When you get in to deep, the rivers down and you have nothing....Always remember to KNOW the bet patterns of the other players. Most people find themselves pinched in a situation where they have a pocket Face cards and get nothing on the flop or river and your already $500 invested. In these situations if I feel like nobody is holding a strong hand I will bet an average amount of money based on what the bets have been like at the table. If someone re-raises me, I will take that person all in. 9/10 this has worked out for me and ended up winning me a decent pot with absolutely nothing. Just remember bluffing is also a good way to screw yourself 9/10, stick to betting on cards you do have unless your confident you can "play" the other people at the table.

HAPPY GAMBLING

yea, bluffing and myself do not go all that well, was waiting on the river. Missed it, had 1000 invested and went all in ( 3000 more ) and i got called, lost miserably .


but, its only play money.. wouldnt be good if you only won

__________________
conrad@talkpoker.org
for questions and comments

Betting or raising table minimum is a good way to get a read on your opponents cards even if you're pot commited. I suggest if you're not the shortstack or even if you're shortstacked in a winner take all scenario (you still get 0 for 2nd place) bet or raise the minimum. Quick calls and re-raises could either mean that they are doing the same or are still reliant on your own actions to see what kind of cards you have.

Playing a bluff is always very difficult because the are a lot of things to thinking about: position, chips, mental advantage or not, hand for sure.

If i can giving an advice is playing semi-bluff because if you cards come of you can do a lot of degaust.

wow, very bad tactic in my opinion (the way you're doing it). If you raise them on the river, you have nothing and then they RE-raise you, they're going to have you beat in most cases. In situations such as these, where someones been betting aggresively all night, it's still not worth it! They might have a tiny pair which would still bet you're high card! Sometimes in poker, it is the hands you let go, even when you're priced in that allow you to win or save money.

Bluffing in Texas Holdem

"You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time." - Abraham Lincoln

One element of poker is deception. Bluffing is the quintessential trick in hold em poker. Of course, the reasoning for a bluff is to deceive the other players into thinking you have a better hand when you actually do not. For a bluff to work, you need the other players to think you actually have that better hand. Many beginning poker players love this idea of bluffing and often misuse it. The value of the bluff increases under certain general circumstances that often have a lot to do with information you assume about the other players. This vagueness makes it difficult to give definitive reasons or places to bluff. Some less generalized times to bluff and some advice are given below. The bottom of the page gives some more ideas and perspectives on deception in poker.
Some typical reasons to bluff...
A. When there aren't many other players in a pot.

Simply put, it's easier to trick a couple people than a crowd. With fewer hands out there, chances are better that no one has made a reasonable hand. This is fairly common though, so many players won't believe you. Some will stay in the hand just to "keep you honest", so sometimes this needs to be a persistent bluff over a period of two or three betting rounds. That can be costly if they don't fall for it. You need to know the players before you use this type of bluff.

B. When you're up against fairly tight players.

Those that tend to fold easily are the biggest targets of a bluff. Bets will be put out just as a form of information gathering on this player's hand. If you bluff early (pre-flop, flop) against a very tight player and they don't buckle, you should think twice about trying it again on a future round. They have something. Your job is to determine whether they have a made or drawing hand. Once again, you need to know the players.
Advertisement
DuplicatePoker
C. On the river.

Especially if apparent drawing hands missed. That's when players react to rule #1 "the moment you know you can't win, throw in your cards". It is often a good idea to bluff with a weak hand, like ace-high or lowest pair with these kinds of bluffs, because some players will stay in just because of pot odds. If you do that, it is actually semi-bluffing (see the bottom of the page).

D. You're in late position and everyone else checked.

This one you'll have to gauge for yourself. It will most likely force some players out, but not all. This is a pretty common bluff once again, and many players will stay in just because of bet odds, and/or to once again "keep you honest". This is another example of a bluff that needs to be more persistent over a couple betting rounds.

E. You bet pre-flop and missed.

That's because they don't know you missed! This can be dangerous, and you really have to evaluate to board before you get into this one. Sometimes it's good to bluff when AK misses, sometimes when 99 misses. You have to really feel this one out.

F. You have given other players "the fear".

It's about how other players perceive you. If you just won a hand through good play, the players who say "nice hand" are the ones who now respect you. They will more likely fold to your bluff if you play it right. The trick is to play the hand exactly the same way you played the other winning hand. Give it the "here we go again" act.

G. When the flop isn't so great.

Some players will fold automatically if all they have is an overcard. With a rainbow flop of 2, 6, 9, not many players will have much. This is another example of a bluff that can go horribly awry. I wouldn't be too persistent in this case, unless only more low cards pop up. Once again, know your players.

H. Pre-flop on the button, and everyone else has folded.

This is usually best used with tight players to your left. Its good because it can change from a bluff to a deceptively good hand with luck and the right flop.

I. When there is a pair on the board.

This is especially useful when the pair is 88 or lower. Chances are that these cards might have been folded or are still in the deck. This is one situation where you want to evaluate the hand very carefully if they do call though. This is a great situation to read the tells of the players who are NOT involved in the game. It's much easier to give away the fact that you HAD a card than if you HAVE it.

Keep in mind that these are pretty common reasons to bluff. Many players know these reasons. Most of the time it just won't work. The main thing is always to know your players and to not do it so often that it never works.

There's some great books about bluffing out there. We suggest reading as much as you can about it, as it's one of the most misunderstood aspects of poker.

Via : Your browser is too old - Texas Holdem Poker

__________________
conrad@talkpoker.org
for questions and comments

dont bluff bad players plain and simple

thank you for this posting i enjoyed reading it & hopefully it'll help improve my game

i bluff sparatically usually not on missed draws though becuz that is sometimes a good way to get picked off if the other player feels you were drawing, like if you have 4 flush on flop and bet then miss on turn and check then bluff on river.......i usually like to call the flop with a weak better knowing im going to bluff no matter what comes

Thanks conrad for posting that article on the forum. I hope it will improve my bluffing techniques

Bluff is a part of poker game, but on sites like pokerstars "jokrstars" i saw to many donks plaing and calling 72 to my raise 8buck on AA and catching 772 unral but fact

that happens all the time

yea that works about 0 percent of the time for me. if i bluff, i lose. then again, if i hit a ace high straight or trips, or a flush, i win 0 percent of the time. so i guess it doesn't matter.

i find this strategy to work well also

good post sir.

I just can't bluff ... I screw it always up .. I have nothing and when I try bluffin he always has the best hand that can be on that hand.

ow thx for this post this was very helpful for me ^^

also, look for possible flushes and straights to bluff, if you're playing a good player, he will be worried if he doesn't have it himself.

Thanks for the article, Conrad. Very useful information!

Good information for young poker players.

I think alot of people got bluffing all wrong, don't bluff with a bad hand, bluff when you have the best hand but make your opponent think you have nothing..