Unorthodox bets and lines

Introduction

In this article 

• The advantages and disadvantages of an unorthodox line
  
• What your opponent wants to achieve with this
  
• When you can deviate from your standard game
  

Often, while you are concentrating on your standard game, you will notice your opponent making strange bets and lines. What exactly are they trying to convince you of when they do this? What kind of hands might they be holding when they do this? And wouldn't it perhaps be useful, if you were able to use lines like these yourself?

You are going to witness a number of strange situations at the poker tables today. The main focus will be on Villain. Villain will make a move on you and you will need to consider what hands he might be holding for him to be able to make that particular move.

After this it is up to you to decide whether it is worth adopting these alternative lines.

Alternative bets/lines

What are you up against here? We will give you a sample hand for every move. You should then think about the advantages and disadvantages of such a bet or line and what can be achieved with it. We will also look at the opponent to see if it is possible to associate certain moves with certain types of opponent, in order for you to recognise what hands he might be holding.

Check raise as pre-flop aggressor

A check raise as pre-flop aggressor (PFA) is always a strange play. First of all you will wonder why your opponent doesn't just fire a contibet. He has the initiative, he should protect in most cases, and will want to get value. So why would he accept the danger of a check behind on your part?

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with 3 , 3
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) J, T, 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $1.60, UTG raises to $6.00, Hero...

You called a UTG raise pre-flop in position. You hit on the flop, but this is of minor importance in this situation. What is evident is that you will have to bet simply to inflate the pot and to get as large a payout as possible.  

Now the opponent check raises. This is nothing to cry about, but you should already be asking yourself what your opponent is trying to tell you here.

The advantage is obvious. Your opponent is creating quite a large fold equity. If he wants to protect a hand and is assuming that you will often attack the pot in position, in case your opponent checks.

He'll also win your bluff bet if he has a strong hand, something he wouldn't be able to do with a continuation bet. 

If you just check on the flop as well, then you would have at least managed to have pot control.

Especially on drawy boards, Villain will have to risk the possibility that you'll get a free card. The consequence is that your opponent is still holding his hand out of position on the turn and the pot hasn't grown. Regardless of what he was setting out to do,  he will have failed in most cases. He wouldn't manage to either build the pot or protect it.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (Regular)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with 3 , 3
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) J, T, 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $1.60, UTG raises to $6.00, Hero push All-in, UTG calls All-in

In this situation you assume that you are dealing with a regular player. What hands might he have here?

You can roughly divide it up between two ranges: He might be holding a strong made hand like JJ/TT, or he might have strong draws, with which he has been planning from the start to go all-in on the flop by making a check raise/call. 

Good draws here would be AK , KQ, 98, K9, etc.

A draw would enable Villain to avoid a problem, namely you calling him light on the flop. A call would mean you wouldn't have a particularly strong hand, but your opponent won't be able to guess anything. Do you have a good made hand? Do you have a (possibly even weaker) draw? Have you only called because you want to float on the turn? 

How must Villain act on the turn now? Does he fire the 2nd barrel? Can he call your push? A draw out of position on the turn is no picnic after all, and so he tries to avoid it by check raising. 

The alternative would be a check raise with a strong hand. The first thing to spring to mind would be the sets, but the fact that you know you will have a very easy bet on the flop here means that check raising with KK+ is also feasible.

So protecting a made hand works wonderfully, even if Villain is walking on thin ice. If he decides to check raise his strong hands, with which hands does he make a continuation bet then? He will have to do his best not to allow you to have any reads on him at this point. 

To finish off this section here are a few examples of why a check raise with a strong draw is often a sensible move.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (Regular)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with K , Q
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) J, T, 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $1.60, UTG raises to $6.00, Hero push All-in, UTG calls All-in

Villain shows: AK Hero shows: KQ

Equity Analysis
Board	J, T, 3
	Equity	Win	Split	Loss	Hand
Player 1	80,96%	80,51%	0,91%	18,59%	A, K
Player 2	19,04%	18,59%	0,91%	80,51%	K, Q

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (Regular)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with Q , J
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) J, T, 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $1.60, UTG raises to $6.00, Hero folds

This line is also very popular in a 3-bet pot. Especially because the pot is considerably bigger and also, especially when making loose 3-bets, you will often be caught with your pants down. In some situations you will not have any other choice but to give up on the flop directly (Example 5), insofar as you think you are behind Villian's range and do not think you can build enough fold equity.  

