The Big River Bet

The Big River Bet

Along the Gulf Coast and in East Texas, they like to play $10-$20-$40 hold'em. This is a $10-$20 game with an optional $40 river bet available. On the river, you can bet or raise $40 instead of $20 if you like. If someone bets $20 on the river, you can raise to $40 or to $60. If someone bets $40, you can raise to $80 but not just to $60. When you find yourself in a structure like this, I think you need to make some significant adjustments to your play on the river. In this structure, players like to slow-play more often and wait until the river to reveal their strength, rather than on the turn. It also makes bluffing more attractive, because you can bet more on the end and put pressure on your opponent to fold. It has been my experience against typical players that the $40 river bet is used when they have good hands. Some of the better players will occasionally make use of the big river bet to bluff. It makes betting a hand on the end for value more problematic, because you cannot assume that your hand is still good if you were just called on the turn and a blank comes on the river. The following five hands, all taken from this game, illustrate some important considerations when playing in a game with this unusual structure.

Hand No. 1: You are in the big blind with the Q 9. An early-position player, the cutoff, and the small blind limp in. You take a free play. There is $40 in the pot and four players.

The flop is the Q 5 3. The small blind checks, you bet, and only the early-position player calls. There is $60 in the pot and two players.

The turn is the A. You bet and your opponent calls. There is $100 in the pot.

The river is the 4. You check. Your opponent makes the optional $40 river bet. What should you do?

Answer: The monstrous $40 river bet makes a big difference compared to a normal $10-$20 game. In a normal game, your opponent could bet only $20, so you would be getting 6-to-1 pot odds to call and try to pick off a bluff. But in this game, having to call $40 reduces your pot odds to 3.5-to-1, almost cutting them in half from a normal game. Unless you think your opponent would bluff a significant percentage of the time in these situations, I think folding is right.

Hand No. 2: You are in middle position with the A J and call behind an early-position player. The other two middle-position players call, and the rest of the field folds. There is $55 in the pot and five players.

The flop is the 10 8 6. The big blind and the early-position player check. You check. The next player bets and everyone folds to you. With $65 in the pot, you make a dubious call with your overcards despite the two-flush on board, since you have only one opponent. There is $75 in the pot and two players.

The turn is the Q. You check, having picked up a double belly-buster straight draw with any king or 9. Your opponent bets and you call. There is $115 in the pot.

The river is the 2. What should you do?

Answer: You should bluff by making the big $40 river bet. You have nothing but an ace to show down, and the river is a good scare card since it puts a third spade on the table. Your betting is consistent with someone on a flush draw, and the big $40 river bet might easily get your opponent to fold. It has to work only about a third of the time to be profitable.

Hand No. 3: You are on the button with the Q Q. An early-position player opens with a raise and everyone folds to you. You reraise and only the big blind and the early-position player call. There is $95 in the pot and three players.

The flop is the K 10 6. Both opponents check. You bet and only the early-position player calls. There is $115 in the pot and two players.

The turn is the 4. Your opponent checks. You check because of the third spade on the table, coupled with the king overcard.

The river is the 6. Your opponent now makes the big $40 river bet. What should you do?

Answer: Call. It is too easy for your opponent to have A-10, Q-J, or some other holding that he was drawing on, and now he has decided to make a big move here on the river because of the absence of any betting on the turn.

Hand No. 4: You are in middle position with the K Q and limp in behind three other players. The cutoff raises and only the limpers call. You call. There is $115 in the pot and five players.

The flop is the Q 9 6. It is checked to you and you bet. The cutoff raises and only an early-position player calls. You call. There is $175 in the pot and three players.

The turn is the 8. Everyone checks.

The river is the 4. The early-position player checks. What should you do?

Answer: Check. In a traditional betting structure, you can assume that the absence of any betting on the turn means that your top pair, excellent kicker is probably good. If someone had a flush or a straight, he would have bet it on the turn. If the cutoff, who raised preflop, had an overpair or top pair, top kicker, he would have bet the turn after being checked to. So, normally, you should bet the river here. But in this bizarre betting structure, the big $40 river bet distorts everything. A guy with a flush, a straight, or a better hand than yours will wait until the river to reveal himself, since there is such a large payoff for doing so. You should check because the threat of getting raised $40 is quite real, and you cannot afford to invest $60 or $80 to avoid getting faked out with a pot that has less than $200 in it. Of course, you will call if the cutoff bets, assuming the early-position player does not raise.

Hand No. 5: You are in the big blind with the Au A. An early-position player, a middle-position player, the cutoff, and the small blind all limp in. You raise and everyone calls. There is $100 in the pot and five players.

The flop is the 10 10 3. The small blind checks. You bet and only the early-position player and the cutoff call. There is $130 in the pot and three players.

The turn is the 5. You bet and only the early-position player calls. There is $170 in the pot and two players.

The river is the Q. What should you do?

Answer: In a normal $10-$20 game, I think you should bet again. But in this structure, with the big $40 river bet available, I think you should check. Players love to slow-play until the river in this structure. In a normal game, if your opponent had trip tens, he would raise your turn bet, but in this game, he will typically wait until the river to pull the trigger. When you bet into a board of 10-10-3 and get called in two spots, you cannot be overly optimistic. I would check and call if my opponent bets $20 or $40, but I cannot stand to bet $20 or $40 and get raised another $40.

On the actual hand, the player bet $40 and got raised to $80. He made a crying call. His opponent won, having the 5 5 for a full house on the turn.