You don't need to overbet to make your opponents fold.

Beginning players commonly bet an amount larger than the pot (called a bet). overbet) mistakenly use their medium-strength hands to try to make their opponent fold and “protect” their hand from being beaten on later streets. When they are successful in “protecting” their hand, they may simply be bluffing and have missed the flop. When they are unsuccessful, they often lose to the best hand. Much of the value of making a good hand comes from the positive expected value (EV) of the value bets you make and the opponent calls at the incorrect odds. Forcing a fold by overbetting eliminates this value.

Party Poker is back in Brazil! Learn about the bonus and benefits when creating your Poker Dicas affiliate account.

After all, what is the goal of playing good poker?

The goal in poker is not to win the current pot. Yes, I understand that you can’t make money without winning pots. Instead, playing good poker means playing your hand in an optimal way with the goal of maximizing your positive EV. If you do that, the chips will come. It won’t always appear that way, but the money will come over time.

Typically, the optimal bet size is the largest amount that your opponent(s) will call that has a negative EV for them, but not so high that they will not fold. An important point to consider is that if an opponent has a neutral EV to call a $100 bet, betting $105 has a positive EV. However, a $110 bet that is called has twice the expectation of a $105 bet. This fact emphasizes the importance of bet size. That said, if they will not call a negative EV bet, then betting to make them fold is usually better than giving them a free card to hit their draw.

Keep in mind the price of your overbet

Also, keep in mind that the price your bet size is giving your opponents is the implied price based on how the hand will play against your range. If he has a flushdraw and you will call if he completes the hand, your price is different than if you could “read” him accurately and fold correctly.

And just because you include the flushdraw as part of your opponent's range, don't size your bet relative to him having only a flush draw. If you ignore the weakest part, high equity calls he would make with non-flush draw hands, you will likely lose EV. Make the bet size that is optimal based on your opponent's entire range.

I understand that it is often impossible to accurately quantify his range and make the right bet size. However, if you understand the concept, it gives you a better estimate of what part of his range is a draw, and what bet size he will call with his non-draw hands that you have an edge over. Then can you estimate how the implied equity of these two ranges play against your hand and whether you can make a positive EV bet against his entire range? If you can, then that may be your best play.

A classic example

For example, let's say you hit a set of T on a :Jh :Th :2c board. Your opponent has a strong range that includes a lot of draws, as well as top pairs, JX, and sets of JJ. Betting large enough to make your draws negative EV is often a mistake because doing so will cause him to fold one-pair hands that he would call a smaller bet on. These calls you receive from hands that have one pair will be high equity bets for you. You need to bet size so that any negative EV from the draw portion of his calling range is more than the negative EV calculated from the calls you receive from the weaker portion of his range. If he has sets of J, you will probably lose anyway, so we can disregard this in our analysis.

Take advantage of your study time and create your 888 Poker account by clicking this link! You'll get $88 free* and you can also play our weekly $100 freeroll every Tuesday! (*$8 cash and $80 bonus).

Players who take the “protection concept” to the extreme and overbet to protect weak hands create serious consequences. You will often end up inflating pots against strong ranges with weak hands. You have turned your hand into a bluff. And while your hand may be vulnerable, if played correctly, it can often still extract value.

Conclusion

With all that said, I understand that there are many other considerations that go into bet sizing, including stack size, opponent tendencies, pot size, opponent skill, etc. However, the point I want to make is that you need to make bet sizes based on the implied odds of the situation based on your opponent's range, not on the fear of Villain hitting your draw.

So don’t overbet your hands in an attempt to avoid losing them. I understand that it hurts to lose a pot, but your motives for betting need to be to gain EV, not to reduce the pain of losing. Poker can be emotionally taxing and requires a high level of mental toughness. Stay tough and make the right decision based on EV, not emotion.

If you do this correctly, the thrill of winning in the long run will outweigh the agony of any defeat you may experience in the short run.

Article translated and adapted from the original: Poker Strategy With Roy Cooke: You Don't Need Overbets To Make Your Opponents Fold