For this reason you should add the check raise of strong hands (Example 6) to your standard repertoire and thus make it easier for Villain to make mistakes. Especially if you are holding strong hands like overpairs or TPTK this can be a wise move. If you do this with overpairs, then it is also a good idea to include draws in the range (Example 7).

It is also particularly tricky if you check raise an aggressive opponent when you believe that your opponent could bluff easily here, but is not keen on going broke. A hand with overcards (Example 8) would lend itself to a semibluff in this situation, as you still have some outs to show for yourself just in case.  

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BB with A , K
3 folds, BU raises to $1.00, 1 fold, Hero raises to $3.25, BU calls $3.25

Flop: ($6.60) 3, 4, 5 (2 players)
Hero checks, BU bets $4.50, Hero folds

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BB with A , A
3 folds, BU raises to $1.00, 1 fold, Hero raises to $3.25, BU calls $3.25

Flop: ($6.60) 3, 4, 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, BU bets $4.50, Hero raises All-in

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BB with A , K
3 folds, BU raises to $1.00, 1 fold, Hero raises to $3.25, BU calls $3.25

Flop: ($6.60) 3, 4, 9 (2 players)
Hero checks, BU bets $4.50, Hero raises All-in

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BB with A , K
3 folds, BU raises to $1.00, 1 fold, Hero raises to $3.25, BU calls $3.25

Flop: ($6.60) 3, 8, 8 (2 players)
Hero checks, BU bets $4.50, Hero raises All-in

Donkbets

A donkbet is a bet that is used to counteract the pre-flop aggression at the beginning.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with 3 , 3
3 folds, Hero raises to $1.00, 1 fold, BB calls $1.00

Flop: ($2.10) Q, 7, 2 (2-players)
BB bets $1.60, Hero...

Advantages of a donkbet:

• Building fold equity
• Direct protection
• Possibility to donk bet/3-bet, so that you can already go all-in on the flop

Disadvantages of a donkbet:

• Balancing is not easy
• You won't get any money out of the opponent's continuation bet
• You won't protect as hard as when you check raise

There is no need to go into the use of donkbets in general in any more detail. Most players include it in their repertoire, although it is often questionable whether they really need it.

If you don't have the initiative in a raised pot (which shouldn't happen that often), you can balance your entire game by using the following plays:

• check/call
• check/fold
• check/raise

Especially in a heads-up game (post-flop) donkbets are not an absolute necessity.

But in multi-way pots they are actually more important. Your objectives are different from the ones you have in a heads-up game: 

• The probability of a continuation bet decreases
• A check raise builds more fold equity, which, at times, is not wanted. 
• If someone raises your donkbet, you are practically all-in because of a 3-bet. 
• Opponents have to play a quick and aggressive game on a drawy board, so you can achieve your objective of going all-in.
• Protection is extremely important again here. A set is much more vulnerable in a 4 handed pot than in a heads-up game.
• Balancing can be largely ignored in multi-way pots on the other hand. 

For this reason you should carefully consider whether a donkbet makes any sense in multi-way pots.

Back to the heads-up game on the flop. Although you will have the advantage of not passing on any information to the opponent (perfect balancing) by choosing the passive variant (check), you want to of course convince your opponent of something by making a donkbet. That's why you need to balance your lines here. This means that you shouldn't always just pick draws and bluffs to play bet/fold while you never bet/3-bet with them. If you want to make a cheap bluff, you will also be indirectly forced to donk bet/3-bet your strong hands, such as sets.

Unfortunately you cannot make any generalizations about what your opponent is trying to convince you of when he makes a donkbet. So you need to keep your eyes open at all times and take his stats into account if possible.

We have compiled a list of tendencies therefore, which is to be treated with caution:

TAGs/LAGs tend to frequently balance these donkbets, so that you are unable to find out whether they are bluffing or are perhaps bet/3-betting a strong hand or a draw.

