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Sweet Victory For Vicky Of The Vic
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With an early position, you should have started with a strong hand, and the nature of the flop will largely determine how you play. If you're in late position, then the hands you could be holding are varied. After the flop isn't the time to be tentative. Be smart, but be aggressive. If I led the betting before the flop, I'll try to lead after the flop. For example, say I raised in early position pre-flop with A♦ K♦, and I got one caller. The flop comes 10♣ 6♥ 4♥.
While this doesn't help me, there's a good chance it won't help my opponent either. How do I know whether it helped my opponent? Well, I don't. At least, not right away. However, let's look at my options here and see which one is more likely to help me gain information and maximize my winnings.
I have two choices here. I can bet or check. Let's look at betting first. If I bet out, my opponent has three choices. He can fold, call or raise. Since I raised pre-flop from an early position, my opponent has to give me credit for a premium hand, and I consistently raise with any premium hand in early position. Therefore, my opponent won't know which premium hand I hold. If he doesn't have a pocket pair and missed the flop, he knows he has to be behind here, and there's a good chance he'll fold to my bet. That's fine with me. I'll gladly take the pot with Ace-high rather than give my opponent a chance to draw out. Plus, I've now gained some information about my opponent. He gave up on this hand when he missed the flop.
Now, let's suppose my opponent called pre-flop with pocket nines. If I bet the flop, he still doesn't know what premium hand I have. I could have him dominated with any higher pair. But he knows I may have a hand such as A-K, A-Q or A-J, which would put him ahead of me. So, with 9-, he'll most likely either call or raise. By raising, he hopes to find out whether I have a hand or was being aggressive. If I was him, I would consider raising. If I'm ahead, I want to protect my hand. If I'm behind, I want to find out as soon as possible.
Now, let's look at what he would do with a hand such as A-10 or A♥ J♥. With the first hand, he has top pair with top kicker. With the second hand, he has the nut flush draw. With both of these, he should consider raising. By raising, he puts me on the defensive and finds out some information. With the flush draw on board, a good player knows that I'll re-raise with an over pair in order to protect my hand. If I don't have an over pair, there's a good chance I'll fold. Now, with the flush draw, he may want to just call and take another card, especially in No Limit. With the nut-flush draw, give yourself a chance to see another card rather than risk a big re-raise that forces you out of the hand.
So let's see what I've found out by betting. First, if my opponent folds, he's willing to throw away his hand to a bet on a non-scary board. If he calls, I'm most likely behind, or my opponent has a flush draw. However, I still have a chance to outdraw him. And I've gained valuable information. If I get an over card on the turn that doesn't fill the flush, I can bet again, and he may be forced to fold even with a better hand, such as nines. Finally, if my opponent raises, I have to throw my hand away in No Limit play. The risk-reward ratio is just not worth it. If he has a set or a hand such as A-10, I'm in a lot of trouble. I could also get into a sticky situation if I was drawing dead and hit top pair on the river. In Limit play, the analysis is different. If he has a pocket pair, I'm getting the correct pot odds to call one more bet here. I now have a good idea of what I'm up against, however, and can act accordingly on the turn.
Now let's look at one other scenario that shows why it's important to lead out betting after this flop. If my opponent has a hand such as Q♠ J♠, I have the best hand right now. Yet if I check, I open the door for him to take a stab at the pot. It's very difficult to play out of position, so instead of giving him an opportunity to steal from me, I'm going to bet out. If I check and he bets, then my only options are folding (which means I lose the pot) or raising (which means I'm now forced to commit more chips than I would have if I'd bet out in the first place). Calling is not really an option here because I'd be committing chips without finding out any information. The bottom line is that if I raised pre-flop and am in a heads-up pot, I'm going to bet out post-flop almost every single time.
