Continuation Betting

In Texas Holdem, many times aggressive poker is winning poker. When you make a raise pre-flop, you want to stay in control of the hand that you are in. One way to do this is using what is known as a continuation bet. A continuation bet is a bet that is made on the flop after you have made a pre-flop raise. It is used to show continued strength in a hand. Let’s take a look at an example.

You are in late position and look down to A-10 suited. The action folds around to you and you make a raise to try and take the pot down. Instead of getting re-raised, an opponent just calls the raise. In Texas Holdem, players will miss the flop more often than they connect with it. As a result, after the flop, if the action is checked to you, then in order to keep control of the hand, a continuation bet is prudent.

The way that this bet is commonly successful is that when you raise pre-flop, depending on your image, most players will put you on either a pocket pair or strong ace. If an ace hits the flop and they miss, they will typically fold to a bet on the flop. Also, if the board comes ragged and you bet out, many times they will assume you have an overpair or you hit a set and will fold.

There are a couple of risks to this type of play. First, if there are multiple players in the hand pre-flop, then making a continuation bet when you miss the flop can be a risky play. If the board comes with a pair or with a potential draw, the players will likely call you bet to chase their draw or slow play a made hand.

Another problem comes with table image. If you have a loose image at the table, then a continuation bet may not be as effective. A tight-aggressive or other type of tight image is good to use a continuation bet. If you are the type of player that everyone is calling Gus Hansen Jr, then you may want to use a continuation bet much more sparingly.

Be sure to also mix up how you use continuation bets. Some people fall into a trap of making a continuation bet with nothing and slow play their hand when they hit. If you do this, players will catch on and will eventually punish your poor play.

Finally, if the continuation bet does not work on the flop, you need to evaluate the hand and determine why the player called your bet. Did they hit the flop with a small pair and now have a set? Do they have a draw? Are they calling with the hopes to take the pot away on the turn? Evaluate the hand and determine the best course after the flop.

Continuation betting is not an exact science, but in many games this play will take down pots to grow your stack. Use this move as another weapon in your arsenal and watch your results improve. Here is a site that we recommend you to visit, poker guide.

Popularity: 1% [?]