Calling When You Know You're Beat
written by BeatTheFish.com
..Fishy says, "Lay that sucka down on
the river if things turn ugly. What, can't a talking goldfish call
A-K sucka around here?"
Many otherwise good
online poker players will call that big bet on the river, even when
it’s obvious they’re beaten. Don’t be one of those players. This
situation usually arises when a player hits a really great flop for
his hand, but then things go pretty sour on the turn and river. For
example, let’s suppose that you just limp in with A-K from late
position. There are 3 other players in the hand, including the
blinds. The flop comes out A-5-6 of mixed suits, which is a very
good flop for your hand. The 3 other players check to you, and you
make a pot-sized bet. The small blind folds, but the other 2 players
stay in.
The turn comes with
another 5. Both players check again, and you bet about ¾ the size of
the pot. Only the big blind calls. The river comes with another 6,
so now the board looks like: A-5-6-5-6. This time, your single
opponent puts the rest of his stack in. At this point, you should be
dropping your hand. You only have one pair of your own plus a
community pair of 6s. Unfortunately, time and time again, online
players will call in this situation.
I realize that you
are justified in wanting to call with this hand. You had a darn good
one on the flop, and what kind of idiot would have called your bet
on the flop with only a 5 or a 6? The answer is: online players!
Many of your opponents will make a weak call, even when they’ve only
flopped middle or bottom pair. They figure that if they hit the
right turn, they can make two pair or a set and crush you. While
that may happen sometimes, this logic is severely flawed because
it’s just not going to happen often enough to warrant calling your
sufficiently-sized bet. Plus, he’s out of position. While
experienced players can understand this deductive reasoning, you’ll
have to start putting yourself in your clueless opponent’s shoes in
order to beat him.
Take advantage of
player notes within the online poker software. The next time you’re
involved in a pot with a player that you’ve been keeping an eye on,
try to use previous observations to help you. You might ask yourself
questions such as: Has this player made a weak call with mediocre
holdings? Does he like to draw? Can he give up middle pair? Don’t
be surprised for your opponent to show you any two cards, at any
stakes game online.
Another type of
hand that gets a lot of otherwise good online players in trouble is
the counterfeited hand. If you got a free play from the big blind
with 7-2 offsuit and see a flop of 7-2-A, you’re usually in really
good shape. You’ve hit two pair, and no one would put you on those
cards. However, if the turn comes with another A, you now have a
very weak hand. You won’t get credit for having 3 pair, and many
people place any Ace. That any Ace has now turned into three of a
kind. Even if your opponent doesn’t have an Ace, you have to realize
that any 7 with a better kicker than yours has you beat. While he
may only have had one pair of 7s on the flop, your second pair of 2s
is erased when that second A comes. At the turn, you have two pair:
Aces and 7s with a 2 kicker. If your opponent has K-7, he has two
pair also: Aces and 7s with a K kicker. You’re beat and should
realize that the value of your hand has gone way down.
How do you combat
situations like this? First of all, you should try to prevent them
before they happen. You should usually bet out when you have a
strong hand, unless it is so strong that it’s unbeatable. When you
bet, make it large enough so that your drawing opponents have to
think twice before calling that bet. Also, know when to throw your
hand away. The hand that I described at the beginning of this
article glares, “You’re beat!” If your opponent is just checking
and calling and then suddenly makes a large bet, you should rethink
how strong your hand actually is.
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Online Poker
Strategy
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