So what do I do?
Remember, I’m sitting on 5-6 of diamonds. The board reads: 4d, 9s, 7d. And Josh, who made a strong pre-flop raise, just bet $20 after the flop. Here’s the answer…I RAISE. Not some wimpy raise either; I raise him $40 more to play.
Most players would NEVER think to raise in this situation, but here’s what I’ve done:
1. I’ve TAKEN CONTROL of the hand and bought myself a FREE CARD when it matters most. You see, if Josh calls the $40 raise, when the turn hits he’ll CHECK to me. (Remember what I said at the beginning?)
That means I get to see the turn and river for a total of $40 more, which is a BARGAIN compared to what Josh’s next bet would have cost me.
2. I’m representing possible trips. Josh now has to wonder whether I called his pre-flop raise with a low pocket pair and just caught trips on the flop. Or I could be sitting on a high pocket pair and I’m not “phased” by the flop.
3. I’ve raised the stakes of the hand in MY favor…not his. You see, if I just call Josh’s bets and then hit a 8 of diamonds on the turn, what will happen?
Well, Josh will SEE the three diamonds and the straight possibility, and he probably won’t make any more huge bets or call any huge bets from me.
This way, I’ve raised the stakes $40, which increases MY CHANCES at winning an even bigger pot than if I had just called. Make sense?
And last but not least…
4. I’ve given myself a way to WIN even if I don’t catch the straight or flush. Now I get to see Josh’s reaction to my $40 raise. If I sense weakness, I may decide to BLUFF and buy this pot if I don’t catch my flush or straight.
If I only call Josh’s bets the whole way, he wouldn‚Äôt fall for this type of bluff. But my raise of $40 will sure get him thinking.
OKAY, BACK TO THE HAND…
Josh shuffles his chips around for a moment, and looks back down at his cards. It turns out he’s holding an A9; so he’s got top pair with the kicker. A good hand, but not a monster by any means.
He calls.
The next card comes out. Queen of spades. No help.
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