Theory - Deconstructing when to check-raise bluff as the preflop caller, button vs blind - Level 1
Posted by Michael Gazonda
Posted by
Michael Gazonda
posted in
Mid Stakes
Theory - Deconstructing when to check-raise bluff as the preflop caller, button vs blind - Level 1
How does that work?
Ok, I'll try to explain. First, I'm going to make some assumptions. The assumptions (very basic), are that we're against a winning reg, we're a winning reg ourself, and our opponent knows that. The situation gets more complicated the more we know about our opponent, and the more they know about us... but this is a good place to start.
So, my first thoughts are that there are specific holdings that match the board that can make for a good spot to check-raise. This could be a hand for value, generally a "nut" hand at this point, although that's used loosely and what a nut hand in this spot actually is can change based on a lot of different factors. Most of my experience is at Full Ring NLHE, and on a board like Kh 5d 6d, the "nut" hands would often be top two or better. Against some opponents this could be tighter - like 55+, or even 66+. Against others, this could go down to hands like KQ/KJ (or farther, especially with very aggressive dynamics). And then there are times where we can check-raise for value without a nut hand with something like TT... that's going to be past what I'm talking about here for now though, and I'm going to stick with the assumption that if we're check-raising for value, it's with what we consider to be a nut hand.
Ok, so if we want to check-raise for value with nut hands, then it seems like the best hands to bluff with are going to be hands that can make a nut hand. This could actually be "the nuts", or it could be two pair, or it could be a low flush... I'm not going to get into that here, that's up to your own discretion at this point. Also, backdoor draws to the nuts are often looked at as good places to raise as a bluff because there are a lot of turn cards that will give us a draw to the nut hand and we can continue being aggressive.
Recap - at this point, we're check-raising for value with nut hands, and for bluffs with draws to the nuts.
What about the board itself? Are there ways to determine what boards are better to check-raise bluff on? What makes one board better to do it on than others? If we check-raise bluff with air, what are we doing on future streets?
Going back to the board I mentioned, Kh 5d 6d, there are a lot of good things going on here that can make this a spot to check-raise bluff with air. First, we're against a button open, who is very likely to be very wide. Next, this is a board that many regs will cbet a very high percentage of their air with. A couple more points here is that our opponent is also likely to not have a hand they can easily continue with to our raise. Much of their range will consist of unpaired hands that don't have a draw. Even hands that make a pair are put in a really difficult situation - their hand is already a bluff catcher, they're unlikely to improve, and there's two more streets to play. Also, it's likely that our perceived range has a bunch of strong hands/strong draws that won't be folding to any amount of pressure.
So, if we see the spot we're in as a good spot to bluff-raise, and we get called, what are we doing on the turn?
Next assumption - our perceived range after we get called is going to be very heavily weighted towards nut hands, and draws to the nuts.
This means, the best cards to continue on are cards that make this range stronger. I'm thinking a diamond, a 4 , or a 9 would be the Tier 1 bluffing cards. After that, you could look for cards that complete gutshots. An ace can also be scary, as it's likely we can have the nut flush draw. Against some opponents you may want to tighten up, and against some you may want to bluff more often.
So, what other things are going on that can make this spot a good/bad spot to bluff at? Are there spots that might look similar at first glance, but aren't as good to bluff? Why? What are we doing on the river if we get called again? How is this spot different at 6-max or heads-up compared to full ring? How will this spot change over time?
Loading 8 Comments...
Be the first to add a comment
You must upgrade your account to leave a comment.
This thread has been locked. No further comments can be added.