Poker Essays
Bluffing
in No-Limit Holdem cash games...continued
From
Card
Academy
May 2007
When
should I bluff?
This
is probably one of the hardest aspects of poker to
describe analytically. The simple answer is to bluff
when you think your opponent will fold! There are
a number of situations that you can look out for that
will increase your fold equity.
The
fewer the number of players in the pot the better
It's quite obvious that it's easier to bluff against
one player, rather than 3 or 4 players. This is simply
because there are less chances that someone has made
a reasonable enough hand to call you with. If you
bluff often, you must always watch out for more decent
players that will continuously call you down just
to try and keep you honest. It is probably best to
stay away from bluffing this type of player and wait
until you actually have a hand, in which case they
may call you off with a marginal one.
Against tighter players
As stated above, by picking your targets correctly,
you can increase your fold equity immeasurably.
Pre-flop
- folded to you in the cutoff or button
If you have a few tight players to the left of you,
then it is generally very profitable to raise with
even marginal hands if the play is folded to you and
you are either in the cutoff (one off the button)
or on the button. This is because the chance that
the players yet to act have a good enough hand to
call you are very low. Also to your benefit, is the
fact that there are not many players in the pot, so
the pot odds are very small and you will probably
not get called by any suited connectors. You are generally
only picking up the blinds, but over the course of
a whole session of play, these blinds may add up and
become significant. This strategy is adopted much
more broadly in tournament poker and is probably not
as necessary in cash games because you have all day
to wait for hands. It can also get messy when you
raise with rubbish, because more often than not, if
you are called, you will be forced to fire off a continuation
bet. So be warned!
The
Continuation Bet
I have never really considered this bet to be a bluff,
but after thinking about it, it does indeed fit into
this category. Continuation bets are second nature
to many players, but the idea is that after you have
raised pre-flop, regardless of whether you have hit
the flop or not, you should put in a bet on the flop.
Since your opponents can only guess what hand you
have and you have shown strength pre-flop, they generally
have to assume that you have a strong hand and will
relinquish their hand into the muck if they do not
have anything better than marginal. In most instances
you will probably have the better hand anyway, for
example if you hold AK and the board comes ragged,
however this also works if you hold suited connectors
or smaller pairs. This is the perfect example of deception
in poker! Be careful though, because if your continuation
bet gets called, you must re-evaluate the situation
and determine if your opponent is drawing to a hand,
or possibly hiding a monster.
Against
a pre-flop raiser that checks to you
Unless you have been targeted as a compulsive bluffer/bettor,
then it is usually futile for a pre-flop raiser not
to put in a continuation bet unless they have missed
the flop and don't wish to invest any more money into
this pot. There is always the off chance that they
have flopped a monster, for example many players check
when they flop a set, but that is rare and you should
take down the pot with a bet here most of the time.
Occasionally the continuation bet is weak and can
be identified as a bluff from the pre-flop raiser,
however establishing whether this bet is a bluff or
not is slightly more advanced and should only be done
if you are sure. Again it is important to know your
opponent. Would he only bet half the pot if he hit
top pair?
Everyone
checks to you in late position
This is one of my favourite times to bluff, because
the pot is usually just waiting for someone to pick
it up. You'll be surprised how many times a two-third
pot size bet will pick up the pot. I usually like
to bet nearer to full pot, but find that I take down
the pot more than one in two times, thus making it
a worthwhile play. You should only make this play
if your table image is fairly good, because it is
a fairly common bluff from a lot of players. On the
other hand, for more advanced players, it is often
a good place to bluff the bluffer by targeting this
type of bluff and check-raising the late position
bluffer who will show little resistance, because they
will generally have nothing. Very tight players will
not usually make this bluff, so again make sure you
are check-raising the right person if you choose to
carry out this play. This play is especially effective
if there is another player in early position who flat
calls the initial raise. Suspecting that the late
position player is bluffing already, you can also
generally discount that the early position caller
has a monster, because he would most probably have
raised there instead of calling. It's safe to assume
they are either on a drawing hand, or have middle
pair, or perhaps a weak top pair. In any case if the
player is any good, they would be unlikely to call
a decent sized re-raise.
Shooting
first
Its not often that being first to act is beneficial
to you, but on occasion it can be a great spot to
put in a bet to try and pick up the pot. The reason
that this is an effective time to bluff is because
a bet in first position exhibits a lot of strength.
