7♠6♠ BTN vs BB, preflop, 75 bb
The spot
- You: BTN
- Opponent: BB
- Your hand: 7♠6♠
- Board: preflop, no board yet
- Effective stack: 75 bb
- Pot: 5 bb
Villain opens and action is on hero preflop.
Which action keeps the best EV baseline?
See the answer
Best play: Call
Why
Hero is on the BTN with 7♠6♠, a suited connector, facing a single open (this is a facing-an-open spot, not a first-in). In position with the deepest possible postflop edge, flatting beats 3-betting: it keeps villain's dominated and bluff‑catchable holdings in the pot and unlocks the full implied-odds tree on connected and flush runouts. A 3‑bet here turns a hand with great playability into a pure bluff and folds out the worse hands you most want to keep in.
Key idea
With suited connectors in position versus an open, flatting realizes your implied odds far better than 3-betting; you want the worse hands to stay in, not fold.
Common mistake
Turning 7♠6♠ into a 3‑bet bluff in position, which folds out the dominated hands you most want to keep in and wastes its playability.