Flop bet is for value.

Betting 88 here just to 'take the pot' is just you being afraid to play poker. I know, because i used to until about about a week ago. This reasoning is best used when we have a bluff, because theres no other value anywhere else. With 88 on this flop though, we actually have a surprisingly good amount of equity against most hands that call.

For instance, flush draws and straight draws are gonna be hard pressed to fold. 5x, and 7x might call as well. 66 probably does too, and maybe some other stubborn pairs. Add in that we'll have a good 6 outs to improve whenever we're behind and that we're in position and the flop becomes a really easy place to value bet.

When you bet this turn, you should have already decided that you were getting it in. Thinking about his range here, flush draws still call, middlish pairs without a draw dont anymore, and many hands improved to a two pair or a straight and are probably gonna get it in. So if we bet, we're basically saying that we think these hands make up a larger portion of his range than hands better than ours (straights, 99?) so we've already figured that we're ahead and stacking off.

I probably bet the turn as well, and i stack off every time expecting to see some bizzare JJ, TT hands sometimes, some weaker sets sometimes, and some 98, 87 type hands in addition to all those 6x's often enough to be happy.