Nuisance bets

Full Tilt Poker Game #_: $10 + $1 Sit & Go (_), Table 1 - 15/30 - No Limit Hold'em - 2:36:26 ET - 2007/12/17
Seat 1: villain (1,395)
Seat 2: (1,695)
Seat 3: hero (1,680)
Seat 4: (1,500)
Seat 5: (1,230)
Seat 6: (1,500)
hero posts the small blind of 15
Seat 4 posts the big blind of 30
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to nsayer [Jd 3s]
Seat 5 folds
Seat 6 folds
villain calls 30
Seat 2 folds
hero calls 15
Seat 4 checks
*** FLOP *** [Js 7d 7h]
hero bets 90
Seat 4 folds
villain calls 90
*** TURN *** [Js 7d 7h] [Ts]
hero checks
villain bets 30

Oh come on! There's 270 chips in the pot. Why would you bet a ninth of the pot? A bet should always have a purpose behind it. What purpose could possibly be served by offering your opponent such ridiculous odds? Normally, I take nuisance bets (as I like to call them - bets that are, say, less than a quarter of the pot) as a sign of weakness and make a pot-sized raise, but here I decided that since he called a pot-sized bet on the flop that he had at least a 7 or a jack, and I'd either be throwing chips away or wouldn't be able to chase him away from the split-pot.

hero calls 30
*** RIVER *** [Js 7d 7h Ts] [8h]
hero checks
villain bets 30

This bet represents less than a tenth of the pot. That bet gives ace-high proper odds to call. A better play is to just check. That, at least, can look like step 1 of a check-raise. But a wimpy little 30 chip bet just looks like stupidity.

hero calls 30
*** SHOW DOWN ***
villain shows [Jh 5s] two pair, Jacks and Sevens
hero shows [Jd 3s] two pair, Jacks and Sevens

Figures.

hero ties for the pot (195) with two pair, Jacks and Sevens
villain ties for the pot (195) with two pair, Jacks and Sevens
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 390 | Rake 0
Board: [Js 7d 7h Ts 8h]
Seat 1: villain showed [Jh 5s] and won (195) with two pair, Jacks and Sevens
Seat 2: (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 3: hero (small blind) showed [Jd 3s] and won (195) with two pair, Jacks and Sevens
Seat 4: (big blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 5: didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: didn't bet (folded)