8♠7♠ CO vs BB, turn on T♠ 7♣ 2♣ 9♦, 80 bb
The spot
- You: CO
- Opponent: BB
- Your hand: 8♠7♠
- Board: T♠ 7♣ 2♣ 9♦
- Effective stack: 80 bb
- Pot: 16 bb
Hero arrives on turn with equity and blocker leverage.
What action realizes the most EV in solver baseline?
See the answer
Best play: Call
Why
The 9♦ turn brings two-card straights into play and is a relatively neutral card where BB, having checked, stays capped while you hold a value-and-draw hand. Your 8♠7♠ has middle pair (a pair of sevens) plus an open-ended straight draw — with T‑9 on the board a J or 6 completes the straight — giving you both showdown value and big improvement equity. In position facing the bet, calling is correct: your pair-plus-eight-out draw is far too strong to fold and not strong enough to want a raised pot, so you take the price, keep dominated and bluffing hands in, and realize equity with position.
Key idea
Middle pair plus an open-ender in position is a clear call: too strong to fold, not a hand you want to balloon the pot with.
Common mistake
Raising middle pair here turns a comfortable equity-realization spot into a bluff that folds out worse and isolates you against better.