3-bet on straight flush possible board

Question

Game technically is $1/2 "home game" but PRF bets are $15-35 depending on limpers and straddle. I'm $700 deep and villain covers me. Played only a couple of hands with villain so not yet adjusting my play in response to his. Seems to be aggressive with c-bets and donk lead outs, but so far he always has some strength when he does (middle pair +), so he could be less wide than i expect.

Villain raises to $20 from UTG

one caller in middle position, i call in BB with As4s.

Flop comes 2s 4h 9s. I check. Villain bets $20, MP folds, i call (pot ~$100)

Turn comes 7s, completing the flush. I check. Villain bets $50. I call. (pot ~$200).

River comes Js. I lead for $200. With 4 to a flush, any non-flush made hand is likely to check behind, and I'm trying to polarize my hand and make him catch bluffs.

Villain reraises to $400.

Do i call or reraise?

Question: I know there are many ways to play the Flop/Turn, but against an aggressive villain i prefer to trap with my strongest hands. My main question is, should i 3-bet the river with second nuts?

My rationale for thinking about calling was, i put his reraise on being super polarised, straight flush or nothing, since my river bet was already polarising.

Answer 1

Similarly should you always raise the river with a king on KK88x after he lead into you? Perhaps not. It is possible that he never calls with an eight, but he might have two of them.

This spot is very similar. He might fold everything except a straight flush. So just calling could be okay. Against a good player it is probably best.

However I think raising is more optimal against an unknown player. Personally I think that, even though it is terrible, he will sometimes call with Ks or maybe some random spade higher than a ten. You don't have much behind, he will get great odds. He might talk himself into calling here thinking you might be bluffing with the Ts or the 8s or just randomly bluffing (you probably won't ever, but that is besides the point). It is a tough spot, but to have exactly Ts8s is very hard and this is a player you don't know. He might be very bad. I think a random will make a bad crying call more often than he has a straight flush. I also think both are unlikely. It is just that I think that the former is more likely to happen than the latter.

Answer 2

This is a spot where I would 100% reraise on the river.

I think you played the hand well preflop, on the flop, and on the turn so far. You call with a flush draw on the flop and trap with the nuts on the turn.

The river here does not change much. You are nutted against every hand except for 8sTs. He bet the flop on a fairly uncoordinated board, so I would immediately assume he most likely has a worse flush. The raise preflop makes 8sTs much less likely. He has so many hands that are worse than yours (KsQx, KxQs, KQs, 99, 77, JJ, KJs, QTs, JTs, QJs) reraising would most likely be very profitable in the long run.

If he has nothing then he just folds to your reraise, if he has a worse flush you probably get it in and win, or if he has a set then you maybe get it in and win. Once in a blue moon he will have 8sTs, I would not let that thought stop me from trying to get full value.