Another 7 card stud question (btw, cheers for your answer yesterday bonchkid)

As you know, on forth street you can make a double bet if your two up cards are a pair...

what reasons are there to not make the double bet?

i nearly always make a double bet, the only time i won't is when i'm very sure that someone is already holding a better pair mine...but i try not to get myself into that situtation to begin with

my reasoning is basically that betting = good, so a double bet = good x2

when ppl don't double bet it just looks weak/suspicious

under what circumstances will you just single bet (or even check) top pair on 4th street?

When you had three to a flush, lets say 45K, and the guy who was raising on third with xxQ just hits his Q.....

I agree that if the pair doesn't help you much (i.e. you were after a straight/flush) then maybe its best not to bet if other people are looking strong, and just check call to draw cheaply. Although it does tend to give away information about your hand.

Checking with Quads/Trips doesn't make sense to me tho. I see lots of people doing it, but i don't see how it makes more money.

how do you build a pot by not betting? you've got the top pair showing, so its unlikely that other people are going to bet into you, unless they already thought they had you beat, in which case they would have raised your bet anyway. Nothing screams trips/quads louder than someone checking top pair, so you'll find very few ppl who will start raising/reraising even if they do hit their straight/flush. If you bet out everytime people will call, and when they hit their hand they'll raise. if you check, they'll check, and only bet when they hit their hand, and when you raise it'll be obvious that you were trapping all along.

Hand from yesterday ($1/$2 limit)

Me

Trapper

Guy X X

i make bring in, guy raises, Traper calls, i call, 2 folds.

4th

Me

Trapper

Guy:

trapper checks, i'm showing 67s, other guy KQs...yet he checks...very suspcious...if he bet i would have raised with my trips, but i decide to check as well...as does the other guy

5th

Me

Trapper:

Guy

trapper checks again, you know hes up to something now... i check

6th

Me:

Trapper:

Guy

I bet with 666JJ, other guy folds (probably needed the J for a straight), mr trapper raises...i'm pretty sure now that he probably has 9s full or better, i call (couldn't really fold a FH)...check call the river...he shows 9999

he takes down a pot of about 7BB...i probably would have raised and reraised him if he had played differently

the hand above was spectacularly bad, there were these long pregnant pauses before he checked as well which didn't help...as he usually check quickly when he didn't have a hand...but it shows my point...he would have got alot more than 7BB if he had just bet out...

its been my experience that if you always bet out people: a) call with weaker hands b) notice when you don't