Raising in Poker and Facing a Raise
Are you still ahead in the hand?
When the lead gets taken you need to figure out if your opponent could have improved his hand, if he has slow played a strong hand, or he is bluffing. This sounds like a tricky proposition, but having a good read on your opponent and being able to read the texture of the board can really make this a lot easier.
What kind of cards are my opponent willing to see a flop with?
When continuation betting what is my opponent’s range of hands? Is it likely that the board has helped him? A board like 7-10-J is going to give your opponent something to work with on most occasions where there is action on the flop. The weakest hand your opponent is likely to have is a gut-shot straight draw with at least 1 over card.
Depending on who you are playing against, you need to shy away from betting into boards like this unless you are prepared to fire multiple bullets into an opponent who is giving action.
Should You Bet or Draw?
Would it be better to try and draw out, or play aggressively and take over the betting when facing a flop raise?
Are there any draws out there?
Lots of players like to raise on the draw. Even if this is not the case and your opponent has a made hand, they might be assuming that you are drawing so they will be inclined to raise with a wider range of hands than usual. Sometimes they might raise with even less than top pair and think that they have the best hand.
Can I narrow my opponent down to top pair or better?
This is usually a good starting place if you are facing a hard decision at the table and it's an easy way to divide up your opponents range of hands when the action gets big.
How deep are the stacks?
This is important because there are still two street of betting left to come and you might be seeing action the whole way. If you are not prepared to risk all of your chips, sometimes it's a good idea to get out of a hand early. A good example of this would be if you are drawing to the bottom end of a straight in a 5 person pot.
Will my opponent bluff again with nothing?
If the answer to this is no, then calling can be a much easier decision to make here. If he fires again on the turn, you can assume he has you beat. If he checks behind you, or in front of you (better), then you will likely know what he is up to.
Do you have any outs in case you are beat?
Sometimes you are wrong and it's always nice to have some outs. The glorious part about coming from behind for the suckout is that your hand is well disguised.
when facing a turn raise
Is my opponent sophisticated enough to do any kind of delayed semi-bluff? The answer is usually no, in which case you need to look at the board and figure out what your opponent has, because he is likely raising based strictly upon his hand strength.
Can I slow my opponent down somehow for the river?
This is tough to do, especially since the stopper bet has become widely known, but sometimes a cold call on the turn will scare your opponent and they will check it down to avoid getting trapped on the river.
If I am beat, are there any scare cards that could come which would allow me to bluff my opponent?
Sometimes you are just not sure if your hand is any good and you are hoping that perhaps your opponent is bluffing. Well if you know what he doesn't have... you can sometimes make a bad call, then on the river you will realize you probably made a bad call, but now you have the chance to represent that the scare card has made your hand. It's more likely that your opponent will believe that you were drawing on the turn rather than you have made a bad call followed by a great play.
Will my opponent be scared away if I bet a scare card?
It's never fun to make a great play and then have your opponent make an even better call. Don't go barking up the wrong tree and always know who you are betting against. Figure out if this will be an option on the turn so that you can make a sound decision before you get invested into an ugly situation.
When facing a river raise - did any draws miss?
Is my opponent loose enough and deep stacked enough to bluff a missed draw?
what type of hand he representing that could have gotten there?
Does my opponent understand what a third raise would represent right here, and would he be willing to lay down two pair or bottom set?
This is usually a suicidal move, but it can work against some of the higher skilled players because they understand if you are not representing a straight or flush in this type of scenario. Moves like this are much easier to pull off in games like Omaha where the nuts are more common.
When Raising the river
Is there really a reason to raise?
The main reason I urge players to reconsider this is that their hand is often going to be transparent, and they won't get called unless they are beat. Some players also go too far and become paranoid that their hand might not be good, and the pot is already pretty big by this point, so they might miss some crucial value bets.
Will he call a bet with something that you can beat?
This goes along with the last questions that you should ask yourself. Think about how loose your opponent is playing, how large the bet will be compared to his stack, how transparent your hand will be etc.
Can I make more money by getting a raise called or by sucking a third opponent in the hand?
