A♥Q♣ CO vs BB, river on A♣ 8♦ 5♣ 5♥ 2♠, 120 bb
The spot
- You: CO
- Opponent: BB
- Your hand: A♥Q♣
- Board: A♣ 8♦ 5♣ 5♥ 2♠
- Effective stack: 120 bb
- Pot: 24 bb
Hero c‑bets flop, checks turn, checked to hero river.
Most profitable practical line?
See the answer
Best play: Bet 30% pot
Why
AQ is top pair good kicker but the capped, passive line means a small river bet gets called by weaker Ax and bluff‑catchers, whereas a big bet only folds out worse and gets called by better.
Key idea
On the river, top pair good kicker after a passive line extracts most by betting small for thin value against weaker Ax and bluff‑catchers.