Before anything, I would like first to share that I love your site. It’s been very helpful.

Well, I used to play no-limit Texas holdem tournaments. Because of this, I’ve got the chance to learn a lot of betting styles to varying degrees of success. However, I’m still clueless, I don’t know how do you bet when you flop to the ignorant end of a straight. And take note, you are at a table full of people who pay to the river on most hands.

Another thing, I’ve heard that from Mike Sexton, it’s advisable to bet 3-5 times the big blind almost without exception once you have the hand. How true is this? And about aggressive betting style, many have said that this style is very helpful. Is it true?

Well, in my opinion it is as you can actually blow the first two types of players off the table. By the way, in every pre-flop there are three types of players; the “folds”, the “calls”, and the “raises”. It’s also a similar thing in post flop. It’s helpful to be aggressive.

But I’m wondering. I don’t know if how many ways can I win now if I bet aggressively. Any idea?

By the way, I’ve also heard that it’s vital that you watch out for paint in the flop. Does this makes sense? Please, any idea will do.

Thank you.

All the best,
Hanz Crew

Hanz,

When you flop the low end of the straight, also known as the sucker end, how you bet it depends on your read of your opponent and also the flop itself. If you came in holding 4-5 and the flop came 6-7-8, the odds that your opponent is holding 9-5 or 9-10 are usually pretty long. Adversely, if you flop 8-9-10, and you hold 6-7, you may be against a player with Q-J.

An aggressive betting style is good for putting fear into your opponents and for stealing blinds and antes in tournaments and forcing weaker players out. The downside is that when you are beat, you will lose money. Betting aggressively gives you an additional way of winning by forcing your opponent to fold. When you just check or just bet small, it invites players to stay in the pot.

Watching for paint on the flop refers to watching for face cards, such as kings, queens, or jacks. I don’t know of any tip that recommends that you watch specifically for that, but you do need to be aware of potential hands at all times.

I hope you have time to answer my questions. I badly need clarity. Thanks!

1. In one of my games, I have a pocket pair 7-7, and then I have a set because of the flop, it was one overcard and 2 suited cards. I guess it gave someone else a flush draw. Eventually, one opponent went all-in and I’ve seen he has more chips than me. As a result, I placed him on at least a top pair as well as a flush draw. Like at this instance, whenever your opponent is on a flush draw and went all-in, what do you normally do? Do you fold or immediately call his all-in instead?
2. In my game the other day, I had a top pair, top kicker. I had a A-Q and then the flop is Q-10-2 rainbow. I remembered that the game was very passive and loose then, having numerous calling stations. At some point, I longed to thin out the field to get at least 4-5 callers but I know it was a hard thing to do. Eventually, I started thinking of some stuff.

I wondered, if in the event you get called by someone, do you check the turn? And in case you bet the turn, is there a need for you to bet a large amount? If you have to and then he calls, does it mean you’re beaten and check-fold the river?

3. Oftentimes, I lose lots of money by just merely guarding my hand as well as doing the thinning out of the field stuff. Because of this, I thought of betting less to let everyone in. At some point, I also thought of betting just the necessary amount to thin out the field. I don’t know which is which.

Please help me.

Thanks!

Luis

Luis,

1. You are going to call his all in. You still have the lead and he is still drawing. Granted, they had a big chance to hit their hand, but they are still laying a heavy price to hit their draw. Also, you do have 7 outs on the flop, and 10 on the turn to make your full house which gives you around a 30% chance to resuck out on him if he hits. You have the advantage here. Take it.
   
2. In the scenario with A-Q your problem comes with there being so many people staying in. Are they on draws? Did they flop top pair with a worse kicker? Did they have pocket 2’s and flop a set? It becomes difficult to decipher sometimes. If the turn does not produce a third straight or flush card, you need to take charge and bet out. If they call again, you need to see what the river falls. Again, if it is unthreatening, you should be out and take the lead. If it does complete a draw, slow down.
   
3. Sometimes you will lose money doing this. Typically a bet of around 30% to 40% of the pot is sufficient to thin out most players. If there are potential draws on the board, you need to bet enough to keep them from having sufficient odds to draw. Don’t bet less and let more people in. When you let people into the pot, you are inviting them to outdraw you. You need to avoid this.

For 6 months now, I’ve been playing No Limit Texas Hold’em. Well, right now, I don’t yet consider myself as a pro but perhaps just a reasonable one. I used to gather information on strategies, tactics, etc. but I don’t know what went wrong. Every time I try to use such information to my advantage, typically, I struggle.

Say for an instance, I’m playing online NL poker out of the small blind with KK. Everyone else called the BB, however, I re-raised strongly and then with just two players went into the flop. The flop then came back A, T, 6. As the first to act, I placed a bet twice the pot to find out my standing at the table. Well, one has folded but there was another who called. At some point, for not re-raising me back, I figured out that maybe he has an Ace with a weak kicker or otherwise just slow playing a big hand like trip T’s or 6’s.

Then the turn card is another Ace. I’m the first to act, but yet I’m confused on what must I do. Well, I believe I can big raise or even go all in at that instance but I don’t want the idea of throwing good money after bad. I can also check to him or put in a small bet, but I don’t want to appear weak.

In your point of view, what strategy should have I used at that instance? If I remained aggressive on the turn and then again on the river and accepted that I might be paying the other player off handsomely, do you think it could have helped? Same thing if in case I just check to him and eventually fold if he raises, do you think it could have been a much better move?

Thank you.

Denvel

Denvel,

The fact that he called your flop bet tells me that he either has a weak ace as you figure or is slow playing a set. When the turn fell another ace, I would either check to him or bet something small like 25% of the pot. This may look like weakness to some, but can also look like you are trying to milk a bet. If the player raises, you know where you are at. If they call, then I would slow down on the river.

There are some things that have been bothering my mind for some time now. Hope you can help me out.

1. Say in a $3/5 limit game, small blind puts in $1 and big blind puts in $3. Then the next to act is the person to the left of the big blind. What do you think, does he need to bet or check? By the way, the person being talked about here is in the “under the gun” position.
2. How about if the person bets $3 and there are calls all the way around. Do you think the small blind has to call $3? Or else just have to call $2 for getting a credit for his $1 small blind ante? How about for the big blind? I guess it will be the same thing.

Thanks!

Michael James

Michael,

1. The blinds are forced bets and therefore each player at the table must at least call the $3 big blind in order to stay in the pot. The under the gun player’s only options are to call or raise. They cannot check.
2. The small blind only has to complete the big blind bet of $3. If the pot is not raised by the time action is back on the big blind, the big blind can either check or raise.

Your site has been a great help. Thanks!

I am a regular visitor of your site actually, but still, I have some questions in mind that up to now were not yet answered.

Can you explain to me the betting side of the game? What are the important things I need to know about it? It seems quite confusing to me.

Alexzander

Alexzander,

Before each hand, the two players to the left of the button put up forced bets known as blinds. The first player puts up a small blind, and the second player puts up a big blind. The small blind is half the size of the big blind. In a $1-$2 blind No Limit Holdem game, the small blind is $1 and the big blind $2.

The first player after the big blind is the under the gun position and has the option to either call, raise, or fold. If they raise, they must raise at least the size of the big blind. The same decision is faced by each person until the action returns around to the blind. If nobody has raised the pot, the small blind may either call the big blind, raise, or fold. If the small blind does not raise, the big blind then has the option to either raise or check.

When choosing to raise the pot, a standard raise is considered to be 3 and one half times the big blind. You do have the option of raising up to the total amount in your stack.