Now let's look at what can happen if I check the flop. If I check this flop, I show weakness. Why is that? Well, if he's been paying attention, he knows that I'm an aggressive bettor and wouldn't slow-play a top pair with a flush draw on board. The only hand he might be worried about is top set, but I wouldn't even slow-play that. I almost always bet out my big hands. So, by checking, I signal that I missed the flop, and I now give him the opportunity to lead the betting. If he takes that lead – which he should – I'm now on the defensive. Yes, I have over cards and may be getting correct pot odds to call, but now I have no idea what he has. Furthermore, if he is on a flush draw with that A♥ J♥ hand, I've just given him a free card. Now, what happens if the K♥ comes on the turn? I'm likely to bet into the nut flush with my top pair because I have no idea what he has.
So, by betting out this flop, I accomplish two things. First, I've given myself a chance to win the pot right there. Next, even if I get called or raised, I gain information that can help me win the pot on a later street or save me money. If I had checked, I give my opponent the chance to take the lead in betting. Whether he does or doesn't, it will be hard for me to ascertain any information. Poker is a game of imperfect information. You can always gain more information from an opponent by betting into him than you can by checking into him. This doesn't mean that you should always bet into an opponent. Be aggressive, but be smart.
For example, say I raised pre-flop from early position with that same A♦ K♦, but this time I get three callers. The flop comes 7♣ 8♣ 9♥. This is a horrible flop for me. I have nothing but two over cards and there's a good chance one of my opponents has a made hand or at least a very good draw. There's nothing to be gained by me betting out here. I'll check and fold to any bet. Everything in poker is situational. Stay focused, and stay on top of the unique nature of each hand. Remember, each hand unfolds like its very own movie script. How I play A-K after the flop in early position, will depend not only on what the flop is, but also on how many opponents I face, what they're likely to have, my read of my opponents, and my own constructed table image.
SIZE OF CHIP STACK
The size of your chip stack compared to your opponent's is a huge consideration in No Limit play. You don't want to get too aggressive and jeopardize your stack. For example, say you start with A-K in late position pre-flop. A tight middle-position player with a huge stack open raised. You should just call in that situation. By calling, you get to see a flop, and then you can re-evaluate. Also, by calling, you hide the value of your hand. So let's say you called an $80 pre-flop bet, and now you see a flop heads-up. Each of you is sitting on a $4,000 stack in a $10-$20 No Limit game. The flop comes A-7-2. This appears to be a good flop for you. Your opponent bets out $200. This is a very tempting hand to re-raise, yet, I would just smooth-call here.
If you raise here, there aren't many hands he can have that he can call you with. Most likely, you're only going to get called by a better hand. Your best hope is that he has A-Q or A-J. If you do, in fact, have the best hand, you have much better equity in letting your opponent continue to do your betting for you. Even if he has nothing, he may try to bluff you on the turn. When you're heads-up, there's not as big a premium on raising. In a multi-way pot, you need to chase out drawing hands or even smaller pairs. With too many people in the pot, there's greater uncertainty.
You also want to avoid getting overly aggressive with top pair. You never want to go broke with top pair after the flop. The only time you would get very aggressive with top pair post-flop is if a lot of money went in pre-flop and it's worth your while to take it down. Even then, you have to be careful going up against a large stack.
At a recent game I was playing, I witnessed the following hand. The blinds were $10-20, there was a three-times-the-Big-Blind raise from early position, and two players called. The flop came Q-9-6 rainbow. The early position raiser moved all-in. The next player to act immediately called. Now, my friend Noah Boeken was sitting on the Button with pocket sixes. He had flopped a set, yet he was now debating whether to call. I think he was more worried about the player who called than the initial raiser. I should point out that neither of the other players was very good. After a few seconds, Noah decided to call and the cards were turned over. The initial raiser had A-Q for top pair, and the second player had J-10 for an open-end straight draw. Noah had made an excellent call, because he was an overwhelming favorite to win the hand. Noah's hand held up and he scooped a big pot.
The initial raiser made a big mistake by committing all of his chips when he was out of position and all he had was top pair. He committed all of his chips when there were two other players in the pot with larger stacks. If he wanted to chase out drawing hands, I would normally say that he could have accomplished the same thing without risking so much. Yet Player two clearly would have called with his straight draw, since he called the all-in bet without any hesitation. That, however, was a terrible call. At the time he called, Player two was a three-to-one underdog and was only getting slightly better than two-to-one odds to play. That's not smart poker at all.