By firing in first position, you are saying to the
rest of the players still in the pot, I don't care
what you have, but I'm confident that my hand is beating
yours. The fact that you don't care what all these
other players have is an extremely strong display.
You may not get rid of fairly strong hands here, but
most players would relinquish their marginal hands
without much hesitation.
Trapping
the middle player(s)
As a continuation from the point above, if you are
bold enough to bluff when first to act, a lot of the
time you need only worry about beating the player
who is last to act. Players who find themselves in
the positions in between you and the final position
player will be reluctant to call with a marginal hand,
because they realize there are others to act after
them, who may raise the current bet.
Danger
cards
Often when a flush or straight draw appears on the
turn or river, the previously aggressive bettor may
seize up completely and check, or put in a small defensive
bet. They are now a potential target for a bluff.
This bluff works far more effectively if the card
falls on the turn, because your opponent knows that
if they call your bet, they may have to call a much
larger bet on the river, which will in many cases
convince them to fold. On
the river, your opponent can make a calculated call
as to whether he believes you or not, not needing
to risk any more money than the amount you bet. Therefore,
for example, if you have a straight draw on a flop
with two matching flush cards against a pre-flop raiser,
it gives you a lot more outs to take down the pot
than just your eight or four straight cards, for an
open-ended or gutshot straight draw respectively.
If you do hit your straight, you may choose to play
it slow or bet it out. If the flush card comes, you
can bet or raise your opponent to try and get him
to fold. You must be fairly confident that the aggressor
is not semi-bluffing the flush though. It is often
not difficult to discern the type of player that likes
to semi-bluff and the one that doesn't. (More on semi-bluffing
below) Other danger cards include when the board pairs.
Sometimes it is obvious that your opponent has an
over-pair and when the high card repeats itself on
the turn, they will often get scared that you may
have got lucky and made trips. Also be careful here
however, many players will hold on to an overpair
doggedly and call you all the way to the river.
Missed
Draws
There are many players that will call bets on the
flop, but not the heavier bet on the turn. This is
usually because they were willing to call a small
bet on the flop to try and improve on the turn, thinking
that if they hit one of their outs, they may profit
handsomely from you. It is also possible they think
they may get a free card on the turn if you should
decide not to bet. However, if you persist to bet
heavier on the turn, most players with drawing hands
will relinquish their cards, because they don't want
to risk the extra money, plus there is only one card
to come. A lot of the time it is easy to gauge when
players are on a draw depending on the board. If the
board is totally disconnected, for example 2 7 Q rainbow,
then you should be careful when bluffing here, because
there is no apparent drawing hand for anyone to have.
If you are called on the flop, then you may be up
against a hand such as KQ or QJ, or perhaps even a
set. There are many players however that will call
you with hands like A7, because they think you may
be bluffing, or they hope to make two pair or trips.
For more advanced players who can ascertain the strength
of their opponents, a bluff on the turn may force
the others to lay down these types of hands. Firing
off two rounds with nothing can be extremely dangerous
however, because then the possibility of needing to
bluff on the river becomes very real, unless you wish
to forfeit the pot that is. It is recommended that
you refrain from trying this tactic too often, unless
you are very comfortable with bluffing and reading
your opponent's strengths. If the lower cards on board
pair, this is the safest time to fire off a second
bluff when you believe your opponent is drawing. The
board pairing helps no one on a draw, and only really
help those that already have two pair or a set and
so you can feel much safer firing off a second larger
bluff bet when the board pairs. Be careful though,
because there are some people that like to call with
middle or bottom pair trying to make trips or two
pair, as stated above.
Paired
flop
It is a great opportunity to pick up the pot when
the flop comes out with a pair. The lower the pair
the better, because people generally prefer to play
higher cards pre-flop. The chances that the other
two cards to make trips have been either folded or
are still in the deck are quite high. If you are playing
a live game, this is also a great time to take a quick
look around the table, because although you are not
supposed to give away any information, you may see
a few looks of disgust because they just realized
they threw away the third card to make trips. You'll
be amazed how often this actually happens!
