Top Two - Flush Completes On Turn

[Money022 0]

Villian in this hand is a bit tricky. He's limped early with a big pair once and then jacked it up when a player raised. In another hand he calls a $4 raise in position with 55. Flop comes 262 with two spades. Villian bets $1, he raises to $6, villian pushes for $90+ and he calls. The villian in that hand had been caught bluffing a few times, so that likely factored in.This hand he raises in EP and I don't know why but I flat called with AKos. Duh.Pretty nice flop for me though. I hit top two and he checks, I bet. Then the turn.PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1.00 BB (6 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: FlopTurnRiver)UTG ($152.40)MP ($126.25)Hero ($83.35)Button ($32.50)SB ($97.50)BB ($100)Preflop: Hero is CO with K, A. UTG raises to $3, 1 fold, Hero calls $3, 3 folds.Flop: ($7.50) K, 4, A(2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets $5, UTG calls $5.Turn: ($17.50) 8(2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets $12, UTG raises to $39, Hero???I decide to make a bet about 2/3 the pot for information purposes. When making the bet I feel if he comes over the top I'll consider folding...but I'm just not certain.Looking back over this though, I havn't represented any strength with my preflop call and he may feel he can push me off the hand with the scare card. I've also underbet each street a bit. Basically I butchered the hell out of this hand.What do you guys think? I know this is a push or fold situation. Is this a situation where I'm slightly ahead or way behind?

[AKProdigy 0]

What I hate here is that pushing means either one of two things:You win ~45 dollars (since he would likely fold any hand you have beat).You lose 83.35 dollars (Noted you have 4 outs if he does have the flush or a lower set, but for simplicity's sake).Ugly spot. He could easily be semibluffing with the Ac, pushing you off what he knows is not the nuts. If you think he would fold AA, KK, 88 or AK to a shove, I'd shove. If not, I probably lay it down. I'll admit I feel weak-tight saying that though.

[trystero 0]

3bet preflopFlop bet is fineI check behind on turn and call most river bets, value bet if checked to

[sabes99 0]

i think you probably should have re-raised this pf, but you know that alreadythis is a real tough spot...we know villain has gamble and isn't afraid to go with his read, based on the 5-5 hand...i think we go ahead and shove but it is really marginal either way

[mekan0001 0]

3bet preflopFlop bet is fineI check behind on turn and call most river bets, value bet if checked to

QFT

[Royal_Tour 0]

I check behind the turn more often than not.Some of the reasons here are because villain is a competent player with what you describe as "tricky" tendencies with that said, I also call the raise. He knows thats a scare card for you, i'm pretty sure in his mind he think you wouldnt be betting 2/3 the pot if you actually did hit the flush.Perhaps he holds the Ac which is why he makes this semi-bluff steal attempt

[Scott3705 0]

3bet preflopFlop bet is fineI check behind on turn and call most river bets, value bet if checked to

3bet isn't mandatory here. We should go either way with it in the same situation.I'm really not sold on checking behind. UTG raises with something like 67c, don't we think he's leading the flop or even C/Ring? it's almost as if he checked the flop for pot control and then decided to go crazy at the turn. This hand IMO looks like A8 or KQ with the queen of clubs. I'm probably raising this and just living with the result. i just don't see the flush that often for some reason.

[trystero 0]

3bet isn't mandatory here. We should go either way with it in the same situation.I'm really not sold on checking behind. UTG raises with something like 67c, don't we think he's leading the flop or even C/Ring? it's almost as if he checked the flop for pot control and then decided to go crazy at the turn. This hand IMO looks like A8 or KQ with the queen of clubs. I'm probably raising this and just living with the result. i just don't see the flush that often for some reason.

Right, 3-betting isn't mandatory but I've found it to be a much better way to play AK unless I have a read that villain's hyperaggressive and can make that 4-bet (I hate putting in my stack pf with AK). He does go crazy on the turn and that usually means a good hand. As played I shove or call / call any non-club river but I still prefer checking behind on the turn when an obvious draw hits and villain's called a healthy flop bet. It avoids spots like this where you're fairly unsure of what's happening. I don't think he'd necessarily raise or lead the flop with a naked flush draw. He'd put us on top pair and figure to stack us if he hits. Royal's probably right that he's got the Ac...fits with his line - call flop for pot control, turn the flushdraw~~~!!! and then raise it up OOP to advertise strength.Next time OP must give himself the Ac or Kc to make this easier.

[Scott3705 0]

Right, 3-betting isn't mandatory but I've found it to be a much better way to play AK unless I have a read that villain's hyperaggressive and can make that 4-bet (I hate putting in my stack pf with AK). He does go crazy on the turn and that usually means a good hand. As played I shove or call / call any non-club river but I still prefer checking behind on the turn when an obvious draw hits and villain's called a healthy flop bet. It avoids spots like this where you're fairly unsure of what's happening. I don't think he'd necessarily raise or lead the flop with a naked flush draw. He'd put us on top pair and figure to stack us if he hits. Royal's probably right that he's got the Ac...fits with his line - call flop for pot control, turn the flushdraw~~~!!! and then raise it up OOP to advertise strength.Next time OP must give himself the Ac or Kc to make this easier.

Agree with first bolded part. 2 years ago, I would have said that I thought calling behind with AK was better. There was a really good thread between me TJ Eckelburg and DrawingDead that made me start calling behind with AK more often at the time. With player becoming more competent LAG's I now think it's better to reraise preflop just period.. let alone with AK. I was just pointing out that hero doesn't need to raise AK every time, and even though I think raising AK is beter, I'm not always reraising here.The logic behind the naked flush draw not leading is that he doesn't want to get priced out of his draw against an ace. However, he has no real indication of our strength when he checks and doesn't necessarily either with our flop. He shows weakness, we bet almost any hand on the flop. I think it's just standard that if you raise suited cards Q-, that you tend to follow it with a c-bet hoping to take down the pot. At the turn, I'd say he would still have a hard time putting us on a hand. We bet the scare card, so we could still be trying to run him out of a hand like QQ-. Basically I'm trying to save that his turn and flop weakness should call into question the range he puts us on. Our hand can easily be a steal up until the turn C/R.As for the C/R, I'd say I still think it's a hand lik kxqc or a turned two pair. I also think you could be right that it could be Ac(unpaired card that we're crushing). I don't know why, but I just don't see the flush here that much and I just want to get my chips in here.

[Money022 0]

I thought about this hand all day long. I think sets are out since I cover a lot of the flop. If the villian had a set of 4's I would have heard from him on the flop. It's hard to think he paired the 8 for two pair and I can't see him calling the flop bet with 88 when one of the two remaining 8's completes the flush.If I'm beat I think it's a hand like Ac with a QJT of clubs. He could basically have any combination of those 4 cards. At the same time that's a fairly slim range, but it's the only combination that I can see making a raise UTG that would make this move. I'm not certain the villian is loose enough to raise UTG with Ac rag-club. Guess I'll never know.I do think it's very likely I was bluffed off of the pot. Perhaps checking behind would have been the best option. I actually chose to bet because I felt the turn was the best time to figure out where I was at. If I check and another club falls then he's in perfect position to bet it, at which time I'm folding. Even if another club doesn't fall and he bets, I've got a decision. Of course if he leads the river it's likely to be around the amount I bet on the turn. If that were the case, we get the same amount of money into the pot and I get to showdown and have a decent holding.Any last thoughts before this one drifts down the line?