Be careful when playing against rocks. A bet/3-bet with a draw is not exactly a move that an opponent who tends to be rather cautious likes to make. A simple bluff is more feasible, because a check raise is usually too expensive for him.

When the rock wants to bluff he usually ends up donking. But it should be clear that when a player like this donkbets you should deal with it very carefully. On the whole this will more often mean he's holding strong made hands rather than (semi-) bluffing. So you might want to make use of the Fold button in a situation like this.  

The calling station, on the other hand, donks whenever he feels like it. Don't make the mistake of attaching the above-mentioned ranges that you would associate with a regular player to a character like this. He'll often donk top pairs as well (it is a top pair, after all). This is why you will often see players like this adopt the line donkbet/call.  

There is no need to panic here as a top pair without a kicker usually belongs to his range.  But he will not fold a draw either; pot odds and equity are not this player's cup of tea.

The maniac bluffs a donk fairly regularly in comparison. But he also tends to donk/3-bet medium strength hands more often than a regular player.  

Usually the best way to play here is to follow the way ahead/way behind principle, insofar as you are holding a made hand. Loose bluff raises should be used sparingly, as a maniac doesn't like being pushed around and will more likely shove it off with a bluff than donkbet/fold his hand.

A player who is a mixture of LAG and maniac is different here, however. Although they overplay a lot, they will drive you mad with their aggressive style, because they appear to be thoughtful players. They will often check raise on the flop, which in turn will force you to re-assess the donkbet.

The minbet

The minbet is an annoying move used primarily by loose-passive players. Some call this "check with a chip". Instead of checking and allowing for a free card, they bet as little as possible and hope to put the brakes on the opponent's aggression this way. 

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (loose-passive)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , J
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) 8, 9, 2 (2 players)
UTG bets $0.25, Hero...

Advantages of the minbet:

• It very rarely ought to work against very weak opponents.
• The opponent has to raise (psychology). The probability of seeing the next street cheaply increases.
• The opponent cannot check behind.

Disadvantages of a minbet:

• It hardly builds fold equity.
• It hardly extracts value.
• You cannot protect strong hands.  

Why are these minbets used? These players usually make them when they are holding very weak hands or draws. By doing this they hope to get to the showdown without investing much money or want to see the next card cheaply, so that they might be able to complete their hand.  

There are exceptions to this rule, however. Sometimes a player wants to stop his opponent from checking behind. Many opponents start to bluff raise these little minbets, although they had originally planned to simply check behind.

This relates to one of the advantages of a minbet. Many opponents are not able, or don't want to be pushed out of the pot with such a small amount of money, but on the other hand hardly give themselves showdown value and cannot call. This is why they often end up raising, even though they hadn't planned to.

Sometimes this is what a minbetter is aiming for, and this is why you will often see the line minbet/3-bet. In this case you can very often assume you are up against the nuts.

First of all you need to treat the minbet like a check. If you raise here, then you in turn need to see this as a bet on your part. So there are no info raises here either, as you cannot play way ahead/way behind for a big blind. Under these circumstances the line raise/fold is therefore allowed. 

As mentioned earlier, it will only become problematic if you are holding nothing. If your plan is to give up on the flop and check behind, then you should not be tempted into making light raises. In most cases, you will be up against weak players here, so you will not be able to add a lot of fold equity to your calculations.

As long as your opponent doesn't do this too often, you will find that a minbet will also mean a fold. Otherwise just look at the odds and consider whether you can call profitably, as you might still have outs up your sleeve.

You shouldn't make use of minbets in your own game.

The minraise

The minraise is a very popular move. Instead of orienting oneself to the pot size when raising – as is usual in No Limit Hold'em – , only the lowest amount possible is raised. Unfortunately this doesn't change the fact that you will often be faced with a very difficult decision. 

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with 7 , 7
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) A, J, 8 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $1.60, UTG raises to $3.20, Hero...

Advantages of a minraise:

• Builds a reasonable fold equity despite the opponent's good odds.
• It ought to work very rarely because of this.
• You can take over the initiative relatively cheaply.

