Poker: The Semi-Bluff

 

 

If you want to become a winning player, you need to have different tactics that yu can employ during your game. One of these tactics is the semi-bluff.

A semi-bluff involves a combination of two factors: bluffs and draws. Without a drawing hand, your semi-bluff would simply be an ordinary bluff.

Example:

You have an Ace of Clubs and a 10 of Diamonds in hand.

The flop gives up the 9 of Clubs, the 2 of Clubs and the King of Clubs.

Your opponent bets $100 and you re-raise by $300. In actual fact, you do not yet have a complete hand, but your opponent does not know this. Your opponents bet was weak so you then attempted to steal the pot by undertaking a bluff. The difference between this bluff and a normal bluff is that you still you can still bring in the pot because you have the Ace of Clubs.

You have a 5 of Clubs and a 10 of Diamonds in hand.

The flop gives up the 7 of Diamonds, the 2 of Hearts and the King of Spades.

Your opponent bets $100 and once again you re-raise by $300. This time around you do not have a draw hand, therefore if you are paid, it is probably better to fold your hand. A call from your opponent on this type of flop means that, 9 times out of 10, you are up against a King, so the best means of winning this hand is to make your opponent believe that you have three-of-a-kind or a pair of Aces.

The semi-bluff is an extremely valuable tactic to learn. It appears to be a move htat is fairly easy to carry out, but look at the result of this semi-bluff:

Your opponent folds a completed hand.

Cast your eyes over the example once again;

You have an Ace of Clubs and a 10 of Diamonds in hand.

The flop gives up the 9 of Clubs, the 2 of Clubs and the King of Clubs.

Your opponent bets $100 with the Ace of Diamonds and the 9 of Diamonds in hand. You re-raise by $300 with a semi-bluff, which results in your opponent folding his hands, this is because he is scared about the King, or that you might have colours.

You have a free card at the turn.

Keeping the previous example in mind, imagine now that your opponent does not have the Ace of Diamonds and the 9 of Diamonds, but now has the 6 of Clubs and the 7 of Clubs. With such a hand he could be afraid that his colours will be beaten by superior colours and since you have the Ace of Spades, he is not far off the truth.
Your raise at the flop has made him fearful, but he pays you anyway. The advantage of the semi-bluff becomes apparent at the turn. Your opponent checks and this gives you a free card.

Deception

By betting with a draw hand as if you have already completed it, you sent your opponent a signal that they are in danger. This can be very profitable on the following hand:

You have the 7 of Diamonds and the 8 of Diamonds in hand.

The flop gives up the Ace of Hearts, the 5 of Spades and the 6 of Clubs.

Your opponent bets with $100 with the Ace of Diamonds and the 9 of Diamonds in hand. You raise with an open-ended straight draw. He takes several moments to reflect before deciding to pay you. Your opponent is probably imagining that you have an Ace.

The turn deals the 9 of Spades.

You manage to get your straight, but more importantly, is that your opponent has managed to get a second pair. Generally, your opponent will now be afraid that you have a straight, but because of your semi-bluff, you opponent will imagine that you have a different hand than the one you actually have. He will surely be imagining that you have an Ace of Clubs and Jack of Clubs and will feel a certain sense of security in his two pairs.

As you can see, the semi-bluff is a tactic that has a lot of potential. The stronger your draw hand, the more effective your semi-bluff will be. A simple check-raise is not as profitable as the semi-bluff can be.

 

 

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