Min. Betting Post Flop: A Case Study

[SubT33]

I think minimum betting after the flop, is a very telling move. Whether it's telling others that you are weak player too scared to make a real bluff after every one has checked two full streets, or that you are a stronger player taking advantage of those who instantly see minimum betting as a sign of weakness, it undoubtedly reveals something about your game. Take this hand below that just feels so good to take down:

Seat 1: no1here (3765.00 in chips)
Seat 2: Jazka (6236.00 in chips)
Seat 4: ayashii (2837.00 in chips)
Seat 5: straitpool (1350.00 in chips)
Seat 6: lorenzorro (3315.00 in chips)
Seat 7: BLUZSINGER (1890.00 in chips)
Seat 8: abgal (6457.00 in chips)
Seat 9: skyanfield (3630.00 in chips)
Seat 10: SubT33 (3075.00 in chips)
SubT33: posts small blind $50
no1here: posts big blind $100
Dealt to SubT33 [ Kh 8s ]
Jazka: folds
darc11: folds
ayashii: folds
straitpool: folds
lorenzorro: calls
BLUZSINGER: calls
abgal: folds
skyanfield: folds
SubT33: calls
no1here: checks
*** FLOP *** [ 8c Ah 7c ]
SubT33: checks
no1here: checks
lorenzorro: checks
BLUZSINGER: checks
*** TURN *** [ 8d ]
SubT33: bets $500
no1here: folds
lorenzorro: folds
BLUZSINGER: calls
*** RIVER *** [ 9s ]
SubT33: bets $100
BLUZSINGER: is all in
SubT33: calls
*** SHOW DOWN ***
BLUZSINGER: shows [ 7s 4s ] (Two Pairs, Eights and Sevens )
SubT33: shows [ Kh 8s ] (Three of a Kind, Eights )
SubT33 wins $3,980 with Three of a Kind, Eights


The villain had taken down a few pots before this with aggressive over betting of the river and I knew he/she was a perfect candidate for the min. bet/raise. I knew as soon as I min. bet the villain would go all in. It's Beautiful how things go your way sometimes. Yes, this villain was a weak player but this is who this tactic is great for.

Any other thoughts on minimum betting? When and how do you use it? What do you think when you see it?

 

[rmcnally]

Unless the blinds are so large that any other bet would take too much of your chips away, I would stick to betting more than the minimum, usually 25-50% of the pot.. It gives people with draws too good of odds, and if you have a made hand it takes away from maximum profit you can make!

 

[SubT33]

You might have misunderstood me. I'm not advocating for this strategy all the time, just in particular cases namely

• when the board isn't scary
• when the board is without draws
• when you want to change gears and mix up your play

Of course you generally have to abide by good poker strategy, this is just a special case, a trick play. But what do others think about a minimum bet when the see it?

 

[ayyaahh]

i think this should only be done after u observed the player enough that his reaction when u bet min. pot is a weak raise then u can use that to trap him. cuz i seen many players assume min. bet means u have nothing so they'll bluff

 

[str3tch nuts]

Yes, I've used a small bet after the flop to make the others think I missed. Usually after I've watched them get reraised earlier in the tourney. Especially if you caught with ur pocket pair.

 

[sportsfreak_39]

its an observation thing, some times a player makes a weak bluff with it, othertimes hes trying to draw a raise on his bet, if you wtahc them you'll see how they use it

 

[jaymfc]

I minibet the flop sometimes when I have top pair and only one caller just to built the pot a little before turn raise . I do it other times too mosty just as a donk bet , sometimes to incite an all in.

it's generally considered a donk bet and most people including me will come over the top of it. but if you know your player well and are op with a good hand , why not .