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Poker betting
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Betting is fundamental to cash
table and tournament poker; this bold as brass statement is easy
to understand, but the basic intent is sometimes misunderstood. |
The aim of betting in poker is not to make money on a cash
table or to gain chips in a tournament; that hopefully is the
result.
So without the thought of gaining chips, betting becomes either
an estimation that your hand is better than your opponents (now
or will be with cards to come) or, a belief that you can make the
opposition think you have the best hand.
Therefore the primary aim of betting is to win the pot. Any number
of subtle and not so subtle betting strategies can be used to win
a pot.
An associate of the primary aim may be to build the pot if holding a
very strong hand.
A secondary betting aim will be for information. There are two types
of information bets; ones that seek information and ones that give
information.
An example of betting for information would be a semi bluff bet, where a
player holding second pair, bets. The understanding gained from that
play may be interpreted and acted upon.
Betting may be used to deliberately give information. A reasonable
pre-flop raise tells the table you have good pocket cards. It's up
to the other players to decide whether or not they believe you.
Conversely with aggressive or passive betting actions, players are
giving away information regarding their attitude to the cost of the
buy-in; at various stages of a poker tournament, betting actions also
give information about a player's style relative to the current chip
stack and blind ratio.
All betting information is useful and if interpreted correctly, will
give you an edge over your opponents.
When and why to bet
Betting is mostly a reflection on the cards that you have and
occasionally an opinion on what your opponents do not have; it should
be considered and controlled.
As standard practice, bet when you believe you have the best poker
hand; but be prepared to fold if that idea changes. Once your chips
are in the middle they are gone, don't throw good money after bad.
Bet, raise or call if you feel there are sufficient odds to make
that play with a likely positive expectation.
Unless you have a very strong hand bet to take down a pot early;
do not slow-play* your hand if there are cards in the pack to beat
you. They have a nasty habit of showing up when you least want them.
For instance, if playing NLH you have Ah-Ac, and the flop is Ad-6d-Js,
you should bet to end the hand now. You have a very strong hand but
with two diamonds and two cards to a straight showing, allowing more
cards to come to the board may give your opponents an opportunity
to overtake you (or bet as if they have).
Only if you have the absolute nuts** should you play the opposition
like a violin.
*The term slow-play, means to disguise the value of your cards by
betting an amount less than is common for its strength.
**The nuts is a poker term meaning - the best possible hand that
can be made from both the cards now showing and from cards to come
(if any).
No matter whether playing live or online poker, do not forget
there is also an option to fold.
Betting versus gambling
Betting and gambling are key parts of poker but they are not the
same thing.
Considered betting is the cornerstone for the successful poker
player. A gamble is an extraordinary risk taking play that should
not be made lightly. While a gamble may be necessary at times, it
should be
thought through before making that play.
Do not confuse betting with gambling.
When and why to gamble
In a tournament
As a rule, gamble only when you have to; by that, when you have
less than 8-10 times the big blind left. Often with that amount,
while a big stack may take you on you can still hurt some of
the medium stacks at the table and they may not be so interested;
you will often be in a race* which if successful will have you
double up to a workable amount or you may pick up the blinds
(and antes, if used) unopposed.
Find some cards with which to make your move; draw a deep breath
and get all your chips into the pot, usually pre-flop and usually
before anyone else opens the betting. When you commit to the hand
you will hopefully have just one opponent, because while it may
seem enticing to get into a multi-way pot with the potential to
triple or quadruple up, the more players you are facing, the more
hands are out there to beat you.
Generally you will need an exceptionally good draw and/or a
desperately short stack to gamble in a hand after the flop or turn
cards.
*A race is generally thought of as being two players into a pot
with one having a pocket pair, going up against two over cards.
On a cash table
I could write a section on cash table gambling quoting 'pot odds',
'expectation value', 'fold equity' and all sorts of baffling numbers
to justify the gamble. However, those terms are often used to excuse
poor play by someone who simply gambled and got lucky. They can also
be used by a player who was unlucky and had made a correct call.
Best advice is; do not gamble, play your best poker to out-play your
opponents and win chips.
If you fancy taking an extraordinary risk with lesser cards, make
sure you can afford to lose.
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