K♠J♠ BB vs SB, preflop, 105 bb
The spot
- You: BB
- Opponent: SB
- Your hand: K♠J♠
- Board: preflop, no board yet
- Effective stack: 105 bb
- Pot: 3.5 bb
Villain opens and action is on hero preflop.
Which action keeps the best EV baseline?
See the answer
Best play: Call
Why
Hero holds K‑J suited (K♠J♠) in the BB facing an SB open, so the frame is a defense decision: flat or 3‑bet. Closing the action with the best price at the table, BB can profitably flat KJs to realize its suited two-Broadway equity in a single-raised pot rather than always blowing it up. KJs is also a fine 3‑bet vs a wide SB, so call is a sound mixed choice, not the only one.
Key idea
In BB vs SB you close the action and get the best pot odds in the game, so flatting strong suited Broadways to keep the SB range wide and uncapped is fully legitimate alongside 3-betting.
Common mistake
Treating KJs as too weak to continue and folding the best price at the table, or assuming it can only ever 3‑bet.