What should you do when you have a weak showdown value hand and your opponent donk bets?
If villain’s donk bet is big and he is a passive player, you should fold. He could have a draw. However, it is more likely that he has a strong hand that he wants to protect from the draw. If the donk bet is small, it could mean that your opponent has a weak made hand or a draw. In this case, you should call.
In this article, I will discuss how to play 9♦9♠, when the flop comes K♥8♠7♥ and your opponent puts in a small donk bet. The pot is heads-up on the flop and you (hero) are with the lead and in position.
Flop: Villain Donk Bets (Small)
In Hand 12, I explained that we shouldn’t bet when villain checks. This is because, when we bet, it narrows villain’s range to made hands that beat 9♦9♠ and draws.
However, when this type of villain puts in a small donk bet, he is telling us that his range is narrowed to these hands. Therefore, a small donk bet from this type of villain means that we can put him on a pocket pair below top pair or a draw. It’s unlikely (although possible) that villain would use the small donk bet for a middle pair in way. Loose-passive players all have their individual characteristics.
Villain’s small donk betting range will look something like Range 1.
Range 1: Villain’s Small Donk Betting Range
It’s not impossible for a passive player to be tricking you with a set by donk betting small on a wet flop.
Many of these players know that the small donk bet is an invitation to their opponent to raise them.
It is unlikely that any player would take the risk of betting small on this flop with a monster hand. Therefore, I haven’t included strong made hands in villain’s small donk betting range. This doesn’t mean that we can’t change our mind and put strong hands back into his range, if villain suddenly gets aggressive for no apparent reason.
The gurus will often tell you that as you proceed through a hand, you should take combos out of your opponent’s range. However, once you have removed combos from your opponent’s range, you should not put them back in.
They are wrong about this and this is one of the reasons that gurus have problems at microstakes. When a passive player represents a weak hand and suddenly shows strength, you should usually believe the second story. This type of aggression from a passive player almost always means that your opponent has at least 2 pair.
You don’t need to figure out what his hand is exactly. Some loose-passive players play a range of suited hands, that can hit a random-looking 2 pair.
Range 1 shows that villain’s made hands all beat our pair of 9s. We can get more information about villain’s hand by his action on the turn.
You should just call the small donk bet. Although you may be giving villain a decent price to draw, you don’t even have top pair. This type of player isn’t going to fold any of his range to a small raise. He might fold a pocket pair below top pair to a large raise. However, is draws are not going away. When these types of players have bet on a street, they are usually psychologically committed to seeing the next card. Therefore, even QQ-99 might not fold.
The other problem is that, if villain re-raises with his draw, you won’t be able to call. This is because you won’t know if the re-raise is with a set or a draw.
As I have said, you can put sets back into the range, if villain suddenly gets aggressive.
In any case, you don’t want to build a big pot in a hand that you might be behind in anyway. You should fold at any time, in this hand, that villain increases the size of his bet.
1. Turn card is a Heart
If the turn card is a heart, we will not be putting any money into the pot. We will fold to a bet and check to a check. We are beaten by every combo in villain’s range. The only exception is a pair of 9s, which ties. If villain has a pair of 9s, he will have the 9♥. Therefore, we could still lose to a pair of 9s if the river card is another heart.
If villain checks the turn and river and the river card is an ace, this would suggest that he doesn’t have the flush. If you look at his range, all the aces are suited heart combos. Therefore, villain can’t have an ace, unless he has slowplayed his flush on both the turn and the river.
There aren’t many players, who would risk not getting any money for their flush. Therefore, it’s almost impossible that villain has the flush.
This leaves villain’s range consisting of QQ-99. When a heart comes on the turn and an ace comes on the river, there is a flush and 2 overcards to QQ-99.
In this situation, I guess you could try for the pot on the river. However, your bluff will have to be big against a loose-passive player. They do no like folding on the river. If you don’t think this player will fold, you could just let him have this pot.
2. Turn Card is a Non-Heart Ace
A non-heart ace is an interesting turn card. Although the ace hits all his suited aces, it puts pressure on villain’s QQ-99 range. There are only 10 combos of suited aces. However, there are 19 combos of QQ-99. Villain has 11 combos of suited hands without an ace. In addition, he has 15 combos of T9 without 2 hearts.
If villain bets on the turn, we have to fold of course. However, what if villain checks.
If villain checks, he could have an ace. As all his aces are suited heart combos, he won’t be afraid of the river card.