Disadvantages of a minraise:

• The opponent will have good odds for any kind of draw.
• You will be giving the opponent plenty of opportunity to 3-bet bluff.
• You will not be building the pot and won't be able to commit the opponent.

So a minraise can mean a lot of things. Depending on the opponent and the board you can suspect just about anything.

Starting with the nuts that your opponent will use to try and trap you and give you odds that you can't fold with. The ideal scenario for your opponent would be that you are holding a draw with which you are drawing dead, however. This is why your opponent wants to give you good odds.  

At the same time it is of course possible that your opponent is holding a draw and is playing it as a semi-bluff. On the one hand he wants to build fold equity without spending much money, while at the same time take over the initiative. This means he can barrel the turn and build fold equity at that point again, barrel the turn as long as he's hit something and extract value or use the initiative passively by only checking on the turn, although he should have logically barreled. Most opponents will then give away a a free card with a medium strength hand. 

If this happens frequently your opponent will have managed to get two cards for relatively little money and will still be holding the initative on the river, where he will either bluff bet or value bet, depending on whether he's improved his draw or not.

Besides semi-bluffs some players holding really catastrophic bluff hands that have not hit the board in the slightest might be involved too. They only want to build fold equity without investing a lot of money and might fire a small second barrel on the turn for fold equity.

Top pairs or middle pairs must also be mentioned. Even when most players holding these hands will not use an info raise, bad players will rather often.  But it's hard to tell with them whether they would want to raise/fold a hand like a middle pair or whether they might consider themselves such good players that they stay in the pot with a hand like that when you 3-bet the flop.  

As you can see, a minraise doesn't give you many clues as to what hand your opponent might be holding.

As you cannot glean any special reads from a minraise, you should just see it as a normal move. This means that if you're not holding anything, fold. 

Obviously you will need to look at the odds in detail. These would be 4.5:1 for you in the case of a raised pot and a 2/3 pot size continuation bet. There are many hands you can continue playing in this case. But pay more attention to draws. Especially shaky showdown hands such as middle pairs for example, which hardly have any outs, might give you many reverse implied odds as the game continues.   

Don't let yourself be trapped easily and find you're tempted to call. Even if the odds on the flop look great, you're still a long way from the showdown. So if you are not able to call any more barrels you should already fold on the flop, despite having reasonable odds.

Another alternative that has become a popular move among some players is the "click it back" principle. In this case you just fire a min-3-bet on top of the minraise. There are some advantages to a minraise, so many players like to turn this around and pull the fold equity back in their direction cheaply by making a min-3-bet. The min-check-raiser will obviously find himself in a bit of a squeeze now. 

In this situation it is very important that you know something about your opponent. If you are able to draw the conclusion that he is using the minraise as a trap or is holding a draw, using a click it back would be a waste of money.  

If you see he's often pure bluffing or raising for information then you can certainly give this move a go. The advantage is obvious, and it should work very rarely. Hands that are suitable for this are therefore those that you neither really want to 3-bet (and commit yourself, by doing so) nor are able to call, despite the tempting odds. 

Yet another alternative is obvious: if you see one of your opponents using this play regularly, then you should just check behind. This especially makes sense when you see your opponent using minraises more often than he could call. If you have a hand that is hard to continue playing with after a check/minraise, then don't bet, but move the action to the next street instead.

You can make up your own mind about whether you want to use minraises. They are quite a useful tool, but can only be recommended on rare occasions. You have seen the advantages and disadvantages. Whether and when you might have spots which give you an opportunity to try them out is entirely up to you. 

As a regular player you will have the balancing problem however. This is exactly why a minraise is not so profitable in the long term, as you are giving up too many advantages of a normal raise (less fold equity, less fold protection, smaller pot..).

So you might want to just use a move like this when you are playing against a player who gives you nothing to balance. Especially against weak players it makes sense to use a minraise when you have a monster hand. Loose-passive players will often manage to call when there are good odds like these, aggressive players might sometimes feel like using a 3-bet bluff.    

Float turn out of position

You should know what a float is. You can see the exact definition in the box on the right.

