What is semi-bluffing?
Semi-bluffing is another play you'll see the play poker make at the championship table on television. The semi-bluff means that you put in chips with no pair, no nothing, when you probably have the worst hand-but you have some sort of a draw that gives you a chance to win the pot on a later street. You have a draw to a good hand, and you're taking the chance that your opponents will fold if you bet.
For example, suppose you have the A ? K ? and the flop comes with three little card game such as 7 ? 4 ? 2 ?. Someone bets on the flop and you think that he probably has a pair or, possibly, an overpair to the flop. Your opponent may have a hand such as 9-9 or 10-10, or it is possible that he doesn't have a hand either. Whether or not he has a hand, you have outs-you have two overcards plus a flush draw. This is a hand that you have decided to go with, so you put in a big raise when he bets. That way you have a chance to win the pot limit holdem right then and there if he is weak.
Now, suppose he checks to you. Even if you think he may have a pair, you might make a good-sized bet. He may very well fold his pair and you can win the pot uncontested. Even if you get called, you have outs to the hand-you could make the flush or hit one of your poker overcards to win the pot. You also might make this play when you only have two overcards with no additional draw.
How can you steal the antes and blinds Before the flop by bluffing?
The primary purpose of bluffing before the flop is to steal the blinds. When you try a steal bluff, you make a positional raise, sometimes with a marginal hand. As the blinds go up, you try to steal the blinds here and there just to keep going.
You usually make the bluff bet from late middle to late position when you are the first one in the pot. This means that you bet from three positions in front of the button through poker the button. The earlier you make a pre-flop raise to try to steal the blinds and antes, the riskier it is. If someone has already entered the pot, you usually do not consider trying to pull off an ante steal.
In the televised poker tournaments, you will notice that players often try to steal the antes and blinds with positional raises. At the final table of these big tournaments, the blinds are very high low poker. Because of that, you will see players Bluff-bet with just about any two cards, even 10-4 for example, to try to pick up the antes and blinds Because it is so important in the very late stage of the poker tournament. Players will start to attack opponents that they believe will throw away their hands against a big raise.
Since you can see the players' hole cards, it's fun to watch someone with hand like 9-2 make a big bet trying to steal the blinds. You can watch his opponent, who is usually in one of the blinds, carefully studying whether to call the raise with a marginal hand such as K-Q or K-J and finally deciding to fold. All the while, you're smiling because you know what he doesn't know - the raiser has nothing!
What is the resteal bluff?
Another type of bluff is the resteal. You think that an opponent is out of line and you go over the top (reraise) of him trying to pick up the pot. You are representing a strong hand by reraising. For example, say that somebody comes out with a bet and you think, "This guy is trying to steal the pot, so I'm going to try to resteal it from him. " With that goal in mind, you reraise the pot with absolutely nothing. This is an advanced play that you frequently see at the championship tables of the televised World Poker Tournament and the World Series of Poker.
What is the follow-up bluff?
It takes a lot of heart to bluff once and follow it with another bluff. Sometimes it works and wins a lot of chips, and other times it's a disaster. Suppose a player bluffs Before the flop- trying to pick up the blinds and antes and an opponent calls him. Now let's say that he misses the flop entirely. "I'll poker bluffing hand some more," he thinks, "because I've got all those chips in the pot and I don't want to lose them. Maybe I can save them by firing in another bet. " If the player who called the bluffer's pre-flop raise is first to act and he checks on the flop, it is a almost automatic that the raiser will bet. The pre-flop caller will probably fold if he missed the flop and the raiser will win the hand with his follow-up bluff.
Here is an example of the danger in trying a follow-up bluff. Suppose the caller has a good hand. He is pretty sure that if he checks to you, you are going to bet glossary. Therefore he can use position to his advantage and check his good hand to allow you, the raiser, to bet and thus set up a check-raise to win more chips. Say that he has two jacks and he called the pre-flop raise. The flop comes 7-4-2. He checks to you, believing that you are going to bluff at the pot. If you bet, he can reraise you and win the extra chips that you bet on the flop.
The follow-up bluff is a play that newcomers should be very cautious about trying. It requires a high level of skill to determine who and when you should try it against.
What is the total bluff?
The total bluff is similar to the steal bluff with one major exception. In the steal bluff, you might have a hand that is marginal but has some potential for winning. Examples include 8-7 suited, K-10 offsuit, or A-5 offsuit. In the total bluff, you have absolute trash in your hand-7-2, 8-3, or 9-4, for example. You are gambling game that nobody will call if you raise. The total bluff is usually attempted in late position when no one has entered the pot and the blinds are tight players who fold most marginal hands.
Suppose your chip stack has dwindled to the "move-in" size. (Refer to the "Move-in" column in the Betting Chart.) You have identified which player is the best candidate for you to attack with all your chips. You raise all in to try to win the blinds and antes and you do it with any two cards. If your bluff works, you will winning poker game the blinds and antes, or you might draw out on your opponent if he calls. If it doesn't work, you will be rewarded with early retirement from the tournament.