When making a bet or raise, always think of what you're trying to accomplish. If you want to chase people out, then come up with the right amount to bet that will get the job done without going overboard. If a $400 bet will have the same effect as a $1,000 bet, why risk that extra $600? Never risk more than you need to. If you want callers, then bet the amount that an opponent is likely to call.
POSITION, POSITION, POSITION
The reason you use position pre-flop is that you'll now have position post-flop (as well as on the turn and the river). By the same token, the reason you only play strong hands out of position pre-flop is because you'll be out of position post-flop. There will be a lot of what I call orphan flops. These are flops that don't help anyone. When you have position, you'll have the benefit of having watched what everyone else did. If no one makes a play for the pot, you can. Even if someone does make a play, you can still trump them. What do I mean by that? Say a player raises from early position and you call from the button with J-10 suited. You see a flop heads-up and it comes 8-7-2 rainbow. You have a gut-shot straight draw, a back-door flush draw, and two over cards. At the moment, though, all you have is Jack-high. You know you most likely don't have the best hand right now, but you also don't think that this flop helped your opponent.
Your opponent bets out after the flop, as most players will do when they raise pre-flop. You now have three choices. You can fold, call or raise. I wouldn't fold here, as your position is a powerful weapon. I may implement a semi-bluff raise or just smooth-call here, depending on my opponent. With a number of outs here, a semi-bluff is a good move. It could win you the pot right away. If your opponent calls or raises, he may have an over pair, and you know you need to slow down. You could also just call here. This buys you another card and also sends a message. Even if the turn doesn't help you, you can take the hand down with an aggressive move on the turn, just as long as the turn doesn't help your opponent.
With J-10, there are so many cards that can peel off the turn that are good for you. Not only are there the cards that hit your hand, but there are also many others that will scare your opponent. Let's say your opponent has A-8, which is a great hand for that flop. He bets the flop and you call. Now, a Seven, a Nine, a Ten, a Jack, a Queen and a King are all good cards for you. He will most likely check the turn with one of those cards, and you can bet out (even with a card like the King that didn't help you). Your opponent should then fold here. Even if he's stubborn and calls, you always have the river to go for it again. This situation is great for you, even when your opponent hits a great flop with his A-8. Now imagine if you call the flop and your opponent has nothing. (Say he started with A-Q.) He will almost never take another stab at it if he misses the turn. Stu Ungar once famously said, "Most people will fire one bullet, but not many will fire two or three."
That's the value of having position. You can call bets on the flop with every intention of taking it on the turn if your opponent doesn't have anything.
CHECK-RAISE BLUFFS
There are ways you can use early position to your advantage. A check-raise bluff is a powerful weapon that's available to players in early position. It's a great way to counteract an aggressive opponent who uses position effectively. If you know you're up against an opponent who will use his position to make a move, let him. Once he does, you can spring a check-raise bluff on him. In order to maximize the chances of your check-raise bluff working, it has to be believable to your opponent. Let me offer a couple of ideal situations to try this.
First, say you're able to see a flop cheaply from the Big Blind while holding 8-10. The flop is one of those orphan flops that comes 9-4-2. This is a flop that may not have helped anybody. In fact, from the other players' perspective, it's most likely to help you, because the range of hands you could be playing in the Big Blind is wide. If you bet out, though, your opponents may think you're trying to steal the orphan flop. If you check-raise, however, your opponents are much more likely to give you credit for a hand. Even if they do think you're bluffing, it will be hard for them to call unless they have a hand.
Another ideal situation occurs when you open-raise from early position with a hand such as K-Q suited. You only get one caller, and the flop comes A-8-3. Even though this didn't help you, you're in ideal position to represent a big Ace. If you have an opponent who loves to bet position, check-raise him here. Most people check-raise when they have monsters. Use that to your advantage and check-raise with nothing. Go ahead and give it a whirl, and see how well it works. Now, let's look at some specific situations.