Floats come in many forms. This is also often the case with semi-bluffs besides bluffs. The standard example of a float is a bet on the turn in position after an opponent has checked. But this move can also be made out of position.    

Our main focus is on the move though, not on the pure intention to bluff. This is why this move doesn't always have to come from a weak hand that wants to build fold equity. According to the definition this wouldn't be a float in the true sense anyhow, but just a normal turn bet (donkbet). But we will keep this description for the following examples.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , J
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) T, 8, 2 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) 9 (2 players)
UTG bets $4.00, Hero...

Advantages of a float on the Turn OOP:

• It is usually cheaper than a check raise on the flop.
• Take-over of initiative.
• The opponent will have difficulty calling with a draw because of the flop equity in comparison.

Disadvantages of a float on the turn OOP:

• A check raise on the flop gives you more protection. 
• A check raise on the turn would also give you more protection or allow you to build the pot up. It also creates more fold equity.
• You are giving the opponent the option to call or bluff you out of the pot in position, if you have nothing to show for yourself.

Per definition a float is a bluff, which of course doesn't necessarily mean that this line is always equal to a bluff. It can also be completed as a value line.

Especially weak players (loose-passive) use this line as a value line. There is no tricky move associated with this, very often they just don't know how to play it any differently.

Passive players often lack the basic knowledge needed for a check raise. For this reason they are often not able to raise on the flop with strong hands ("he'll fold everything then...") or check raise on the turn ("If I check, then surely he will check too..").  

As a consequence this player usually has no other choice but to lead the turn, i.e. take over the initiative by donkbetting.

For this reason exactly you need to take care here: Don't interpret this move as a bluff too often, because it is more likely a value line (for lack of an alternative), especially with loose-passive players. 

If you want to implement this you obviously need to have managed to get some reads on your opponent. How often do they donk the turn and which hands do they use for this? Is it still worth protecting your own hand? Are you willing to call a push after you've raised? Or is pot control a more suitable strategy for you? 

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (loose-passive)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , J
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) T, 8, 2 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) 9 (2 players)
UTG bets $4.00, Hero...

If you're playing against a loose-passive player the first thing you need to ask yourself is whether you have enough implied odds to call your open-ended straight draw plus overcards profitably.

You should avoid a semi-bluff raise when you're playing against this kind of player. Not only might the fold equity be small, even if you're playing against weak hands, but you will also often find you're playing against a very strong hand that wants to extract value.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (loose-passive)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , J
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) T, 8, 2 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) A (2 players)
UTG bets $4.00, Hero...

In this case not much has changed. You can't necessarily assume these are bluffs or semi-bluffs here, so you could make a profitable raise to protect your hand.

It is also not entirely out of the question that your opponent bet/calls on the turn with AQ. It could get very expensive for you if you give him draws and protect here. If it really goes all-in here it would look pretty bad for you. That's why a call would be the best alternative.  

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (loose-passive)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , J
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) T, 8, 2 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) 3 (2 players)
UTG bets $4.00, Hero...

You don't have many more outs left, and you can hardly give yourself fold equity on a bluff raise. There is also hardly any leeway for Hero calls with ace high here, especially because you still need to get through another street. That's why you should fold here.

If you're playing against an aggressive player things might look different.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (Maniac)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , K
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero raises to $3.00, 2 folds, UTG calls $3.00

Flop: ($6.35) A, 5, 6 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $4.25, UTG calls $4.25

Turn: ($14.85) 7 (2 players)
UTG bets $8.00, Hero raises All-in

This is a different kind of example: a 3-bet pot with a much higher starting pot on the turn. This is just to illustrate that quite a few bluffs could be around. If you consider that your opponent is only investing $8 to win $14.75, then you know that this plan only has to work rarely and that you'll have to make a very difficult decision here if you're not holding Ax. 

If you want to make use of floats OOP yourself then you will have a balancing problem here again. If you use it as a float in the sense of a bluff, then you'll have to do this with hands that you want to extract value with. In other words: If you often play donkbet/fold on the turn, then you should also be able to adopt the line donkbet/push on the turn. 

