Reasons to Raise in Online Poker

There are a number of reasons to raise in online poker. Raising in poker is an art that can take a lifetime to master. Many players who are new to the game feel you should only raise when dealt a strong starting hand. Raising with a strong hand is a standard procedure but what they do not know is there are several other situations that exist in poker where raising gives you an advantage over your opponents. We will go over the five most common reasons to raise during Texas Holdem NL play; gain information, earn a free card, eliminate competing hands, bluffing, and increase pot size.

Gain information: Raising to gain information is best done pre and post flop. Here you will raise with marginal starting hands in order to find out what your opponents may be playing (get a read). Say you’re playing suited connectors and the flop earns you middle pair. At this point you may want to send out a mini raise to get a feel for the other player’s hands. If someone re-raises heavy, you know most likely he has top pair and is protecting his hand. Pre-flop with a marginal hand you may send out 2X or 3X the blind just to get a feel for their starting hands. This of course is most recommend mostly when you are in position, ideally on the button or close to last position. Another time you may send out a raise to gain information is after flopping top pair but with a weak kicker. Say you’re playing A 2, and the flop has earned you top pair. If you feel that your opponent has you out kicked, send out a raise to buy that information. A heavy re-raise back, most likely your hand is beat. This will save you chips in the long run and will help you learn information before having to pay a heavy price on the river.

Earn a Free Card: This is a strategy that may take you some time to pick up on. The idea is to send out a small feeler bet to keep your opponents from going on the offensive. In this situation you are well aware that it is more than likely they are ahead with for example top pair, two pair, or trips. What you are doing is simply earning a free card by betting post flop, in order to see the river. For example, your holding 7 8 of diamonds and the board comes 6c 9d Ad and three other players limp in. At this point you’re holding a straight draw and flush draw. More than likely at least one or two players have you beat with their ace, so you bet out to keep them from going on the attack. The turn comes 2h, not helping you and most likely not helping them so everyone checks. River comes 10 and you have made your straight. By betting post flop you kept the other players from raising and eliminating your chances of catching a straight. Everyone checked on the turn which effectively earned you a free card, the 10 you needed. Earning a free card works well both during cash games and tournament play. Use it with caution and be weary of any re-raises as most likely your opponent is on to your strategy and is sure he has the winning hand.

Eliminate hands: Raising with pocket pairs, AK, AQ, etc, is recommended if you’re looking to take down the pot without allowing your opponents to draw out on you. Standard raise pre-flop is 3X the big blind. Your goal is to knock out any players planning to play their suited connectors, or other hands such as J 9, 10 K, A rag and so on. Hands that can very well have you drawing dead after the flop or turn. You should look to be up against one at most two players after your raise. This will increase your chances of taking down the pot and controlling the rest of the hand. Another situation when you should look to raise is after flopping top pair. Say your holding 10 J, and the flop comes 2 / 7 / J. Here you should send out a raise to force any players who have bottom or middle pair out of the hand. Last thing you want them to do is check it down and catch two pair on the turn or river. Keep in mind that many players, especially in Cash games are looking to create monster hands; straights, flushes, trips, etc. In order to prevent them from making these strong hands, you must push the tempo early and make them pay the price if they decide to chase it down.

Bluff Raise: Another important reason to raise in online poker: Bluffing It is most often used during high limit games and tournaments. Lower limit games you will find most players will call you down unless of course you raise heavy. Semi-bluffing is raising when you have a good hand and are somewhat likely to improve the hand after the turn and river. Therefore you may send out a small raise to knock players out of the hand and also increase your chances of taking down the pot. The main purpose of bluffing or semi-bluffing is to knock players out of the hand immediately. Bluffing can get you in trouble, especially if you’re up against a tight player that is calling you down. Also be weary of aggressive players who will re-raise often and when they catch cards can crush your chip stack.

Increase Pot size: When raising in online poker to increase pot size- you are effectively increasing your payout by sending out strategic bets that will keep your opponent(s) interested in the hand. Say you flopped a set or straight, ideally you don’t want to raise players out of the hand by raising heavy, instead send out a mini-raise 1X-2X. A raise that keeps players interested in the hand as they feel you may be on a draw or bluffing. If there are more than one or two players involved in the hand and you feel someone may catch a flush, set or full house, then of course raise it up heavy and force the player to fold. When you have the best hand possible (the nuts), you should be very careful with your raises or wait until the river. If you check it down to the river, your opponents have a higher probability of making a strong hand, say for example a lower straight or flush in which they will call almost any large bet you send out. This will turn into a nice payout for you if done correctly.

The best way to perfect these strategies is to test them out in low limit games. Try them out while playing a 6 or 10 players sit and go tournament and keep notes on what works best. You may find that some of the methods are harder to work with and therefore may choose not to try them at all. Keep testing what works best for your game. Tight players will have trouble learning how to master bluffs and semi bluffs as it is in their nature to protect their chip stack. Aggressive players may overbet too often when they have the nuts and eliminate too many players from the hand. Remember that every player has their own personality on the poker table so each of the five methods we reviewed today will fit into your game differently. The key is mastering every strategy for raising, making your hands completely unreadable by your opponents.

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