, but the small bet is a very reasonable, high-EV choice.