How do you handle sets?

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Dutchman54

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When an opponent has a pocket pair and makes a set, it can be invisible and deadly. With no flushes, straights, or boats possible, their aggressive betting may look like two pairs. Does anyone have any insights on how to sniff out or defend against sets?
 
pac818man

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pocket pair

always bet. flush out the high cards then hold on to your seat
 
Aldorabe

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Dutchman54 said:
When an opponent has a pocket pair and makes a set, it can be invisible and deadly. With no flushes, straights, or boats possible, their aggressive betting may look like two pairs. Does anyone have any insights on how to sniff out or defend against sets?
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it’s easier when there’s a couple at the table and the way he lets you bet to catch you
 
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fundiver199

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Basically you cant, but in the long run it does not matter. You will flop sets on your opponents just as often, as they flop sets on you. And they are also going to pay you off, when you have the set, and they have the top pair, the overpair etc.
 
pentazepam

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If you raise pre-flop. Bet the flop and get called, bet the turn and get raised - the nitty players almost always have at least bottom set. Sometimes they have it if they raise the flop even.

Against balanced good players and loose aggressive players it gets much harder to know.
 
fenoz

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I go to the cash tables with a low pair with a minimum bet in the hope of a set, no one ever guesses about it and manages to break a good bank.
 
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Dutchman54

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fenoz said:
I go to the cash tables with a low pair with a minimum bet in the hope of a set, no one ever guesses about it and manages to break a good bank.
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In the right game that's not a bad strategy. With a pocket pair you should flop a set 1 in 8 times; make a set by the river 1 in 5. So other players will let you keep it cheap, I can see that you could do very well with this.
 
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Dutchman54

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fundiver199 said:
Basically you cant, but in the long run it does not matter. You will flop sets on your opponents just as often, as they flop sets on you. And they are also going to pay you off, when you have the set, and they have the top pair, the overpair etc.
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It's not just flopping a set. They could hit it at any time (a beatable two pairs turns into an unbeatable boat). But good point -- we tend to remember our bad beats more than our good wins.
 
Suns of Beaches

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Yes sets are sometimes very hard to sniff out at the poker table and sometimes you just have to pay it off. if a very tight opponent check-raises you on a dry board, chances are big that he has a set.
 
tame4g

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The best way to avoid getting beaten by sets is to not overplay TPTK. After all, it's just a pair. If your opponent is suddenly jamming on dry board textures, always consider that they may have flopped a set and look to get away from the hand losing as little as possible. It's easier said than done, especially if you're coming off a particularly cold run of cards
 
antonis32123

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It's hard to identify whether an opponent has made a set or not . The smaller my stack is or the better hand I have on board (two pairs . top pair top kicker ) the easiest for me to call . Ofcourse if I suspect a set I will play passively my hand hoping for small bets on turn/river or for my hand to get improved , especially against a player who is very tight .
 
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fundiver199

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tame4g said:
The best way to avoid getting beaten by sets is to not overplay TPTK. After all, it's just a pair. If your opponent is suddenly jamming on dry board textures, always consider that they may have flopped a set and look to get away from the hand losing as little as possible. It's easier said than done, especially if you're coming off a particularly cold run of cards
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I agree. Its ok to lose some money to a set, but not always to go broke with top pair or an overpair. In a standard single raised pot 100BB deep you typically need something better than just a pair to get your stack inside.
 
8bod8

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You need to allow for the risk of a set in the chips you put into the pot. The profile of the villain is more important than the probability of the cards.
 
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mpkr10

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against weaker players who don't bluff you can usually fold 1 pair or even stronger if they show a lot of aggression, against stronger players sometimes you will just lose a lot of money with good hands when they have sets, sometimes you can get away also
 
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ROYALROAD

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various situation

So It depends on the various situations of the table for such thing.

Then it depends and is different then.
 
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