Betting Patterns: Reveal Your Opponents'
Hands
Most people have seen a magic trick or two in their lives.
Remember the one where the magician can guess what card you're
holding in your hand? Wouldn't we all like to perform that feat in
poker? Well, this article won't assist you in developing psychic
powers, but it will reveal a very valuable tip to help you determine
what an opponent is holding.
Betting patterns are the biggest tell in online play and if you
discover that and the type of player you're up against, you can
remove the mystery from their hand.
Putting the Puzzle Together
You must first put together the pieces that form the betting
pattern puzzle of a player. You have to determine what kind of
player he is and the kind of betting pattern he follows before you
can start applying betting patterns.
The best way to fit the pieces together is to take it easy the
first five or ten hands and watch other players show down a few
hands. If a player doesn't show them down, just watch the way he
likes to bet and make predictions about his hand. Eventually you'll
get vibes on the way he likes to play certain hands.
There are many types of betting patterns that you may pick up on,
but the basic ones are:
- Raise, Bet, Check - The player raises pre-flop. He bets the
flop. Then he checks the turn.
- Call, Check-Call, Raise - The player calls pre-flop. He
checks the flop and calls an opponent's bet. Then he raises the
turn.
- All Check-Raises
Raise, Bet, Check
When you think of this pattern, imagine the hand ace-king missing
the flop. For example, most people with two un-paired high
cards, such as ace-king, will always bet the flop even if they
hold nothing. This is one of the biggest signs of weakness you
will witness at the poker table. When an opponent does this, I
immediately put him on ace-king and raise the turn with most
hands. Occasionally this read will be wrong, but this is a
typical ace-king pattern that most mediocre to advanced players
use.
Call, Check-Call, Raise
This pattern is usually one of strength. When
someone check-calls and then shows strength on either the river or
the turn, I almost always fold.
Imagine that he has a drawing hand. The key to putting him on a
draw is evaluating the flop, turn, and river. If the flop is
two-suited and the player check-calls, then assume he's on either a
draw or low pair. If the turn comes the same suit as the flop and he
raises, put him on a draw. It's an easy pattern that most good
players will detect.
All Check-Raises
When an opponent check-raises you, I would say 90% of the time
you're beat. Most opponents just aren't skilled enough to try a
check-raise bluff. In fact, most players don't even think about
trying it. I always fold to check-raises unless I have the nuts. |
