Free Cards in Limit Hold'em - Part VI

My last column started investigating when you can give a free card. I created the following list:

1. You flop (or turn) an unbeatable hand.
2. The pot is very small.
3. You have a vulnerable hand that can improve.
4. Your opponent is a frequent bluffer.
5. You are in a way-ahead/way- behind scenario.

That column discussed the first two cases. In this column, we will look at the remaining three.

You have a vulnerable hand that can improve. Sklansky and Malmuth first suggested this concept in Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players. It assumes that you are in position with a made hand, and a scare card comes on the turn that could well have improved your opponent's hand to beat yours.

Assuming the opponent is straightforward, if you have a hand that cannot improve to beat what he may have made, you should bet, thus not giving him a free card, just in case he did not make the hand you fear. If he check-raises, you can fold.

However, if your hand has outs to beat his presumptive one, you should check, thus avoiding the check-raise that you will have to call because of your outs, or, worse, have to fold to because you do not have the right price to call in spite of having outs. Because this conflicts with the general rule that you should avoid giving free cards when in doubt, you need to be reasonably sure that he has made the hand you fear, or that he will call if you bet, so you are not giving him a free chance to improve to beat you with a hand he would have folded.

Let's look at a quick example: You raise from middle position with the A K, and only the big blind calls. You like the flop of K 8 3, and it goes check, bet, call. However, you are not crazy about the 7 on the turn. Your opponent checks. If he made the flush (or has a set), you are drawing dead, and if he somehow has two pair, you do not have enough outs (even if you knew what they were) to call a check-raise. You certainly do not want to give a free card to a hand like the K 10, so you bet. If you get check-raised (by this straightforward opponent), you fold.

Now let's say that the flop is A K 8, with the same flop action, and the same turn card, the 7. Now you no longer fear his making two pair. If he check-raises, you must call, because your outs to a full house combine with the chances that he has two worse pair. If he has a hand like the A 10, he is not folding anyway, so if you give him a free card, it cannot cost you the pot. It is not 100 percent certain, but checking the turn will often be the best play. You may even induce a bluff, a bet, or a crying river call from a hand like the 10 10 that may have folded for your turn bet.



Your opponent is a frequent bluffer. When you know that your opponent bluffs too often, you sometimes have to go out of your way to give him plenty of chances to do it. If you represent strength, and he has nothing, he will fold. But, if you feign weakness, he may fire blanks on all subsequent streets. This can add up to quite a bit of money, even if your broken-wing act sometimes enables him to catch up and win a pot.

Your decision to bait the frequent bluffer depends on the size of the pot and how vulnerable your hand is. The smaller the pot, the more often you should try it, as the bets that he puts in will have greater relative value. If the pot is big, just try to win it, and do not mess around with tricky plays. The more vulnerable your hand is, the less you should try this, as he is more likely to inadvertently draw out. Be more likely to bet bottom pair and check top pair to induce these bluffs.

In general, you should induce these bluffs only when you're heads up. You do not want to risk free cards when multiple opponents may benefit. Why heads up, simply check, whether in position or out of position, and call him down.

Once you have embarked on this strategy, you have committed yourself to calling to the river no matter how scary the board gets. Scare cards encourage bluffers to continue to represent whatever is out there. Once you have induced a bluff, assume that he is betting any two cards, not showing value. I have seen players check 10-10 on an 8-6-3 board to goad a bluffer, then give up on the river when the turn and river came A, K or 7, 5. Sure, you might regret keeping him in, and you may lose, but you have to call the bluffer when you have asked him to bluff you.

You are in a way-ahead/way-behind scenario. This case bears a resemblance to the one in which you have a vulnerable hand that can improve. You are unsure of where you stand on the turn, and may be offering a free card, or may be taking one. This situation is covered in Chapter 21 of my book, Advanced Limit Hold'em Strategy, and in the Dec. 17, 2004, issue of Card Player. Briefly, you are heads up in position on the turn, and if your hand is the best, your opponent has few outs (generally two or three), but if you are trailing, you have few outs yourself (typically the same number).

Usually, this situation involves possible kicker trouble. For example, you raise from late position with A-10 and are called by the big blind. You bet the A-9-4 flop, and he calls. The turn is a 6. If he has an ace with a better kicker, you have three outs. If he has an ace with a worse kicker, he has three outs. If he has a pocket pair, he has only two.

In general, you should check here. Not only will you get a free card if he has you beat, but he will not be able to check-raise to prevent you from seeing the river. Furthermore, you may induce a bet, bluff, or crying call on the river if he does not have an ace.

Conclusion: Limit hold'em is ultimately a recurring battle for fractions of bets. Many of those fractions are won or lost by gaining, taking, or countering attempts for free cards. By following the guidelines in this series, and working on your reads, you will make more of these incremental bets than your opponents.

Barry Tanenbaum is the author of Advanced Limit Hold'em Strategy, and collaborator on Limit Hold'em: Winning Short-Handed Strategies, both available at www.CardPlayer.com. Barry offers private lessons tailored to the individual student. Please see his website, www.barrytanenbaum.com, or write to him at [email protected].