F Paulsson
euro love
Silver Level
Alright, so the title is intentionally provocative and not really a good idea. But there is (not so) occasionally a tendency to overthink betting for value by thinking about what you should do if you get raised. Thinking ahead is good, in general, and avoiding avoidable difficult situations is good, in general. But, and this is where some seem to develop some fuzzy thinking, sometimes the value bet is so profitable in and by itself that it positively does not matter what you do when you get raised. Let me give an example:
Ignoring for a moment how you got here, you have AA on a 3-7-8-Q board and the river just fell another 8. Your opponent is an unknown. Pot is $30, and you have $100 left behind effectively. Should you bet versus an unknown?
Yes.
What if you get raised?
"Cross that bridge when you get to it."
If you start worrying about how you'll react to a raise and you somehow talk yourself into NOT betting, then maybe you're "avoiding a tough decision" but you're getting the easy decision wrong! Sometimes - often, even - the value in betting is simply so great that it flat out doesn't matter what you do when you get raised. Stack off, fold, whatever. It's possible that you have a leak when you get raised on the river but that does not excuse leaking like the Titanic when you have a solid value bet to make.
This is a good example of what you do when you get raised mattering a great deal less than whether or not to bet. Yeah, versus some opponents you're happy to stack off when you get raised. And versus some other opponents you should probably start looking for a fold because they're never bluffing. But versus NEITHER of these opponent types is betting not massively +EV. (above hand chosen primarily for the situation, not necessarily because of comments made about it)
So, yeah, think ahead, plan your hand, prepare for all outcomes if you want - but don't screw up the easy decisions in the process.
(I'm guilty of this myself, occasionally)
Ignoring for a moment how you got here, you have AA on a 3-7-8-Q board and the river just fell another 8. Your opponent is an unknown. Pot is $30, and you have $100 left behind effectively. Should you bet versus an unknown?
Yes.
What if you get raised?
"Cross that bridge when you get to it."
If you start worrying about how you'll react to a raise and you somehow talk yourself into NOT betting, then maybe you're "avoiding a tough decision" but you're getting the easy decision wrong! Sometimes - often, even - the value in betting is simply so great that it flat out doesn't matter what you do when you get raised. Stack off, fold, whatever. It's possible that you have a leak when you get raised on the river but that does not excuse leaking like the Titanic when you have a solid value bet to make.
This is a good example of what you do when you get raised mattering a great deal less than whether or not to bet. Yeah, versus some opponents you're happy to stack off when you get raised. And versus some other opponents you should probably start looking for a fold because they're never bluffing. But versus NEITHER of these opponent types is betting not massively +EV. (above hand chosen primarily for the situation, not necessarily because of comments made about it)
So, yeah, think ahead, plan your hand, prepare for all outcomes if you want - but don't screw up the easy decisions in the process.
(I'm guilty of this myself, occasionally)