K♣T♣ CO vs BB, river on A♣ 8♦ 5♣ 5♥ 2♠, 95 bb
The spot
- You: CO
- Opponent: BB
- Your hand: K♣T♣
- Board: A♣ 8♦ 5♣ 5♥ 2♠
- Effective stack: 95 bb
- Pot: 20 bb
Hero faces a polar river action after capped turn line.
What line avoids overbluffing while preserving value?
See the answer
Best play: Bet 40% pot
Why
Final board A♣ 8♦ 5♣ 5♥ 2♠: the board paired the five and the club draw missed (only A♣ 5♣ are clubs), so made hands are A-x aces-up; BB's capped range is one-pair Ax plus many busted clubs and straight misses. Hero is IN POSITION with K♣T♣ = king-high, no pair and no flush, pure air with no showdown value. A small 40% bet is the correct blocker bluff: hero unblocks the missed hands he wants to fold out, and a cheap price pressures BB's weak Ax and busted draws while risking little, since checking simply surrenders the pot with a hand that never wins at showdown.
Key idea
Pure air with no showdown value is the right candidate to bluff small when you unblock the folding hands.
Common mistake
Checking back king-high air that can never win at showdown instead of bluffing the missed range out.