How do you play when you flop the nuts?

[EvertonGirl]

I will bet out if Villain is a calling station.

I will x/c if opponent always bets when I check.

I will also x/c if I wasn't the preflop aggressor.

 

[Peppinotom]

I never flop the nuts, but I guess I would wait for the one who pretends to have the nuts and call him down, when he bets and raise on the river.
I he doesn't bet, I bet on the turn.

 

[ritehere]

If it is a freeroll or a very low limit game,then it is a quick shove all-in. Because there is almost always some donk that will call you. A high limit tourney or a live tourney, I would check or call the flop and either the turn or river would be my action point depending if any players in front of me bets that makes it worth my wild to build a larger pot.

 

[BnaD]

Bet for value! If you think you are very far ahead bet small. If you think that the opponent could have connected with the board bet big. I would rather bet and have someone with no hand fold than not bet and lose value to the 2nd nuts. A lot of it is villain dependent. Check to and trap aggressive players. Let's say you defend 54s in the BB against 1 villain. Flop comes 554. Chances are villain has not connected to this flop. I'm going to check it to the river. So many times an A or K will come on the river and the villain will be confident they are ahead and BAM. Let's say they hit a backdoor flush they wouldn't have otherwise gotten if you had bet your boat 3 streets. Good Luck!

 

[pirateglenn]

Some excellent responses guys, keep them coming!

 

[JustSoPro]

Playing live or online? When playing online I am more often to cbet the flop and then check/call the turn(check/raise sometimes depending on board texture) and throw what looks like a "pot steal"ing bet on the river(depending on board texture may check/raise or just instant shove, it depends on what I think my opponent may have).

Playing live, vs calling stations I will bet into aggressively and vs aggressive players I will check/call flop and check/raise river(If an A or draw completes that i beat comes on the turn, I may just call hoping they hit the A or draw so they will barrel the river). I only play up to 2-5 live, so players are quite exploitable

 

[blueskies]

As in most situation, depends. Are the nuts absolute nuts or very close to it? Like if you have JJ and the flop is JJ9?

If you flop a set of 8s and the board is 89T with 2 diamonds then your nuts are very vulnerable.

In the first case, slow play cuz you hope villain(s) hit their hands. In the 2nd, bet aggressively but slow down if bad cards come.

In most situations you don't wanna be giving villain freebies. Now if you called to set mine and you are OOP then it's ok to check raise. But especially in multiway pots, unless you have the nut flush, FH or better, it's not a good idea to slow play.

 

[Swanny19735]

This is an interesting topic as many players go ultra cautious and look for value on several streets..there is however statistically a great chance of making more money/winning chips when you bet out..or is there?

Tell me how you play when you flop the nuts with multi way callers and also one or callers..how do you keep them interested or does the board need to do that for you..for example, how many times have you flop the nuts and decided to go to value town only to see the board run out a chop or a flush or boat?

Let me know how you play the best hand..do you bet into it or wait for commitment elsewhere and trap?

I look forward to hearing from you

pirateglenn

It very much depends on the circumstances. How the other players have been betting so far. My position on the table. I want to extract as much value as possible from the hand. Each situation requires a different answer. I have found as my experience grows so too does my ability to make the most of these situations when they arrive. Does anyone else agree?

 

[bombardinho]

It's an interesting question. The fact is that depending on various factors - position at the table, chips in the stack, tournament or cache, board structure, which opponent opposes us - we will play our nuts differently. And getting the maximum value is just the task of preparing before the session. In general, it is recommended to extract maximum from the situation and put 3 streets, play aggressively.

 

[Samsamsonite]

For me, the best scenario is few hours after you've been at the table. You know the player, and that should dictate how you play those nuts.

 

[celoshida]

it depends on your opponent.
slowplaying it works against a maniac.

when playing small stakes, I think it's better to build the pot cause there are bunch of calling stations.

 

[reppair]

I try to not get spotted having it. Sometimes it goes away without reward but sometimes it pays back big..

 

[vpashuta]

Depends on the board and the players at the table. On a super tight table checking or a small bet seems to work best for me.