Example 16 should illustrate that it is also possible in 3-bet pots to win big pots with little money. It is important to realize what hands your opponent might be holding to use plays like that and what his intentions might be. It is certainly not a bad idea to stick to your standard play and maybe use your reads to check raise profitably on one of the streets (flop/turn). 

Float river out of position (with/without turn action)

A float OOP can also occur on the river of course. There are mainly two scenarios in this case: Was there action on the turn or not?

The difference between the two is pretty straightforward. Although a float on the river after previous turn action (Example 17) would mean great strength in itself, because of the considerable pot inflation, a float on the river after a check behind on the turn (Example 18) cannot necessarily be considered strong, because the passive turn play would have induced a bluff often enough.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with T , T
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) 3, 7, 9 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) 9 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $4.50, UTG calls $4.50

River: ($15.85) 8 (2 players)
UTG bets $10.00, Hero...

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with T , T
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) 3, 7, 9 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) 9 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero checks

River: ($6.85) 8 (2 players)
UTG bets $5.00, Hero...

The advantages and disadvantages are similar to those of the turn play. Value and bluff lines vary here.

The main difference is obvious: A semi-bluff is no longer possible. You will either be ahead or behind and your opponent will now either try to get value from a worse hand, or get a better hand to fold. 

What also becomes clear here is that you'll be confronted with an easier decision in Example 18 because of the more passive turn play. So the play you see in Example 17 is defined as a real float.

Particularly loose-passive players think, they have massive fold equity in this situation and start betting their busted draws. The fact that he could also still get the nuts should be evident. 

Especially on drawy boards there are two different possible scenarios: The draw may come or it may not.  

So if a draw does come and a more passive player pushes, then you'll have to fold in most cases. A top pair will no longer be enough here. 

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , K
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) 3, 7, A (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $2.00, UTG calls $2.00

Turn: ($6.85) 8 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $4.50, UTG calls $4.50

River: ($15.85) 4 (2 players)
UTG bets $10.00, Hero...

This is what the classic line would look like when a more loose-passive player has a flush draw. The flush comes and you actually beat the hands that are still needed in the end. A bluff is rather unlikely here: what hand would your opponent play in this way (what kind of hand could he turn into a bluff)?

This can only be based on your reads and stats. If you're ahead, you should call (or raise, if possible), if you're behind, you should obviously fold (you don't have what it takes for a bluff raise that would build fold equity).

It gets a little more complicated here. The disadvantage is quite obvious: the pot is big, your bet is practically committing you. What hand do you play passive until the river, where you then turn it into a bluff out of position?

This is very rarely the case, so your possibilities are more likely going to be a river bet, insofar as there was no action on the turn. In this case you can still expect to get enough fold equity, although your opponent has of course often checked behind on the turn for pot control and will probably make a looser call on your river bet.

For this reason it can rarely be recommended that you play draws out of position. You will usually not have enough leeway for a bluff. But you can make small value bets on the river, as your opponent will make a relatively loose call, as mentioned earlier. This is especially good for situations where draws had been possible but did not materialize. 

Small turn floats

Small turn floats are a popular weapon among players who are generally more passive. They will take advantage of a weakness on your part and will try to steal the pot for as little money as possible (they don't like expensive bluffs).

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is CO with 4 , 5
2 folds, Hero raises to $1.00, BU calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) 3, 7, Q (2 players)
Hero bets $1.60, BU calls $1.60

Turn: ($5.55) J (2 players)
Hero checks, BU bets $1.25, Hero...

The advantages and disadvantages are similar to those of a minbet. What is decisive here is that these opponents bet, even though they could get a free card. Especially in the case of loose-passive players this does not necessarily mean a draw, as they would usually play this passive and would be happy to get a free card. 

Unfortunately you cannot just choose between nuts or nothing. Of course there will be some pure bluffs around sometimes, as well as very strong hands. But medium strength hands like middle pairs are also bet in such cases. In the above example it would not be surprising if your opponent would have 87o here. In most cases he won't know whether he is betting for value or is on a bluff himself.

As you will more likely be confronted with weak players in these kinds of situations in the game, you will need to clarify a fundamental point of your game.

