A♣Q♣ BTN vs BB, turn on J♣ 8♦ 5♠ Q♠, 95 bb
The spot
- You: BTN
- Opponent: BB
- Your hand: A♣Q♣
- Board: J♣ 8♦ 5♠ Q♠
- Effective stack: 95 bb
- Pot: 7 bb
Hero arrives on turn with equity and blocker leverage.
What action realizes the most EV in solver baseline?
See the answer
Best play: Check
Why
The Q♠ turn on J♣8♦5♠ gives the in-position raiser the broadway/top-pair advantage and pairs your hand: A♣Q♣ is now top pair, top kicker. The BB has checked to you, so this is a check-back decision. Checking back is a defensible pot-control line here — the BB's check-call range and turned two-pair/straight combos (T9, KT) make value thin, and keeping the BB's range uncapped on the river while controlling the pot with a one-pair hand is reasonable; a value bet is also fine, so checking is not a blunder.
Key idea
Top pair top kicker can check back the turn for pot control when value is thin and the board threatens better made hands.
Common mistake
Auto-betting TPTK for 'protection' and getting check‑raised or called only by better, when a check controls the pot against straights and two pair.