This is something you should always consider in high/low games or limit games, although it sometimes applies in NL Hold 'Em games as well. If it's unlikely your opponent will call a raise, but it's likely that more people will call if you just smooth call, then this tends to be the better option in some situations. The total amount of money you will be able to get into the pot by smooth calling might be larger.
Can they afford to be in this game?
Are they playing on scared money? You can really have a field day with some of these players so be on the lookout for someone who is off their game because of this.
Do they "Close their eyes" and play without giving your cards any consideration?
Some newer players will decide that they are going to stick with a hand, or decide they are firing 3 bluffs into a pot regardless of what comes. If you can spot these players, it will make some of your decisions much easier.
Do they get married to hands?
This can be an easy characteristic to exploit, especially if you are playing with deep chip stacks.
Do your opponents hate to be bluffed?
You can use this to your advantage when it comes time to make some value bets. You can also heed the warning and avoid bluffing guys like this unless you have a great spot.
Does my opponent have the guts to fire 2 bullets into a pot? 3 bullets?
This is an easy and very practical way to classify your opponents. If you can rule out certain hands immediately when they make a second bet on the turn, you'll know if you hand is good most of the time.
Is anyone at the table on tilt?
If so, raising blinds with them behind you is not wise without a strong hand.
What is my opponents skill level in general?
How savvy are they? How many plays do they have in their play book? do they know my plays? Sometimes I recognize something in a players game that I see a part of myself in. More importantly, I'm just a few steps beyond them, but I have been at that stage in learning the game so I know pretty well what they will be thinking at all times.
In a tournamentAre players waiting on the bubble?
This is something that you can exploit if you are not worried about losing a few chips. Even if some players get stubborn, you can put them to a tough decision that is sometimes swayed by the money bubble in large buy-in tournaments.
What kind of results does do my table opponents have?
If you are starting to go deep in a big online poker tournament, it's not a bad idea to use some of the stats software or online poker rankings websites to analyze your opponents and get a better idea for how they play and who they are.
Are my opponents avoiding big pots?
This is another weakness you can exploit. If players are playing fairly tight early on in a tournament, some big re-raises can be the key to building your chip stack early on.
How fast or how hard will my opponent play a top pair top kicker scenario?
This is crucial for making big laydowns. Top pair and top kicker is a pretty good landmark for judging your opponents strength and you can often divide your opponents hand into something that can either beat this or not.
Do my opponents like to bet on the come with their draws or try to get a good price?
If you know the answer to this question, you will do pretty well in maximizing the value of your hands and not getting outplayed. Surprisingly, some players will play these hands pretty consistently so once you pick up on a pattern, you will know what to do with them in a big hand.
Will my opponents fold when priced out of draws?
Some poker players have more gamble in them than other players. Some players are just not good. If you think that your opponent will call a huge bet with an inferior hand or draw, sometimes it is worth going in for the kill and over-betting the pot.
Have they discovered moves like the float, stop and go, limp-raise?
Some poker moves that were great 2 years ago are now getting picked off all the time at the table. You really have to play poker everyday if you want to stay on top of things. If you want to know where people are at along the learning curve, you had better hope they are somewhere underneath of you or else you will be in someone else's world.
Is your opponent afraid to be drawn out on?
This can help to provide insight into what your opponent might be holding on a draw heavy board. This is optimal, especially if you know that he does not play his draws strongly. You can pretty much narrow down his hand in these types of situations once you get to know a player really well.
Would am opponent rather coin flip than get out played?
If this is the case, you need to be willing to take a flop rather than trying to re-raise and seize the advantage in your hand. If they have a coin flip type of hand they are likely to just put the rest of their chips in before the flop and you will have to race with them. If you believe you are a better player, you should look to see flops.
When getting short stacked, how short is short?
In other words, how many chips do I need in order to get my opponents to fold semi-strong hands like A-10 or 6-6? This will be different for each table and goes along with the last question that you need to ask yourself. You really want to try not to let yourself get down below the point where you have no folding equity in your raises. If this happens, you won't just need a hand good enough to shove your chips in with, but you will need it to hold up as well.
How short stacked are my opponents? If your opponents are too short stacked, you won't be able to push them around or outplay them after the flop. It's sad to say, but you can't gain much of an advantage over a short stacked player unless they play too tight or have bad card selection.