When do you contibet and when do you fire the 2nd barrel? This turn play is deeply engrained in most players and you'll end up being stuck. As you can see in the example above, you can't do anything about bets like these. A bluff-check raise won't help you much against a player like this either. So all that remains is a check/fold, but then in the long term your opponent might believe that he can get away with anything and will make even looser calls pre-flop and on the flop in the future, because he thinks he will often be able to drive you out of the pot on the turn for little money. 

For this reason you should examine carefully whether it's really worth making a continuation bet, and whether your opponent would fold to this often enough. Many players don't fold on the flop so much - they fold much more often on the turn though. You need to take this into account and consider whether it might not be wise to not contibet at all or to shoot two barrels. Even against loose-passive players you won't really have any other choice here.

For this it is very important that you look at stats like fold to contibet flop, fold to contibet turn or the turn AF.

The following sample stats refer to protection against floats in general of course, not just to minfloats made by loose-passive players.

(Obvious) Examples: 

• "Fold to contibet flop" : 25%; "Fold to contibet turn" : 75% => Barrel twice
• "Fold to contibet flop" : 25%; "Fold to contibet turn" : 25% => Don't barrel at all
  
• "Fold to contibet flop" : 75%; "Fold to contibet turn" : 75% => Barrel twice
• "Fold to contibet flop" : 75%; "Fold to contibet turn" : 25% => Bet flop, c/f turn

As is the case with a minbet, a minfloat doesn't present any real advantages. When you float you want to build fold equity. The barrel cannot be too small for this, regardless of whether you're floating with air or a semi-bluff draw.

Of course you will bet your made hands too in other cases. You want to extract value with these and protect in many cases too. This is why you should use your floats like normal bets (recommended value: 2/3 pot size).

River floats in position

With this play you can define the river bet as a simple bluff bet or value bet. Not only the situation on the river is decisive, but also the situation on the turn when you decide not to float and move the action to the river.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with 7 , 6
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) 9, 8, 3 (2 players)
UTG bets $1.60, Hero calls $1.60

Turn: ($5.55) 2 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero checks

River: ($5.55) 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $3.50

The advantage of this line is that you'll not only get a free card by checking behind on the turn, but you'll also be keeping the pot small so that you can act on the river. If you hit something you can continue to extract value in position, without a hit you can use your position and get a better hand to fold. 

So where is the advantage of this compared to a float on the turn? A float is also tempting here. You will often take the pot and also have an open-ended straight draw. You know that the more outs you have up your sleeve, the better the floats are.    

Checking behind makes most sense when you're having a hard time assessing your opponent and actually often think he will try to check raise. This is often the case, especially with more aggressive players. If you see you have very low fold equity then a semi-bluff won't make much sense either.

Especially when playing against poker-faced players like maniacs, who sometimes make the funniest moves, any information you can get is worth something. If the turn check is followed by the river check you will have more information to go by. Because you haven't hit anything, you are almost forced to bet in the above-mentioned example, as you have absolutely no showdown value with a 7-high. 

This kind of play not only makes sense against maniacs and LAGs, but also against loose-passive players. The more information you have about your opponent's betting behaviour, the higher you can guess the fold equity on the turn will be, and the more a turn-float would make sense. 

Delayed continuation bet

The delayed continuation bet is a bet you don't make on the flop as a pre-flop aggressor, but on one of the streets thereafter.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , J
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 1 fold, BB calls $1.25, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($3.85) 4, 5, 7 (3 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($3.85) K (3 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets $2.75

There are a lot of reasons why you might make a delayed continuation bet. In the example above you are taking advantage of a scare card. Both players check on the flop, but this doesn't mean much. The board is not exactly perfect for a continuation bet, that's why you give yourself a free card. You will have not improved your hand with the king, but now you have an excellent opportunity to convince the other players that you're holding Kx and will get a number of better hands to fold. 

Here is a summary of reasons why you might want to make a delayed continuation bet:

• You decide that a continuation bet on the flop would not be worthwhile.
• You want to get yourself a free card in position. 
• You have managed to get more information on the strength of Villain's hand on the turn.
• This happens when your opponent checks behind on the flop if we are out of position.
• Your opponent has also checked the turn after the flop if we are in position. 
• You pick up a scare card on the turn which you can put to good use.
• You get a draw on the turn, but hardly have showdown value. You do have enough fold equity though.

