Q♠T♠ SB vs BTN, river on K♦ 8♠ 4♥ 3♦ A♣, 60 bb
The spot
- You: SB
- Opponent: BTN
- Your hand: Q♠T♠
- Board: K♦ 8♠ 4♥ 3♦ A♣
- Effective stack: 60 bb
- Pot: 15.5 bb
River checks to hero after two-street sequence.
Best river decision in baseline?
See the answer
Best play: Overbet 120% pot
Why
Final board K♦ 8♠ 4♥ 3♦ A♣ is double-broadway and rainbow with no flush and no straight possible; the river ace favors the BTN's Ax and Kx value while small pairs and missed connectors gave up. Hero holds Q♠T♠ — queen-high with no pair, no flush, no straight: a pure missed hand with zero showdown value but useful blockers (the queen clips some AQ/KQ value). From OOP, the overbet (120%) is a polarized pure bluff — hero has nothing to check down and leverages a hand that wants both folds now and the most pressure on the BTN's bluff‑catching Kx.
Key idea
With pure no-showdown air and clean blockers OOP, overbetting as a polar bluff maximizes fold equity against capped bluff‑catchers.
Common mistake
Checking back missed air that has no showdown value when a polar overbet bluff is the only way it makes money.