Here we could bet the pot. We would expect folds from 19 combos of QQ-99 and calls from the rest of villain’s range. He might raise with his 10 combos of aces. We only need to win the pot 50% of the time for a pot-sized bet to make a profit. If we don’t include the draws without an ace, we are winning almost 2/3 of the time.
As for the draws without an ace, they will have to call a pot-sized bet if they want to see the river card.
If the river card does not complete villain’s draw or give him 2 pair, he will check and we can check back. If villain bets big on the river, he has hit something big and we can fold. If the river card is not a heart and villain bets small, he probably has an ace. Therefore, we can fold to a small bet.
Our river decision is easy here. We fold to any bet. It’s unlikely that villain will bluff on the river after we have bet the pot on the turn.
3. Turn card is a brick
In this situation, a brick is any card that isn’t a heart or an ace.
Villain Bets on the Brick
After donk betting small on the flop, if villain bets big on the turn, you should fold. You don’t have much of a hand to play with and you are probably beaten anyway.
If the turn card is not a heart or an ace and villain bets small again, we can be fairly sure that he doesn’t have any strong made hands in his range. If he had any sets, 2 pair or even top pair hands, he would try and get some money into the pot on the turn. He would also want to protect these hands against draws.
In Hand 12 of this series of articles, I explained that betting the turn usually deters a passive villain from bluffing on the river. The same principle applies here.
These villains don’t usually play draws aggressively on the turn. This is because there is only one card to come and they know that they are an underdog to hit their draw. Therefore, you shouldn’t be concerned on the turn that a loose-passive villain will re-raise you off the pot with a draw. The idea of raising a small amount is to discourage villain from bluffing on the river.
The problem with just calling a small turn bet is that, you may have a difficult decision on the river if one of the draws completes and villain bets big. There is more than one draw on the board. If you just call 2 small bets, villain may sense that you have a weak hand and try to bluff a busted draw on the river.
That is, he may try to represent a draw that he doesn’t have. Usually, these types of villains don’t represent straight draws. However, if villain has a busted straight draw and the river card is a heart, he might represent a flush.
When these types of players bet the flush and it is the only flush that they could have been chasing, they usually have it. Therefore, I would fold to a river bet if the river card is a heart.
Paradoxically, if villain bets small on the river, you should also fold. This is likely to be a blocking bet, with QQ-99. There are not many combos of weaker hands that would take this line. This isn’t the type of player you should try to bluff off his hand on the river.
So, if villain bets small, when the turn card is a brick, we should raise a small amount.
Let’s look at what we should do if villain checks on a turn brick.
Villain Checks on the Turn Brick after Donk Betting Small on the Flop
If villain checks on the turn after donk betting small on the flop, this suggests that he is on a draw. In this case, you should bet ½ of the pot. If he raises, you should fold. However, if he calls, you can put villain on a draw or made hands, such QQ-99. Weaker made hands would fold to a ½ pot turn bet.
If villain calls your turn bet and bets on any river card, you should fold. You have shown strength on the turn. As such, a significant bet from a passive player on the river is unlikely to be a bluff. Even if none of the draws complete, a strong bet suggests that the river card made his hand into 2 pair or better.
You Should Fold to Blocking Bets on the River
If the draws don’t complete and villain puts a blocking bet in, on the river, you should still fold. A blocking bet would suggest that you are beaten by QQ or JJ. If villain checks on the river, you should just check. This situation is similar to a blocking bet except villain will have busted draws, as well QQ-JJ, in his range.
How about the situation where villain check-calls your turn bet and then, checks or puts in a blocking bet, when the river card is a heart?
If villain checks on the river, he could have the flush. Although most players, with a flush, at this level, wouldn’t take the risk of you checking, you have the additional problem that his weak made hands are pocket pairs below top pair which beat you. Therefore, you should just give up against this type of player. Similarly, if villain puts in a blocking bet, it would suggest that he has QQ-JJ. However, the “blocking bet” might also be a thin value bet with a flush. As such, you should fold.
Conclusion
I this hand, I recommend betting the turn if villain checks. If villain bets small on the turn after donk betting small on the flop, I recommend raising the small bet. In both cases, you should fold to a river bet. As you have shown some strength or interest in the pot on the turn, a passive player is unlikely to bluff.
This line wouldn’t work against an aggressive player. An aggressive player would almost never donk bet small on the turn. He would play draws more aggressively.
However, an aggressive might check a showdown value hand down. This line of betting the turn to avoid getting bluffed on the river won’t work against this type of player. If you bet on the turn, he will know that you are trying to avoid a river bluff. Therefore, he might raise your turn bet or call and bluff the river anyway.
So, just use this line against the loose-passive players.