Another advantage is pot control. Because your first bet is on the turn, there are still two streets to get through. This means balancing isn't difficult either, because particularly hands like weak top pairs can also be checked for pot control.    

It's not about bluffing with a delayed continuation bet here, but about keeping the pot small and giving your opponents reasons to bluff or tempt them into making light value bets.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with A , 5
UTG calls $0.25, 2 folds, Hero raises to $1.25, 2 folds, UTG calls $1.25

Flop: ($2.85) J, 6, A (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($2.85) 4 (2 players)
UTG bets $3.00, Hero calls $3.00

River: ($8.85) 2 (2 players)
UTG bets $6.00, Hero calls $6.00

In this case many opponents will think, they have massive fold equity and will bluff with a lot of hands, but might also start to bet for value with Jx, etc.  What is decisive here is that you see this play against a particular opponent as +EV. This is especially the case when playing against very aggressive players, who, although they like to bluff and place light value bets, do not call loose.

The problem on the flop here is that if your opponent does not make a loose call it will be a very marginal value bet, because a check raise here would not withstand the pressure. This is why a check behind is a good move here generally.  

Check behind flop / raise turn

As a final point we want to show you a special situation. Many of your opponents will of course use the delayed continuation bet. You can assume that it will serve to iinduce more bluffs and improve pot control.

There are many boards where a pre-flop aggressor's check makes little sense. This means ace and king-high flops in the first instance. They are ideal for contibetting, but are rarely played as check/fold. If a board like this is checked, it often means the player has a hand that he wants to play check/call for pot control or has a very strong hand that he wants to check raise. 

If you also check behind on the flop you will often get a delayed continuation bet on the turn. Raising is a great thing to do here. You will build massive fold equity here and will give your opponent the spot that he wanted to avoid. 

The biggest advantage: You know exactly where you stand here, because if your opponent just pushes now then it will be clear what he wanted to try to do on the flop. You are walking into a monster here. In the other cases he will almost always have to fold, because if he didn't want to bet on the flop already, he can hardly play bet/call on the turn. He will then not only give you a free card on the river, but will also leave the field totally open for you and also give you the possibility to drive his hand out of the pot if you make a strong bet.     

What hands are suitable for this? Besides complete air it is also a good idea to play with draws. Although the play on the turn would also be bet/fold with a normal draw (8-12 outer), it will not change anything if you bet on the flop and risk a hard check raise. With a draw you also have the advantage that you can see the turn for free and get a free card that way.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with 7 , 8
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) 4, J, K (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($2.35) 2 (2 players)
UTG bets $1.50, Hero raises to $5.00

The advantages of this play:

• Villain will rarely check/fold a flop like this.
• Many hands will bet on the turn. You can still pocket the money from that bet.
• The fold equity is considerably higher because of the turn raise than it would be with a bet on the flop.
• You get a free card on the turn.
• You can easily categorize Villain's range as nuts or nothing here and can therefore play raise/fold without the need to worry.

And of course your opponent will have a hard time guessing your hand. You could also slowplay a set. A check behind on the flop doesn't need to be read as great weakness afterall. Remember Example 4 here: 

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (Regular)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with Q , J
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) J, T, 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets $1.60, UTG raises to $6.00, Hero folds

Also in this case a better line might be: 

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25) (Regular)
MP ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is Button with Q , J
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero calls $1.00, 2 folds

Flop: ($2.35) J, T, 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($2.35) 4 (2 players)
UTG bets $1.60, Hero calls $1.60

River: ($5.55) 5 (2 players)
UTG bets $3.00, Hero calls $3.00

Summary

You have seen a number of examples of unusual bets and lines today.

• What is your opponent trying to attain with these?
• What are you aiming for?
• Should you also make use of moves like these?

For every spot you should consider what would be the best play and deviate from standard lines more often, if you think that a different style of play would have a much higher EV for the hand in question. Balancing becomes less important then, but as we explained in many of the examples, you can also use these plays with different hand categories and so you will be balancing almost everything in the end.

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