10- 9-07, LearnTexasHoldem:

Fire way or hit the breaks?

Question:

Hi Champ!

When you play your very loose and aggressive game, raising pre-flop in every other hand and leading out on the flop most of the time, how you decide when to fire away and when to hit the breaks?

Top 3 Beginner Rooms

I mean, except for when someone plays back at you, do you mostly use things like flop structure and statistical understanding, or is it primarily a matter of reading the opponent?

And please now don't give me one of those usual "a little of both" vagaries ;)

Btw, thanks for a really great site!

Adam P, NJ

Answer:

Hi Adam P

When I decide whether to bet the flop or not on there are mainly two factors to consider, the flop texture and number of opponents. If the flop is 8c 9c Tc I will often check against one opponent, since the chance that he has hit something is big. If it is 2c 8h Kd I would fire away against three opponents.

Whether to bluff on the turn or not is trickier. If nothing "new" happens on the turn it is often right to put the brakes on. Example: Flop is Tc 8d 2d and the turn is 3c. The 3c changes nothing, and since you got called on the flop chances are you will get called on the turn as well. If the turn card would have been the Ad instead, things would have been different. It is a very scary card and a bet would be a good plan.

But there are always more factors to consider. Here is an example where it is good to keep bluffing though nothing "new" has happened on the turn. Flop is 4c 9h As and the turn is 2d. You hold 4h 5h, bet the flop and get called. You know from previous hands that your opponent is just as likely to call you on the flop with a pair of nines as a pair of aces.

If you bet the turn he will fold the pair of nines but call with aces. If you bet the pot on the turn you need to win the pot half of the time which is exactly what you will do in this scenario. But if you get called you probably have nine outs (two fours for trips, three fives for two pair and four threes for straight). This is a nice bonus, and you also have value in the fact that you game stays unpredictable.

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