 

[xexeu]

So the best thing to do is to apply slow play and just pay, let him think he has the best hand, so it is almost certain that another bet will come. On the river you can make a big raise because he will already be committed to the pot for having bet a lot and will probably pay.

 

[vinnie]

As most people have said, it really depends. Some of the things that I consider are:

• SPR (stack to pot ratio). Is the pot big compared to the remaining stacks? If it is, my opponent(s) are less likely to fold and it will be easier to get the rest of the money in.
• SPR (again) Is the pot very small compared to remaining stacks? If it is, I am inclined to bet/raise. If I check/call the flop and then raise later in the hand, my strength is super-obvious. It is going to take 4-5 bets to get the money in, which means I can't expect my opponent to do it on their own. A bet/raise on the flop is not nearly as threatening as one on the turn or river. It is the middle SPRs that lean me towards checking. Those SPRs of 4-7 have plenty of money to get in, but it doesn't take a big raise to get them in, and too much aggression on the flop makes it obvious that my opponent's whole stack is at risk.
• How often have I been c-betting or betting the flop if the raiser failed to c-bet? If I have been very actively trying to pick up pots on the flop, a bet doesn't mean that I have anything. If I haven't been betting many flops, and my opponents are aggressive, then I might just not bet. I will let them do it. If my opponents are passive, I have to bet. They won't do it for me.
• What do my opponents think of me? What do they think I might have? Do I have any notes on the players? Is my hand face up? The answers to these questions help me determine how they would react to a bet.
• How likely is it that my opponent has a hand that can call a bet?
• How likely are the nuts to change on a later street? Can I get the money in before the nuts change? If the nuts are very likely to change, and there will still be a lot of money left after they change, I am less likely to put in a big bet. If they are likely to change but I can get almost all the money in, then I am more likely to put in that bet. This is more of a concern in a game like Omaha.

There's probably more. But that is just some of it. Here's an example hand. It's one where things are close, because it *should* be obvious that I have the nuts and it is hard for my opponents to have anything to call with. Both of which usually mean slow-play.

$0.10 PL Hi (6 max) - Omaha Hi - 5 players

Hero (CO): 360.1 BB
BTN: 159.4 BB (VPIP: 48.31, PFR: 19.35, 3Bet Preflop: 5.08, Hands: 623)
SB: 88.5 BB (VPIP: 28.57, PFR: 0.00, 3Bet Preflop: 0.00, Hands: 7)
BB: 195.7 BB (VPIP: 85.82, PFR: 56.74, 3Bet Preflop: 22.92, Hands: 142)
UTG: 196.2 BB (VPIP: 38.71, PFR: 0.00, 3Bet Preflop: 0.00, Hands: 31)

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has

fold, Hero raises to 3.5 BB, BTN raises to 12 BB, fold, BB calls 11 BB, Hero raises to 48 BB, BTN calls 36 BB, BB calls 36 BB

Flop: (144.5 BB, 3 players)
BB checks, Hero ???
​

Let's think about the above points and how they relate to this hand.

• SPR = Very low: 0.81 to 1.08 -- There is basically one pot-sized bet left. This makes me lean towards betting.
• I have been c-betting only 45% of the time at this table. This is not super-aggressive, especially for omaha. So, it's neutral. I could go either way.
• I have notes on the button from other sessions. Including "is tired of me pushing junk, expect to be raised or check-raised on flops when betting against this player". So, we have a history where he's caught me being over-aggressive on flops. This makes me more inclined to bet, because he won't be a believer. The BB, I have less history with. But, they're aggressive and like to bet. They don't fold to a lot of c-bets, but this flop is not likely to have anything they can call. My hand is also pretty face-up. I 4-bet very deep. That's almost always AAxx. The BTN knows that I can get out of line for 3-bets, but does he know the difference for 4-bets and 3-bets?
• This flop is horrible for my opponents. There's no draws. There's an Ace (which means I *should* have a set). Realistically, they should not be able to call a bet on this flop.
• The nuts aren't too likely to change on the turn. They could change by the river. I can get the money in before the nuts change. This means checking is probably fine.

