J♦J♣ SB vs BTN, river on Q♣ T♣ 7♥ 2♦ 2♣, 85 bb
The spot
- You: SB
- Opponent: BTN
- Your hand: J♦J♣
- Board: Q♣ T♣ 7♥ 2♦ 2♣
- Effective stack: 85 bb
- Pot: 23 bb
This river node requires thin value and bluff‑catch discipline.
Choose the highest-EV river action.
See the answer
Best play: Check
Why
The river is Q T 7 2 2 and hero holds JJ, which is below both the Q and the T: hero has only a middling pair that beats bluffs and underpairs but loses to every Qx, Tx and trip-2 in the BTN's range. Overbetting 120% turns a showdown hand into a pure bluff that gets called by everything that beats it and folds out only the hands hero already beats — the disciplined OOP line is to check and take showdown.
Key idea
An overbet is a polar line: only near-nuts value or a pure bluff belongs there. A medium pair with showdown value is neither, so blasting it away is a costly mistake.
Common mistake
Overbetting a medium pair as if it were a bluff or the nuts — you destroy your own showdown value and only get called by better.