PLAYING OVERPAIRS
Again, be aggressive, but be smart. If I have an over pair after the flop, I'm most likely going to bet or raise after the flop. If I'm in early position with 10-10, J-J, Q-Q, K-K or A-A, remember that I would have raised pre-flop to narrow the field. If I get a caller or two and the flop comes 9-7-2 rainbow, I'm going to bet out. There's not much to be gained by slow-playing here. Say I have Q-Q and two opponents. I'm vulnerable to any Ace or King or a hand such as J-10 that has an inside straight draw. Why give my opponents a chance to draw out on me? If they want to try to draw out, let them pay for it. Now, if I have A-A here, I may slow-play. The potential hands that could beat me are much narrower, so I'll try to trap an opponent. If I'm playing No Limit Hold 'Em, I may be able to take an opponent for a good amount of money if he's holding a hand such as A-K and a King hits on the turn.
Now, let's look at a different situation. A tight opponent raises from early position pre-flop. I call in late position with my J-J. The flop comes 10-8-3 rainbow. My opponent bets out. What do I do? I know my opponent has a premium hand, but I don't know which one. He could have a bigger pair than me, in which case I'm way behind and should give up on the hand. He could, however, be playing aggressively with A-K or A-Q. Remember, it pays to be aggressive. A good opponent knows this as well as I do. He could also have a hand such as A-10, which would be great for me. So what is my move? I'm not going to fold this hand with an over pair, so I can either call or raise. Remember when I said before that you learn more from betting into an opponent than checking? Well, the same is true here. If I call, I'll still be in the dark about my opponent. But if I raise, I take control of the betting and put my opponent on the defensive. If my opponent was playing A-Q, he'll probably fold, which keeps him from drawing out on me. If he has A-10, he'll probably call, which gives me more money in the pot; I also have a pretty good idea that I have him beat. If he has A-A or K-K, he may call or re-raise. If he does re-raise, I know I'm in trouble. However, by raising in this position instead of just calling, I take control of the betting and give myself a chance to win the pot or gain more information.
PLAYING TOP PAIR
I'm always aggressive when I flop top pair. I play aggressively here for a number of reasons. First, I do not want anyone outdrawing me. If someone wants to try to draw, it will cost them. I want to narrow the field so that my hand holds up. Next, I want to increase the pot. Since there's a good chance I have the best hand here, I want to get some money in the pot. I tend not to get too tricky here. If I'm consistently aggressive, I'm not giving away my hand because it will be hard for my opponent to read me. Finally, I want information. If my hand is in trouble, I want to find out about it. Remember, you can find out more information by betting than checking.
MIDDLE PAIR
When you're playing No Limit Hold 'Em, middle pairs require more finesse. A lot will depend on your feel for the game and your opponents. If you're confident that you have the best hand, go ahead and make a decent-sized bet in order to win the pot and keep opponents from drawing out on you. If someone bets into you or raises you, you're going to have to make a decision about what your opponent has and what he's likely to be holding. In Limit play, you can always call an opponent down to the river when you're unsure of his hand and you know exactly how many bets it will cost you. In No Limit play, you don't want to get sucked into a pot when you're behind. You have no idea how much this hand will cost you on the turn or the river if you want to see it to the end. However, you also don't want other players feeling they can push you around. What you do will depend on your table image, who your opponent is, and what he's likely to have. With experience, you should get more comfortable knowing what to do in these situations and to trust your judgments. Always maintain your focus at the table and these decisions will get easier. When I say to maintain your focus, I'm not just talking about your observations of other players. Stay attuned to your image and what everyone's likely perception of you is. Remember that your opponent has tough decisions to make too. By keeping your play unpredictable and aggressive, you'll be able to put your opponent on the defensive and make it tough for him to make correct decisions.
FLOPPING A SET
Flopping a set is very sexy. Holding a pocket pair with anticipation and then to see the flop bring another card of your rank is a very empowering feeling. It's intoxicating. In fact, it's so intoxicating that players tend to get too infatuated with this hand. They want to savor the feeling, so they slow-play. This is the wrong move. I always bet out sets. If you've been consistently aggressive about playing your flops the correct way, you'll actually be giving away less information by betting out or raising. If you slow-play or check-raise, you'll be giving your hand away and you won't get any more action. In addition, depending on the nature of the flop, you don't want to give anybody free cards to outdraw you. If there's a flush or a straight draw on board, make your opponents pay to chase you.
