Why do pros check so much on flop?

If you are like me then you cant get enough tv poker. I started to notice that alot of players check on the flop even when they are a head in the hand and give a free card. Aint that the cardinal sin of poker?I understand sometimes you might want to trap but alot of times it makes no sense why they check instead of betting and either win the pot or find out where they are at . I rarely check anything on the flop unless I have a maniac who is just going to do the betting for me . What do you guys think about that ?

I think that the blinds during the final table are fairly large compared to chipstacks so they play more cautious so they arent pot commited with a marginal hand. Also it is the final table and there is a large difference in prize money from 6th to 1st so some players may wait to see the smaller stacks bust out. Those are my thoughts. Oh yeah, and if you are always betting out on the flop like you say then you are liable to throw away chips for no reason at all against a player who sees this and just waits for you to keep giving your chips away with habitual bets against monster hands.

There are so many reasons to check a flop that hits you. One reason to check a flop is to keep the pot low. Lets say u have Q6s in the sb and the flop comes Q 5 2. You don't want to generate a big pot with such a weak kicker.

Another reason is to trap. Lets say u have K10 in the bb and the flop comes K 8 4. You know that more than likely you have the best hand and all you have to worry about is an ace beating you. The odds of an A coming on the turn is really low so its best to check and hope the turn helps your opponent. Ofcourse if you are going up against 2 or more opponents it is wise to bet the flop and see where you are in the hand.

Another reason pro's like to check the flop is to show their opponents that they don't always bet out when they hit a flop. Your opponents might think twice about bluffing them next time, if they think they might be trapping.

If you check the flop and they bet at you, you can accurately work out the value of calling. (ie your opponent determines the pot odds rather than yourself).

It also gives you the added benefit of going over the top of them, without them really knowing exactly how strong your hand is. A reraise of your raise (for more info) is getting them in very deep if they have nothing.

Remember that what you see on TV is tournament poker. Completely different, and more often people are likely to bet in tournaments which makes it easier to trap. Cash games you rarely if not never want to give a free card, unless your sitting on a monster.

let me run the list the blinds are retarded low compareatively on the tv. with the exception of poker super stars. normally something like blinds set at 2k/4k and the small stack has 250k(average for wpt).

in tournements with 4 pros at a table the pros have to out play themselves, knowing that people will bet at anything they check for implied value. meaning two aggresive pros rely on the play of their opponents not themselves.


lastly i don't see pros check anything that isn't near nutty. they like the trap. but if you watch they play hands totally dependant on players

lastly i don't see pros check anything that isn't near nutty. they like the trap. but if you watch they play hands totally dependant on players[/quote]

I disagree , I do see alot of checking on the flop but now that I think about it ,its mostly the not so great pros. I mostly play cash games so thats why I rarely slowplay anything . However I do trap sometimes just to switch it up and trick players.