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Continuation Betting |
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What is Continuation betting?Continuation betting is one of the marks of a strong poker player. Continuation betting, in a nutshell, is a follow up bet on the flop. The continue aspect references the pre flop action. If a player does not make a raise pre flop it is impossible for them to make a continuation bet. There are a variety of uses for a continuation bet, be it for value or as a bluff. Most players understand the concept of a continuation bet, but far too many misapply it. It is easy to get carried away when making continuation bets as they require complete focus to be effective. Like all other moves in poker, if you don’t know why you are making a continuation bet you probably shouldn’t be making one at all. With just a little bit of work any poker player should be able to incorporate the continuation bet into their repertoire. Continuation betting for valueContinuation betting for value is the easier of the two types of continuation bets to understand. When you make a raise pre flop and then connect with the flop (or if your hand is still strong) your flop bet would be a continuation bet for value. The aim of a continuation bet for value is to start the process of extracting maximum value from your hand. You will of course want to be betting the turn and river when you have a strong hand as well, but you need to start building the pot up on the flop. The problem that many players run into is how much to bet when they are c-betting for value. A general rule of thumb is to bet around 2/3 to 3/4 of the pot when you are c-betting with a strong hand. If you bet pot or over bet the pot you will run the risk of giving your hand’s strength away. Deception is a recurring theme in poker and it should be a factor in the size of your continuation bet.
Continuation betting as a bluffThere will be many times where you will make a raise pre flop with a hand like AQ and then completely miss the flop. These types of flops shouldn’t stop you from pursuing the flop as you will still have quite a bit of leverage in the hand. Your opponent should be giving you credit for a strong hand the second you make a pre flop raise, so why not take advantage of this by trying to take the pot away on the flop? They will believe that you have a decent hand when you bet the flop simply because that is what the information they have tells them. So, if you miss the flop but are up against an opponent who can give up small pots you might as well take a shot at them. Bets around 3/5 or 3/4 of the pot will be effective for these types of c-bets. No use in betting much more as you want to minimize your losses if the other player happens to have a strong hand. If you are out of position the board will play a role when deciding whether or not to c-bet. Simply remember this when you are out of position and are contemplating a c-bet, will you fold out better hands when you c-bet? If yes, make the c-bet, if not you can check back. |
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