FLOPPING A MONSTER
It doesn't happen often, but occasionally you'll flop a full house, the nut flush or the nut straight. The natural inclination when you flop these monster hands is to check. You want to slow-play in order to hide the value of your hand and to give your opponents time to catch something. If you're up against a loose aggressive opponent, this isn't a bad strategy. Let them do your betting for you. However, more experienced players will suspect your hand if you slow-play. Again, if you've been playing aggressive poker, you won't be giving anything away by betting out with a monster.
Personally, I don't like to slow-play flops even if I hit a monster. I'm not a big fan of slow-playing anything. Of course, because I'm consistently aggressive, my opponents are less likely to put me on a monster. There's also another reason not to slow-play the flop. You run the risk of cutting off all the action and costing yourself money. Let me offer you an example of what I'm talking about. Say you have 9-10 of clubs and your opponent has 6-6 and the board comes 6-7-8 with two hearts. You try to slow-play your nut straight and check. Your opponent checks as well, hoping to trap you with his set. Now a very bad thing can happen: the turn can bring a scare card. A Four, a Five, a Nine, a Ten or any heart will stop the action on the turn. You don't want to take that chance. You want to bet when you flop the nuts, and you have to hope your opponents have something, too.
Knowing your opponents is key to maximizing your profit here. If you're up against a loose, passive player who will call you down with anything, bet the maximum amount that he'll call. This is another example of why it's so critical in No Limit play to understand your opponent's game. Monster hands only come around so often. The ability to take full advantage of them will prove instrumental to building your bankroll. In Limit play, the amount you can bet is, of course, capped by the appropriate limits. In No Limit play, there's no such barrier. The question then becomes one of how much you should bet in order to maximize profits. If you've been paying attention, you should know what to do. That is, you'll know whether to slow-play or play aggressive, and how much your opponents are likely to call.
PLAYING DRAWING HANDS
There are two times to play drawing hands: first, when you can draw for free or are at least getting correct pot odds to do so; and second, when you can semi-bluff with them. Let's look at drawing for free or when you're getting correct pot odds.
To determine if you're getting correct pot odds, you must know the amount of the pot, how much it will cost you, and the odds of making your hand. There are a couple of additional considerations as well. If you're going to pay to draw, you have to be sure that if you hit your hand, you're going to win. For instance, if you're holding 7♠ 8♠ and the board is 2♣ 9♦ 10♦, you have an open-end straight draw. The problem is that you could hit your straight and easily end up with a losing hand. There are two diamonds on the board, so if the 6♦ shows up on the turn, filling your straight, it may make your opponent a flush. In addition, suppose the J♠ shows up on the turn. Again, you've hit your straight, but an opponent could easily have K-Q and trump you with a bigger straight. The bottom line is that this isn't a good drawing hand for you even if you're getting correct pot odds. You should only play this hand if you can continue for free or very cheaply.
When you can draw for free, the question then becomes whether you should semi-bluff or not. Let's look at another example. A tight passive player open-raises in early position and you call on the button, holding Q♦ J♦. The flop comes 2♦ 5♣ 8♦. Your opponent checks. You're fairly confident he's holding A-K. At this point, he's ahead but you have a flush draw. You can take a free card here and see if you hit your flush on the turn. The problem with doing that against a tight opponent is that unless the A♦ or the K♦ shows up on the turn, you're not going to get any more money out of this tight passive opponent. So, in this example, you're probably better off betting the flop and taking the pot down.
If you do get called, you have two over cards and a flush draw, so you're still in good shape. In addition, you can still take the pot on a later street if your opponent is playing A-K and never improves at all.
Again, knowing your opponent is so important. You wouldn't want to semi-bluff against an opponent who loves to check-raise. The last thing you want to do with a drawing hand is pass on an opportunity for a free card by betting out, only to find yourself facing a big raise. If the raise is big enough, you may not even get to see another card after you've committed more money to the pot.