Semi-bluffing
This is the favourite type of play for almost all
aggressive players, because it allows them free rein
to go as hard as they wish. Often you get a flop where
you will have many outs to improve on. For example
if you have 8 9 of spades and the flop is 2 7 T with
two spades, then you have flopped both a straight
draw and a flush draw. Even though essentially you
have nothing at the moment except for ten-high, there
are now 15 cards in the deck that will make your hand
and unless you are up against a two-pair or a set
here, you can consider yourself to be a slight favourite
at worst. For the more timid players who do not wish
to risk their stack, semi-bluffing is not recommended,
because with the large number of outs you have, playing
it slowly and actually hitting your hand before committing
more of your chips is a very good, safer option. There
is no shame in playing your hand this way. The beauty
of the semi-bluff, however, is that it gives you a
number of opportunities to win the pot. It gives you
the possibility of winning the pot right there and
then, but even if you are called you have a great
opportunity to improve your hand and take down the
pot with a legitimate one. You can safely bluff at
the pot on the flop, with no fear of anyone raising
you, because if push comes to shove, in the end you
don't mind getting all your chips in. If someone has
taken the lead in the hand pre-flop, it is often a
good idea to check-raise the pre-flop raiser who is
yet to act if you think they may put in a continuation
bet, or to raise him if you are to act after him.
This makes the semi-bluff a lot harder to call and
you will take down the pot much more often than just
leading out with a bet. Semi-bluffing can also be
applied in many other situations and you don't necessarily
have to hit a flop with 15 outs in order for it to
be successful. A semi-bluff is very good at masking
what your hand really is. A great time to semi-bluff
is actually when you have only a few outs, because
if you hit your card, no one will suspect that you've
made your hand! For example if you have J8 on a flop
of T 7 3, a semi-bluff here would work well if no
one is showing too much strength. Again, you have
the opportunity of taking down the pot there and then
with nothing but Jack-high and if everyone folds,
you don't mind at all! However, if you get called,
then you are probably up against a decent hand, unless
someone is calling you with 89 on a draw. If you should
happen to hit your miracle 9 on the turn, there is
no way anyone would ever put you J8. At this point
you hope and pray that someone was slow playing a
monster on the flop, or has made two pair with T9!
I
got caught!
Don't
despair. Sometimes you will get caught on the river,
trying to bluff at the pot with nothing but a busted
straight draw. It may be even worse and you may have
had 8-high with no draw and no pair. This can sometimes
be embarrassing, but always use anything you can to
your advantage. Now that your table image is somewhat
tarnished, other players may start to target you more
freely by calling you down more often or even raising
your bets. Don't let this discourage you, and try
not to go into your shell too much and play too defensively.
You want the table to continue to think that every
time you are betting, the possibility that you are
bluffing is still really high. So keep bluffing occasionally,
but don't get too involved without a hand. Hopefully
you will pick up a monster hand and one of the players
that was targeting you earlier will pay you off a
lot more easily with a marginal hand.
When
not to Bluff!
Against
bad players
Never ever bluff against a low calibre player who
is incapable of laying down a hand. It is a sin to
bluff into really bad players, because you'll most
likely see all that money being donated to someone
else the very next hand. Pick solid players to bluff
against, especially for more elaborate bluffs. Don't
donate money to players who should only be winning
money off you when they get lucky.
If
it hurts too much
Often when bluffing, you may find that your stack
fluctuates up and down a lot more compared to playing
a tight, solid game. Some players find it hard to
deal with a diminishing stack and can often start
to play badly once this happens. If you are one of
these people, then try not to bluff too often and
only at key points when you are confident of success,
where you think the fold equity is at its highest.
Don't
bluff on tilt
While many people believe that you shouldn't play
on tilt at all, sometimes it is impossible to stop.
However, if you continue to play while steaming, beat
it into your skull that you should not try to bluff!
The fact that you are steaming probably means that
other players have taken notice of this and will take
advantage of you. You are also probably not thinking
straight and will not be playing your best poker,
so it won't be uncommon that you will be bluffing
on the flop, the turn and moving all in on the river
with nothing!
If
you continuously get caught
If you are getting caught bluffing a high percentage
of the time, you will find that you are doing something
wrong and have yet to get your timing right. You bluffs
should only be called every so often, so take note;
you may need to change your strategy as to when you
should be bluffing.
On
the river
It is highly recommended that you do most of your
bluffing on the flop, or the turn. Bluffing on the
river can be risky, because your opponent has no more
cards to worry about, which can often mean that your
bluff will be called. Try to only bluff on the river
if you are certain that your opponent was on a draw
and missed. River bets are the most expensive and
have the least fold equity, so try not to bluff here
too often and only if you have to. Now go and try
it out yourself!
In
conclusion, there is always an element of risk in
bluffing, but that's what makes it so exciting and
so satisfying when you pull it off! Remember to bluff
in moderation and never bluff a fish!
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