Playing The Flop For Hold Em Poker – The Power Of The Raise Part5
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Does he have a drawing hand that you can beat or a hand like A-Q (a pair of aces; remember the flop is A-10-4) that beats you? Did the flush card or a king or queen hit the board on the turn? (Note, by the way, that even though a jack on the turn would appear to be a great card for you, because it would give you three jacks, it could also present some danger, if it is the jack of diamonds, or if someone had K-Q and has now made his straight.) If so, then can you beat anything anymore? Perhaps a "blank" card (a harmless card that helps neither a straight draw nor a flush draw) like the f+\ comes off and Jerry checks his drawing hand to you. Why has he checked? Because your raise on the flop scared him off from betting the (3- (W so, then your raise on the flop has accomplished its mission!) If he does bet here after a "blank," then you must watch the way he makes the bet (look for body language that might show confidence or fear) and make your best decision.
On fourth street (after the fourth up card is dealt), if something in your head (intuition or instinct) tells you that Jerry is bluffing, then call. If you feel that he has a real hand, then fold. Trust your instincts and you will find that they keep improving as you continue to play Hold'em.
You will also find that your ability to read others will get better as you gain experience, especially if you work specifically on watching how people bet their hands. One of the best times to do this is when you have folded your own hand and so no longer have to concentrate on your own tactical considerations: you can focus entirely on studying your opponents (and the outcome!) for information that will come in handy later.
The Flop Is
Jerry bets out $5, and Jim raises it to $10 to go. In this case there is no flush draw, and it's hard to imagine that both of your opponents have a straight draw with a hand like Q-J, Q-10, or J-10. Although one of your opponents might have a hand like that, what does the other one have? Almost certainly the other opponent has a pair of kings or a pair of aces, because people holding high-rank cards like that tend to stay in hands. In this case, the two overcards on the flop make folding your hand an easy choice. This is one of the worst possible flops for a pair of jacks, especially in a three-bet pot where your opponents probably hold A-something or K-Q, K-J, or K-10.
"But wait a minute," you might ask; "if my opponent can get lucky by hitting the ace he was drawing to on the flop, why can't I get lucky and hit a jack on the turn or the river?" If one of your opponents does have a pair of aces or kings, then you can win only by hitting a jack (don't even factor in the extremely unlikely chance of hitting two perfect cards in a row to make a straight); and because there are only two jacks left in the deck, the odds against that happening are about 22 to 1 on the next card. Just say to yourself, "OK, I've played this hand perfectly so far, so even though I've waited a long time for a pair of jacks, it's time to fold them. Next time I have a big hand, I hope I have a better flop to it." Then simply fold your hand and forget about the outcome of that one. (But again, see what the outcome tells you about Jerry or Jim.)
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