All of that, and I don't really have a strong case for either decision. But, overall, I think a bet is slightly better in this case. The pot is big, so even winning just what is out there is not a bad result. My notes on the BTN suggest that he expects me to be too aggressive. He might get it in his head to play sheriff. I can't just bet my weak hands to him, I would get slaughtered. Having two opponents means that when the nuts do change, it will be more likely that I am beat. Getting one or both of them to fold is better for me.

Hero bets 137.3 BB, BTN calls 111.4 BB and is all-in, fold​

So, I bet full pot. No need to be subtle here. Any bet is the same as an all-in when the SPR is this low. The BTN decides to look me up. Guess he did think I could be betting worse. Glad I had those notes on him. The BB folds, that was expected.

 

[DeeNice002]

Hello.
It all depends on each particular situation. Personally, I do not have standard solutions. It is important to understand how your opponents play and take into account the position at the table.

I agree but i always check the flop if more than three players in the hand otherwise i raise on flop if they check to me

 

[spottedflyer]

i try to get as many chips as i can of course try not to scare the opponents off and it should do the trick

 

[Nathan Smith]

Not every nuts on the flop is the same value.

When you flop a straight on a board with a flush draw you can be outdrawn by the flush approximately 40% of the time - so you should bet for value and protection.

When you flop quads or better it is almost impossible to lose and you also lock the board down (it is very unlikely that you opponents can continue against a bet - so slow playing may be optimal).

 

[bc2017]

Dependent on circumstances, if you have the nuts with 3 cards on the board but there is a potential for someone else to come ahead, play with caution. Also dependent on other players, some people fold easily to any bet and some only to sizeable bets - I usually start with small bets and gradually ramp it up as I go through the streets.

 

[cskwin]

It reminds me of one hand wsop with two Popular pokers pros playing
A10 & AA
and the board flop with 10-10-A
small raise - reraise and in the end you can guess who loose the very first hand of 10,000$ buyin game. as the previous comment. poker end of the day. full of fun to see some hands how it turns out.

 

[whiskers77]

It depends on the board and on what range I put my opponent. When it is likely that he hit something on the board, than I can throw out a bet. If I think, he probably hit nothing, I will check, so that he can improve his hand somehow and is willing to pay me out.

 

[akmost]

The general ''rule'' says that you slow play at least the flop and bet the turn.Why is that?Simply because on the turn the opponents still waiting to hit something on the river in order to improve his hand, so you must extract some value from that. If you wait to bet on the river for value most likely the average player will fold.

Furthermore this is why you should play balanced. If you have prepared the ground you can play those spots super aggressively. Show them and let them think that you also play aggressively your missed draw etc. Apparently all the above depend on the opponent(s) bur the previous posters have already mentioned it!

 

[This Fish Chums]

Betting trick when flopping the nuts.

There's probably more. But that is just some of it.

I don't think there's a whole lot more to it. Excellent analysis. I do have one trick I like to play.

When I flop the nuts and it is not susceptible to being outdrawn, I Like to bet the flop as though I either hit mid-pair or had a mid-range pocket pair. This bet will vary based on each player, but the key is to bet like you have that mid-range pair.
Then, whatever the turn is, bet as though you missed the turn and bet slightly lower making it look like you're scared of the board.
On the river, bet big, but not all-in. This makes it look like you are bluffing or, at best, hit 2 pair which is more likely to get a big call / re-raise by anyone who has a halfway decent hand.

This doesn't always work, and there are times you do get outdrawn (which is why it's important to immediately bet big once there is a chance your opponent can outdraw you), but when it does work you can easily "near" double-up this way.

NOTE: Trips are NOT the nuts. This has to be done with a minimum of a straight.
ALSO NOTE: Two of a suit on the flop and/or a pair on the flop is reason to not do this with a straight flop and to bet big to push people out of the hand.

 

[Grearix]

To let the other players believe you are trying to bluff here can be a good tactic. But everything depends on the situation.

 

[Jane Franklin]

Depends on the opponents and position. Usually, I make bets in a standard way. Sometimes slowplaying. But most of the time I don t make differences between my nuts and nothing hands. I don't wanna make my opponents read me.