Playing the River - PokerTraining.org

Playing the River
The final street - part 1/2

Your hand

Now that part is pretty easy. In case you already held a made hand, did the river improve it even further. Maybe you had two-pair or three of a kind on the turn and you´re now looking at a full house. Perhaps your top-pair with the top-kicker turned into the top three of a kind. In case you have been on any kind of draw, the question is whether or not you finally completed your straight/flush or maybe even hit one of your over-cards. This might sound very simple, but the reason why I want you to focus on this aspect is that you have to know and totally be aware of the strength of the hand you´re holding on the river. If you found yourself in weak circumstances on the flop or the turn and played your hand accordingly, an improvement on the river means that you have to flip the switch and try to get as much chips out of your opponents as possible instead of just being happy to stay in the pot.

If you weren´t so lucky, meaning your draw didn´t transform into a made hand, you should know two things for sure: You´re probably behind and the only way to still win the pot is by bluffing your opponent out of it.

Your opponents´ hand

Assessing the hand of your opposition is the part where all your Poker experience, your intuition, your notes on your rivals and your ability to monitor the table come into play. Some weaker players have the tendency to call every bet with a middle pocket-pair (e.g. 77, 88, and 99) regardless of the board cards. Against those guys, you shouldn´t worry so much if the third suited card shows up on the river and a flush would beat you. Then there are guys who like to bluff and bet the pot in case a single opponent shows weakness by checking. Against those guys it´s important to be aware of the strength of your hand and to not be intimidated by the size of the bet.

Long story short, you have to paint a picture of the range of hands your opponent might be holding. But instead of using paintbrush, paint and canvas, you have to employ the previous action on the table during that hand, your accumulated information about your opponents (tendencies, betting patterns and aggressiveness) and your experience and intuition. The better you are in that regard, the higher are your chances of having the correct impression about the other players´ hands.

Before the showdown

After assessing your and your rivals´ situation, you have to put all these assumptions into play in order to determine how to act during the last round of betting. The first question is whether you think you´re ahead, give yourself a 50-50 chance or already consider yourself beaten.

You have a reason to assume that you´re holding the best hand when you hold monster hands like a strong flush, a high straight or a full house. Of course, as usual you have to compare your hand to the board and the possibilities it may give your opponents to form a better hand. If the board shows T 9 8 7, a straight of T 9 8 7 6, might be enough to still win the pot, but is definitely not a strong hand.

I personally would give myself a 50-50 chance when I´m holding a set, a nice two-pair or top-pair with the top-kicker and the river brings up the third suited card, a chance for a straight or one of my opponents seems to show as much interest in the pot as I do. Depending on the hand you´re holding, you have to be aware that someone else might beat you despite your strong hand.

You can consider yourself beaten when you´ve been on a draw that didn´t turn into a made hand and you have absolutely nothing else to show for.

The second aspect you have to consider is in which position you´re sitting. Are you in late position, waiting for your opponent(s) to make a move or are you the one who´s responsibility is to act first?

The third and final point to look out for is if your opponents are aggressive or passive in river situations. Are they betting or checking? Do they call or fold their hands once you decided to bet?

Read part 2/2