I like it as played as well, basically for the reasons mentioned above (keeping the pot small on a draw heavy board with just TPTK).

I'm not sure how much value you get out of worse hands on the river. Some Ax hands may pay you off, but most hands you beat (i.e. missed flush draws - the most likely hand for him to have that you beat) are folding. None of the hands that beat you are folding.