Betting the Turn From Out of Position - Part IV

We now have looked at all of the cases in which you checked the flop and had to decide what to do on the turn. We now turn to those cases in which you bet the flop. If you won the hand with your flop bet, there is no turn betting to decide, so we will consider these cases:



• You bet the flop, and no one raised.

• You bet the flop, got raised, and you called.

• You bet the flop, got raised, and you reraised.



Before looking at them, we need to think about the reasons for betting the flop from out of position:



1. You had a big hand.

2. You had a mediocre hand.

3. You had a draw.

4. You were bluffing.



For the remaining parts of this series, we will look at each case, and at each of the four types of hands you bet. To review the first three parts of this series, visit www.CardPlayer.com.



You bet the flop, and no one raised



1. You had a big hand:

In general, if you have a big hand, you should keep betting. This is particularly true if you are out of position, since you don't want to risk giving a free card that may beat you. If you have aggressive opponents, you could try for a check-raise, but these opponents just called, so they may not be feeling aggressive now.



The only reason to reconsider would be if a scary card hit and you now fear a raise. Most commonly, this is an overcard or flush card. Let's look at both:

A. You raised from middle position with the J J and got two callers behind you. The flop was 9 8 6. You bet and one player called. Now, the turn is the K. Should you bet into the overcard?



Yes, you should. Your hand may no longer be the best, of course, but checking gives away too many free cards. Your opponent may have a king, but he also may have an ace, a small pair, or even a straight draw with a hand like the A 7. Even if you have several opponents, you could easily still have the best hand, as some opponents with the 5 5 hope that you have a hand like A-Q or A-J and will pay you off.



B. Again, you raised with the J J and got two callers. This time, the flop came K 8 3. You bet, the next player folded, and the button called.



The turn is the 4, putting a three-flush on the board. Now what?



There is a chance your opponent has a king, but he might have raised with it. There is also a chance that he has the flush. If there were four or more opponents, you could check now, planning to fold, but with only one, you still need to represent the best hand.



If your opponent plays straightforwardly, bet and fold if he raises. If your opponent is tricky, you may need to check and call twice. You will lose two more bets when you have the worst hand, but that can't be helped sometimes. If, instead, you bet and get raised by the tricky player, you still can't be sure where you stand. If you check, you will pick off enough bluffs and mistaken value bets (with hands like the 7 7) to make your situation worth continuing.



2. You had a mediocre hand:

Sometimes you bet a mediocre hand like middle pair to try to win the pot and perhaps determine where you stand. If you get called in several places, you usually should stop betting. Against one player, keep betting unless the board has no draws and your opponent has no logical hand that you can beat. The more draws the board shows, the more likely it is that your opponent is in fact drawing, and you need to bet the best hand and avoid giving free cards. Here is an example:



You held the 6 6 in the small blind and called with two other callers and the big blind. The flop was 8 3 3 and you decided to bet because, if you had the best hand, you could not afford to give free cards. If the big blind folded and one or two limpers called, you should now bet the turn because they probably have overcards. If a strong player in the big blind called, give up on the turn. He would not have called here with overcards, because he had to fear a raise behind him, and he had to worry that you could have a 3. If he held a hand like the J 8 for top pair, he would have raised to eliminate the two limpers, who could draw out to beat his vulnerable hand. There was no draw for him to have, so he either was a fool or had a very big hand. If he is not a fool, check and fold the turn.



If, instead, the flop was Q Q 5 and anyone called you, you generally should give up. Your limping opponents cannot have two overcards, and there are no draws. Someone has a queen here, and it is not you.



If the flop was 8 8 7, bet the turn if a non-straight, non-flush card hits, as the chances are that your opponents have a draw instead of a made hand.



3. You had a draw:

If your draw hits, bet. Your hand is disguised by the fact that you bet the flop with a draw instead of a made hand, and opponents who can beat some possible made hands will probably pay you off.



You may be tempted to check-raise, but to do that, someone else has to bet. Because the turn card completes a draw, your opponents may think that you are checking a good hand on the turn, fearing that they made the draw. If they think that way, they may check behind you. If you want someone to bet here, it should be you.



If you miss your draw, decide what your chances are of having your opponents give up on the turn. If you are going to call a bet anyway, you generally should bet. If there are several opponents and the turn card was a bad one, check and hope for a free card. If there is a bet, assess your pot odds in light of the bad turn card.



You hold the 7 6 in the big blind, and call after one limper and a raise from the button. The flop comes 9 8 3. You bet and both players call. If the turn is the 9, bet, because you have represented a 9. If your opponents have overcards, they will fear they are drawing dead and fold. If the turn is the 2, bet, because again your opponents may have taken one off to see if they could hit an overcard cheaply.



On the other hand, if the turn is the J, give up. You no longer have a true open-end straight draw, as a 10 would give anyone with a queen a higher straight. Also, limpers already could have made a better straight or have a jack and raise.



4. You were bluffing:

Assume that you have only one opponent, because running a pure bluff on two or more is rare. If you bluff and get called, give up. The pot is small (with only one opponent), and he probably has something to call you. He has position and could be slow-playing a big hand or just calling with something mediocre with which he does not want to risk a raise. Unless the turn card looks like it may convince him to fold a made hand, give up. You tried, and it did not work.



Remember, by betting and then check-folding, you also encourage your opponents to make a loose play against you when you have a very good hand. If you have check-folded the turn a time or two, remember to check-raise an opponent later in the session, as you have trained him to bet thin values, "knowing" you will fold.



We will continue this series in the next issue by looking at the case in which you bet the flop and called a raise.



Barry offers poker lessons tailored to the specific strengths and weaknesses of the individual student. Please visit his web site at www.barrytanenbaum.com or e-mail him at [email protected].