The Turn card is often the most critical card in every hand, therefore playing the River is usually fairly straightforward. The key to playing the River is the understanding of what your hand is worth. And to do this, it’s wise to ask yourself three basic questions before you bet in the River.
If you’re bluffing, there’s only one way you can win the pot, and that is to bet on River. If you’re sure that your hand isn’t good, your betting decision comes down to your expectations about whether or not your bluff is going to work. If you believe you can grab the pot, go get it and make that bluff! River bluff! Be a man! But if you think it won’t work, then check and concede the hand.
In other words, is there any hand, worse than mine, that my opponent has, that he will also call with? If you aren’t bluffing, you have to figure out if your opponent has a hand that is worse than yours, and that he’s nonetheless still willing to play with.
For example, let’s suppose you’re holding the Queen and Ten of Hearts, and the board has the King of Hearts, Eight of Hearts, and Queen of Diamonds. Basically, you flopped the second pair on a flush draw. Now, say, a Three and a Nine come off, and you didn’t make Two Pair. You didn’t make a Flush either, which means now you’re holding the second pair with a Ten kicker. It’s not great, but… Your opponent checks, and now you should decide whether to value bet. With the second pair, you’re certainly not bluffing, and your hand may actually be the best. It’s about 50/50 here. The question is: Is there a hand that is worse than yours that can call your bet; since there’s are very few cards your opponent could be holding that are worthy of calling but that aren’t necessarily worth raising? Betting here doesn’t really get you anywhere. And if, for whatever reason, your hand is beaten, the betting here will cost you money too. On this occasion, since betting doesn’t add any value for you, your best play is to check your hand on the River, and hope your pair holds up. But what if your opponent is holding Jack, Ten and a Nine? This may demonstrate he’s willing to check/raise you.
This question is about whether you should check down on the River. This is something poker players usually want to consider when they have a top pair of any other marginal hand; since you would likely have to fold to a raise from your opponent. Let’s take a look at an example.
Say, you have Ace and Nine, and the board is Ace, Ten, Eight, Seven, Deuce. If you bet, there’s no logical hand that will just call, since even Ace Jack has you beat! That means either your opponent will fold or you’ll get raised and have to fold your hand. Maybe a value bet here isn’t so bad: you can beat a Six, and an Ace Four, and an Ace Five, and Ace Three. You can beat a lot of Tens as well, but it’s still a no-win situation. There’s not much you can overcome. There won’t be any more money than what’s already in the pot, and your opponent might raise you off of your hand by a bluff or a hand that has you beat. So, checking your hand down is the smartest play you can make in the spot.
Also, this is the same problem you face when you open the action on the turn. Betting won’t bring you any more money, and you lose the whole pot when you’re check/raised or bluffed. And, in case of facing a better hand, you lose money you could have saved by just checking your hand down.
By following these hints, you can minimize your poker losses on the River, by not making unnecessary bets in cases when it won’t bring you any more money. We’ve only listed the basic situations here, but it’s more than enough to develop a line of thought to help you determine whether or not it’s practical to bet on the River.
We live in a world where everything is more or less connected to Artificial Intelligence products. From Siri helping you in your everyday tasks and Tesla autopilot cars to facial recognition of your friends on photos — AI has entered every sphere of our lives. And of course, the gaming industry is not an exception; […]
Who is Isildur1? Why is Fedor Holz that much successful? Why is Dan Bilzerian famous? Why is Phil Ivey so popular? Successful gamblers come from all walks of life. They need not resemble each other in their perception of the world or in their characteristics. In fact, they could be complete opposites of each other. […]
The existence of addictive behaviors is still a controversial topic among many experts. While some argue that addiction is something that some people are genetically predisposed to, others don’t recognize that pathological gamblers are people with genuine behavioral addictions; they think this is simply a question of bad habits. Nevertheless, when looking at the characteristics […]
There’s no doubt that poker is the most thrilling gambling game the world has ever known. Every year, around 40 million regular players over the globe gather round the circuits to play Hold’em, 5-Card Stud, High/Low Chicago, and other varieties of the game. The worldwide poker lover’s fan club is constantly increasing, but not many […]
On Monday September 14, MGM announced that it plans to open its first smoke-free casino at the end of September, when Park MGM will finally reopen its venues to players and tourists. The resort comprises around 2,990 rooms and various restaurants, and it’s set to be reopened on September 30. The venue has been closed […]
Online gambling has undoubtedly taken a place of true supremacy over the casino industry during the pandemic. And the reason for that is quite clear: online casinos are more accessible, and you can always count on some encouragement from the casino administration to help you boost your game. However, this digital revolution has only been […]
The large selection of online gambling sites out there can make players somewhat puzzled, and give them a feeling of uncertainty about making the right choice of casino. Each online gambling venue offers its own conditions, games, and various bonuses, of course; but the most important thing is the reliability of the casino and the […]
To be or not to be? This question is bothering thousands of players out there, who are all busy contemplating their playing strategies. “Should I bet more?” Or, “is it all about luck?” These are just some of the many questions that have been bothering people who are keen on casino games; and quite honestly, […]