bluffs/ fancy plays

im not generally a fan of fancy plays at the microstakes... i believe that most bluffs are placed in very marginal situations where you cannot say with certainty that the villian will fold - because microstakes players suck at folding anyway.

but if im in the mood for some thrill and if the situation is right - i daresay i'd like to try a bluff or 2. here's some factors to look out for before bluffing:

- the scare cards on the table that you are barrelling to represent must fit into the story that you're telling (i.e you have to be able to rep some kind of strong holdings with your perceived range)

- villian is capable of folding (lookout for high fold% on various streets, low WTSD%, cbet% high on flop but low on turn etc). basically, villian must not be a fish la, because fish call too much. i typically only bluff regs lol.

- decent table image. this is fucking important!! if you've been caught bluffing before, or if you generally play way too many hands, then villians will give you less credit and call you down more often. hence, i think that ceteris paribus, the tighter you are the better your chances of bluff success (similarly, the tighter you are, the more credit your opponents will give you... and the less you get paid off on your monster hands)

- semi-bluffs are a lot cooler than pure bluffs. im currently toying with the idea of a semi-bluff turn shove with the correct odds+outs because all these pros seem to say its +EV in the right situation


having said all that, im probably wrong about bluffing and i really dont bluff very often... only when the situation comes along. in fact, im trying to tweak my game to not bluff AT ALL except for the semi-bluff. i dont know what inspired me to create this post in the first place, IMO i suck at bluffing and i should stop doing it. lol

till next time 


Hand No. 1 - villian opens pretty tight from the BB and folds a lot on the turn/river. ideal situation for me to try a little river bluff. in retrospect i found this to be quite a risky play... but i was certain that villian had some kind broadway/blackjack type hand and i that could get away with repping an 8

Poker Stars $0.01/$0.02 No Limit Hold'em - 6 players - View hand 1791549
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

BB: $4.11
UTG: $1.36
MP: $2.01
Hero (CO): $4.11
BTN: $2.92
SB: $2.14

Pre Flop: ($0.03) Hero is CO with K T
2 folds, Hero raises to $0.08, 1 fold, SB calls $0.07, BB calls $0.06

Flop: ($0.24) 8 Q 2 (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($0.24) 3 (3 players)
SB checks, BB bets $0.10, Hero calls $0.10, SB folds

River: ($0.44) 8 (2 players)
BB bets $0.16, Hero raises to $0.38, BB folds

Final Pot: $0.76
Hero mucks K T
Hero wins $0.73
(Rake: $0.03)




Hand No. 2 - villian is a reg that i play with quite often. tight as hell and folds too much - more weaktight than TAG. this is a BvB situation and because i know this cheebye... i know that my flop check accidentally (yes, i accidentally checked) induced him to buy pot. then he calls my check-raise and scares me a bit but by the river there's so much bullshit on the table that fits my range (flush draw hits, Q makes trips, etc) and he's a tight pussy and folds a lot so i make him release it.

Poker Stars $0.01/$0.02 No Limit Hold'em - 5 players - View hand 1791552
DeucesCracked Poker Videos Hand History Converter

Hero (SB): $2.35
BB: $1.83
UTG: $2.16
CO: $1.03
BTN: $1.84

Pre Flop: ($0.03) Hero is SB with A 7
3 folds, Hero raises to $0.06, BB calls $0.04

Flop: ($0.12) T 3 Q (2 players)
Hero checks, BB bets $0.10, Hero raises to $0.25, BB calls $0.15

Turn: ($0.62) Q (2 players)
Hero bets $0.35, BB calls $0.35

River: ($1.32) 5 (2 players)
Hero bets $1.69 all in, BB folds

Final Pot: $1.32
Hero mucks A 7
Hero wins $1.27
(Rake: $0.05)