Different Types of Bets

Value Bet

Objective

Get money into the pot without scaring our opponents off

Bet Range

Half the size of Pot

A Value bet is where we believe that we have the best hand, and we want to get increase the size of the pot that we are about to win. The problem we face here is, we want to get as much money into the pot as we can, but we also don’t want to bet too much that our opponent gets scared off and folds. So we are trying to find the maximum bet that we can make that our opponent will call. Now this is very subjective depending on the opponent and other factors, but as a general guide a Value bet should be about ½ the size of the pot. This is small enough to tempt an opponent who is losing to you to carry on in the hand, and also is big enough to protect your hand against opponents who are on draws that could overtake your hand Betting ½ the size of the pot is only giving your opponent Pot Odds of 3 to 1 so if an opponent on a drawing hand calls then he would be making a mistake as he wouldn’t have the odds to chase most drawing hands.

Continuation Bet

Objective

Maintain the perception of Strength

Bet Range

Half the size of Pot

A Continuation bet is used only when we took the lead in the betting before the flop by making a raise. The flop comes down and completely misses our hand. So were now sitting there with a hand that has missed the flop, however we have already shown strength to our opponents and they don’t know that we have missed the flop. We have the option here of making a Continuation bet, where we maintain the perception of strength that we have given our opponents before the flop. What were hoping to do here is pick up the pot right here without any further action. The chances are that our opponents have also missed the flop, and this show of strength before the flop followed by a continuation of that perception of strength after the flop may force your opponent to fold. A Continuation bet should be about ½ the size of the Pot, the size of this type of bet is very important. A Bet of ½ the size of the pot gives the following benefits: You’re not committing too many chips to the pot, so if your opponent has actually hit something and calls or raises your bet you can still get away from the hand without too much damage. You’re only giving your opponent Pot Odds of 3 to 1 which is not great odds for him to play on with most drawing hands. So if your opponent has also missed the flop the chances are a continuation bet will chase them out of the pot, if your opponent has hit something on the flop then you are able to get away from the hand without committing too many chips to the pot.

Bet Range

One Third the size of Pot

A Probe bet is similar to a continuation bet but has a slight difference. In this situation your opponent has taken the lead in the betting before the flop and then after the flop he has not bet. Now this creates a problem for you because you are now getting mixed signals from your opponent, he has shown strength before the flop, and now has shown weakness after the flop. There are a few possible reasons why your opponent may have done this: Your opponent has missed the flop and doesn’t want to commit any further chips to the pot Your opponent has hit a big hand on the flop and is now trying to slowplay or trap you You opponent has hit a medium strength hand on the flop and is scared that you may have hit a higher hand than him So we need to decide whether the weakness our opponent has shown is genuine or whether it is a trap. To make this decision we use a Probe bet, which get it’s name from it’s objecting, we are probing for information from our opponent. This is a bet of about a third of the pot. A Probe bet has two objectives: If your opponent is genuinely weak then this bet could win the pot right now We force our opponent to make a play so we can gain some information about our opponents hand to help us assess what our opponent is up to. If we were not to make a probe bet at this point not only would we lose the chance to take the pot there and then, but we would also go into the Turn card having little idea of what our opponent is holding.

Overbet

Objective

Put maximum pressure on your opponent to make a mistake

Bet Range

1x to 2x the Pot

An overbet is just as it sounds, it’s where you make an oversized bet in order to put maximum pressure on your opponent in the hope that he makes a bad decision. An overbet can be used in two situations: In a bluff attempt – we are trying to take the pot and want to make it very expensive for our opponent to try and call out our bluff – in this situation we may be able to force out opponents who are only holding marginal hands. In an attempt to build up the pot – if we are playing a particularly loose player or we have recently attempted a number of bluffs which our opponents have seen we may overbet the pot in the hope of getting a call – Our opponents may call thinking we are attempting another bluff.

All in Bet

Objective

Put maximum pressure on your opponent to make a mistake

Bet Range

All your chips

This is the maximum bet you can make and hence gives your opponent a very tricky dilemma. It’s very similar to an Overbet but it is a more risky move due to the amount of chips you are committing to the pot and should only be used in certain situations. You should always be aware if you are Pot Committed in a particular hand. Being pot committed means that you have so many chips already committed into the pot compared to your remaining balance that you can’t really fold to any bet. In this situation it is always better to make the first move and go All-In rather than letting your opponent make a bet that puts you all in. Why's this? Because if you make the first move you have an additional way to win the pot, as you might force your opponent to fold, where as if you just call his bet putting you all in, you will have to beat him to win the pot. The All-In bet is used a lot more in Tournaments rather than Cash games, so at the moment this bet should have very limited use in your strategy.