Deciphering bet's, bet sizing and what do they accomplish for you?

[UnderDawg5501]

Don't shoot me yet, this may seem idiotic but I swear there is a lot under the surface.

All over any poker forum, poker site, video courses, v-logs etc. there are talks about bets, sizing and the likes. 2 BB, 2.5BB, 2.6bb, reraise to 3X the original raise, shove all in. Yet not much about the "why" any particular bets are made. Just numbers tossed around.

How much thought do people give to betting?
What sizes should they be?
Why there are these perceptions of particular sizes?
What purpose do you personally assign to them?
Do you even think of what that call/bet/raise is doing for you?

After all, cards are just cards until you make a choice and decide to bet..

I look forward to some interesting thoughts and hopefully a realistic discussion. And please keep the "because that's poker" comments to a minimum..

Cheers!

(May as well start at the heart of things to learn.)

 

[Gallarado777]

I think it's just like standard action for all poker players to make fewer mistakes or not show their strong hand or hand strength

 

[Aballinamion]

How much thought do people give to betting?
What sizes should they be?
Why there are these perceptions of particular sizes?
What purpose do you personally assign to them?
Do you even think of what that call/bet/raise is doing for you?

I’m not sure if I understood your question, but bet sizing is paramount for a good game play.
As a rule of thumb, our sizing preflop will change depending on our own range perspective: if we do open more hands we should use smaller sizings, 2.2x, 2.3x, 2,5x at maximum for all of our range, if we opening the bottom or the top of our range we are going to use the same sizing.
Now if we open less hands, we are going to use a bigger sizing, 2.7x, 3x, etc.
Why???
Because we assume we are going to miss a couple of hands we open and we want to control the sizing of the pot: as much more we make the pot grow, more we are inclined to put more chips, bigger the SPR, and the chances to stack.
The odds are totally different for a postflop game if we use 3x and 4x preflop. Some players like to exploit fishes and will open 7x, 10x preflop, but this is not optimal for we are going to lose sometimes.
Another simple rule is simple as that: as previous the stage of the hand, more uncertain is the outcome: putting in other words, preflop we have no idea what could happen and on the river we can have even 100% chance of knowing the exact result. Following this line of thought, is more wise to put more chips on the the turn and on the river and not put so many chips preflop and on the flop.
This is where preflop sizings are so important.
Another example, and it happens a lot In tournaments, freerolls and micro stakes games: player raises 2x most of times. Then it decides to raise to 4x. Why? Because 2x is for weaker hands and 4x for best hands, it’s obvious but many players won’t observe or believe it.
Hero raises to 3x and villain 3-bets to 5x. This is huge, villain is investing 15 blinds to win only 3. Why? Most of times is because it has a very strong hand and it wants to build the pot and go all-in ASAP.
Think about the odds of calling from the BB a 2x raise versus calling from the BB a 4x raise: the difference is gigantic, versus 2x we can call with a bunch of hands but versus 4x we just choose our calling hands more carefully.
We should pay utter attention and care to sizings and try to use the same sizing 95% of times and change it only in very specific situations.
Most of times it’s not good to try to decide the hand preflop: we bet small until we are sure we have the best hand, and this certainty will come most of times OTT and OTR.
Weak players try to decide hands preflop and on the flop because they are almost clueless about postflop play. See for yourself, fishes raising 10x versus limp, 3-betting high and committing their stacks preflop in a 4-bet (putting 30% of the stack preflop).
The bet sizing is a “tell” we have to begin to analyze our opponent and make the most EV decisions.

 

[JappsPK]

I think you raise some great points here. While it's true that bet sizing is often discussed in the context of poker strategy, the "why" behind those bet sizes is not always explained in depth.

When it comes to bet sizing, there are many factors to consider. Some of the key ones include the strength of your hand, the range of hands your opponent could have, the texture of the board, and the stack sizes of both you and your opponent.

The purpose of bet sizing can also vary depending on the situation. For example, a smaller bet might be used to induce a call from a weaker hand, while a larger bet might be used to put pressure on an opponent and force them to fold.

Personally, when i'm playing seriously (rare), I try to think through these factors before deciding on a bet size. I consider the range of hands my opponent could have, the texture of the board, and what I want to achieve with my bet. It's important to have a clear purpose behind your bet sizing and to think through the potential outcomes of each decision.

Overall, I think you're right that it's important to delve deeper into the "why" behind poker strategy, including bet sizing. By doing so, we can gain a better understanding of the game and make more informed decisions at the table.

 

[UnderDawg5501]

Thank you, interesting concepts to think about.

I've always been someone who wants to know the "Why" of anything. Just hearing "the standard bet of X" or "bet 2.1BB instead of 2.6BB" etc. isn't education, it's more like do as I do and you'll be fine.

 

[Luvepoker]

Thank you, interesting concepts to think about.

I've always been someone who wants to know the "Why" of anything. Just hearing "the standard bet of X" or "bet 2.1BB instead of 2.6BB" etc. isn't education, it's more like do as I do and you'll be fine.

Smart player you are. Understanding the why will help you big time. I varry my bets all the time. What maybe a bluff this hand is for value the next. I always have a reason for my bets and what I want too accomplish.