Tournament Strategies
After receiving pocket cards, you are immediately faced with a choice: play your cards and either raise or call the blinds, or fold.
Practice Matters
Suppose you raise A-Q from the button
Suppose you raise A-Q from the button and the big blind calls. It comes Q-8-3. If he checks, you should bet because he can call with numerous hands that you have beat. This would be a pretty standard value bet. If you have A-8 instead of A-Q, you should still bet. This bet combines value and protection. You don’t mind if he calls with hands like 6-6 but at the same time, you would be fine with him folding hands like K-J that have decent equity. If you have A-3 you should still bet, because any turn card besides an ace or three could kill your hand. You don’t know which turn cards are bad for you, so you would be happy to pick up the pot right away. Your opponent could also call with ace- or king-high, thinking you are bluffing at the pot. These are all value bets. Just realize that some value bets have much less value than others.
When you bet with a hand like A-3 on Q-8-3
When you bet with a hand like A-3 on Q-8-3 and are called or raised, you should stop betting, at least for value, because your hand is almost certainly behind. If your opponent check-calls and the turn is a king, you should consider bluffing. Notice how your hand can quickly change from a thin value-bet to what is basically a thin semi-bluff. That said, if your opponent calls your thin value-bet on the flop, don’t be scared to check the hand down or fold to further aggression.