Sharp Turn

By now you've probably read or heard about a playing style called "small ball." I happen to believe that in order to achieve true poker mastery, you must arm yourself with the knowledge of many different playing styles and adjust your play based upon a particular opponent and situation. Having said that, there are a number of concepts relating to the turn card in no-limit holdem that I think every player should be aware of, and they may very well fall under the umbrella of small-ball plays.

If you're thinking to yourself, "Gee, I never really get to play the turn, as I'm usually all in, have folded, or have won on the flop," this could be a hole in your game. If you hold the best hand, your opponent will have half as much chance of outdrawing you on the turn than he did on the flop. So, waiting for the turn before making a big move is often a wise decision. Let's look at an example:

In a tournament, you raise in position with A-K. The big blind, who has a medium-short stack, calls, and you see a flop that is ace high with two suited rags (clubs). Your opponent leads into you, committing almost half of his stack to the pot. If you shove here and he has a decent draw, he probably has to call you. Conversely, if he has a weaker ace, like A-J, he might be able to get away from it, giving you credit for a stronger kicker. If you flat-call, it's hard for him to give you credit for a strong ace, and he has to consider that you might have a flush draw. So, when the turn brings the third suited card, he will be hesitant to commit chips to the pot, unless he made a flush, and even then, he might opt to slow-play, giving you the opportunity to keep the pot small in case you've been outdrawn. If a club comes and he shoves, you can fold, saving yourself some chips; this is very important in a tournament. Of course, if another rag hits the turn and he missed his draw, he now has half as much chance of hitting it. So, now is the time to set him all in. Also, your smooth-call on the flop makes it likely that your opponent will bet a rag turn with a weaker ace, at which point it will be very difficult for him to get away from his hand, as his bet will basically commit him to the pot.

There are many situations in which it makes sense to wait for the turn before moving all in, especially in tournaments. If you find that you're moving all in on the flop a lot, ask yourself why. It may be that a lot of the time, you're committing yourself to the pot preflop and forcing yourself to push on the flop. If that's the case, I suggest - unless you know that your opponent will call you very thin - that you consider pushing preflop instead. It puts a lot more pressure on your opponent and it saves you from an awkward situation on the flop.

Another situation in which the turn is important comes when you flop a big draw against an aggressive opponent. When you have a big draw against a weak-passive player, you can often bet it and take down the pot. If your draw is strong enough, you may even bet it for value against a calling station, looking to disguise your hand and build the pot for those times that you'll hit. If, however, you find yourself against an opponent who is likely to check-raise or three-bet, betting your draw on the flop can have disastrous consequences. In fact, against this type of player, I would seldom bet even overcards. Let's look at two other tournament examples:

In the first example, let's suppose that an aggressive opponent raises preflop and you call in position with the A J. The flop comes ragged with two clubs and she makes a standard continuation-bet. If you raise and get reraised, you'll be in a very tough spot. Even if she checks the flop and you bet, only to get check-raised, it's an ugly situation. You're much better off flat-calling here and seeing the turn as cheaply as possible. Again, if she had been a weaker, more passive player, a bet on the flop would have been justified. But because she is aggressive and likely to put the decision back to you with a raise, it serves you to see the turn card. If you miss the turn and she keeps betting, you can get away from the hand rather cheaply. On the other hand, if you hit the turn, she is likely to keep betting with any kind of hand, and you can now look to extract value from your draw by either smooth-calling to induce another bluff on the river or by making a small raise for value.

Next, let's look at a very common situation; you raise in position preflop with a big ace and the board comes ragged. Against a weak opponent, it's often OK to just go ahead and make a continuation-bet on the flop. Against a calling station or an aggressive player, you'll often want to just take a free card. It's likely that you have two overcards, meaning an ace or king on the turn will give you the best hand. Also, even if you miss the turn, if your opponent checks it again, you probably have the best hand and can just bet and take it down.

The main point here is that you have to adjust your game to your opponent, and against certain players under the right circumstances, it makes a lot more sense to see the turn card before making your move.

There is another line of play concerning the turn that is important for you to know. In situations in which you've been check-called on the flop in position, or you've raised on the flop in position and have been called by your opponent, if you're unsure that you have the best hand, it is often good practice to check behind on the turn. This keeps the pot small and enables you to call a bet on the river, since bets are usually proportional to the size of the pot. Being able to call bets on the river is often quite important, because it gives you information and prevents your opponents from bluffing you too much. The right turn play will enable those calls.

So, playing the turn correctly based upon your opponent and situation is a key step to becoming a better player. Hopefully, the examples and advice you've read here will help you do that. Just remember that every strategy and play is something to add to your arsenal, and it's up to you to use the right play at the right time against the right opponent. Experience and education will help you do that. Never assume that there is only one correct play or playing style that will work all the time.

Marc "Myst" Karam is a Canadian poker pro who has won millions of dollars competing in major poker tournaments all around the world. Despite his tournament success, he makes his living primarily by playing online cash games on Eurolinx Poker at some of the highest stakes available.