Am I too conservative/passive here? 25NL full ring

SuperHans

Whenever I'm in this position, I always seem to play the hand this way.

FullTiltPoker Game #1994958688: Table Ballinger - $0.10/$0.25 - No Limit Hold'em - 17:06:34 ET - 2007/03/15
Seat 1: mrfree1985 ($20.70)
Seat 2: Hero ($44.30)
Seat 3: WineLips ($7.80)
Seat 4: Winderkin ($33.55)
Seat 5: Talle ($24.75)
Seat 6: PONYEXPRESS50 ($6.60), is sitting out
Seat 7: PFunke ($60.55)
Seat 8: BOOOLER ($18.40)
Seat 9: RED PURCH ($19.75)
mrfree1985 posts the small blind of $0.10
Hero posts the big blind of $0.25
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Hero [Qc Jc]
WineLips calls $0.25
Winderkin folds
Talle folds
PFunke folds
BOOOLER folds
RED PURCH calls $0.25
mrfree1985 folds
Hero checks
*** FLOP *** [6c Ks 7c]
Hero checks
WineLips checks
RED PURCH bets $0.85
Hero calls $0.85
WineLips folds
*** TURN *** [6c Ks 7c] [8h]
Hero checks
RED PURCH bets $1.50
PONYEXPRESS50 has returned
Hero has 15 seconds left to act
Hero folds
Uncalled bet of $1.50 returned to RED PURCH
RED PURCH mucks
RED PURCH wins the pot ($2.45)

Villian's pokertracker stats(if you're into this sort of stuff): VPIP of 37.11, pfraise of 9.28 and total aggression factor of 0.56 after 97 hands.

I don't like betting the flop here when I'm first to act, because if I get a caller I don't want to be firing again on the turn without a made hand.
Should I be betting the flop and trying to take the hand down right there? Take into account the villain's stats and the stakes.

How was the fold on the turn? I reckoned that I wasn't getting the odds (both actual and implied) on hitting the flush, yet in this situation I always have a feeling of regret right after I fold. Would the villain have called a bet on the river if the flush card hit, and if so, how big of a bet?
Is it just a case of moving on and waiting for a better opportunity or could I have played it better?

Cheers.

padraig_f

Normally what I do here is check and evaluate the action. Unless I see definite strength from anyone I'll be looking to check-raise. This one is ideal for a check-raise. It's checked around and the guy last to act bets. Most people will bet here with any 2 cards, so most of the time he has nothing at all.

Even if he has hit a piece of the flop, it's hard for him to continue against a check-raise unless he has a big king or better. If he calls the raise, bet fairly strongly on the turn again, most of the time you'll win it on the flop, and if not on the turn. In general, if you're called on the flop and turn, I don't think you should bet the river (unless you hit the flush), but this will be pretty rare.

The problem with check-calling is that you'll only hit your flush 1 in 5 times on the turn, and because check-calling the flop makes your flush draw very transparent, it will be hard to get paid off. Also I think check-raising disguises your hand more as it looks more like a made hand than a draw.

Some may argue for leading the flop but I'm not too keen this line. You don't give players a chance to bluff, you often get reraised off the pot. Also you make it easy for a guy with a weak pair to call you in position, and then you're in a tough spot on the turn when you miss.

In some cases I might also check-fold or check-call depending on the action, but mostly I'll be looking to check-raise.

cooker3

padraig_f wrote:

Also I think check-raising disguises your hand more as it looks more like a made hand than a draw.

I usually think people have draws more when they cr the flop then a made hand, people love slowplaying their hands.

If villians af is only .56 then chances are he has a hand so check calling flop and folding turn seems fine, check folding flop wouldn't be too bad either I guess, depending on what the villian is like.

padraig_f

cooker3 wrote:

I usually think people have draws more when they cr the flop then a made hand, people love slowplaying their hands.

It's debatable, but I beg to differ. From what I've found, at lower limits a draw is typically played one of 2 ways:
1) check-call
2) weak-lead

and sometimes maybe a strong lead. But a check-raise from the BB isn't usually indicative of a draw. Also with a flush draw on the board, people tend to play their big hands faster.

Ok the guy betting isn't the most aggressive player I still think his range is very wide, and a check-raise makes it difficult for all but the big hands.