Hey guys,

I wonder how to decide whether I should Cbet on a flop or not?

At the moment I play mainly sit and Gos and actually I Cbet on nearly every flop. Only multiway on a connected board I sometimes decide not to bet and check/fold because probability is to high someone hit something. But I always think higher stakes players probably start exploiting this behaviour. So I want think about this before it happens.

But feel free to answer for STT and MTT if there is a difference, because in the long run I want to switch to that.

Looking forward to here your opinion

Originally Posted by Nigginger

Hey guys,

I wonder how to decide whether I should Cbet on a flop or not?

At the moment I play mainly sit and Gos and actually I Cbet on nearly every flop. Only multiway on a connected board I sometimes decide not to bet and check/fold because probability is to high someone hit something. But I always think higher stakes players probably start exploiting this behaviour. So I want think about this before it happens.

But feel free to answer for STT and MTT if there is a difference, because in the long run I want to switch to that.

Looking forward to here your opinion

Here is my opinion:

It is really depends on many things, does not matter SNG, STT, MTT. Blind level, tourney structure, where we are in the tourney, what actions were on pre-flop, how many players paid for the flop, what hand I have, what came for flop. So it depends on the situation too much, that I could make a statement about it, generally.

Meantime the Cbet is a common thing for me, but it does not apply in many cases, the best examples in the money bubble or FT bubble. Example: I am in early position around 20BB, most of the players are short-stack, or have equal stack, I got some hand what I can't simply fold, even I would not call an allin - sometimes it happens by my mistake anyway -, example AQs so I mini-raise I got 2 or more calls and there is nothing for me on the flop, so I definitely won't cbet, but I would not cbet against 1 player, if he has more stack than I do. In similar phases of the tourneys, as it can be really painful, getting an allin after cbet, and I can't call, better to check/fold, and it gives me the opportunity to go down to the simple pre-flop allin/fold phase.

I learned something when I raise and I find one or more limpers the cbet is mandatory, because it is very simple if I raised Preflop is because I have a good hand and I should try to find the accumulated pot in the Preflop if I check I'm abandoning the hand or worse making it lose value if I hit something on the flop that's why I always cbet and then read the opponents' moves that will allow me to decide if the hand is worth continuing (this does not apply to free since many times they call with anything)

Originally Posted by Adi8877

It is really depends on many things, does not matter SNG, STT, MTT. Blind level, tourney structure, where we are in the tourney, what actions were on pre-flop, how many players paid for the flop, what hand I have, what came for flop. So it depends on the situation too much, that I could make a statement about it, generally.

Exactly. There are to many variables that goes into flop C-betting to make some broad general statement in a few lines. We also cant see it in isolation, since how we play the flop will influence, how we play the turn and river, if we either check or get action. And of course if we are out of position, then checking also include a decision about, if we are going to check-fold or check-call. But just to mention some variables, I am more likely to C-bet wide in the following situations:

Heads-up pot
The more people saw the flop, the less likely everyone have missed and will fold.

I am in position
Its always uncomfortable to be out of position, and people will also tend to have a weaker range, because they got a price to call, and for both these reasons they will tend to fold more. Also if they call, I have more options including to check back turn and see a free river card.

My opponent fold a lot to C-bets
If you are using a HUD and have a big enough sample, then obviously look at the fold to flop C-bet stat.

My opponent cant afford to mess around
Sometimes in tournaments there will be situations, where your opponent cant really afford to risk chips by making some light float on the flop. Often that is the case near the bubble or on the final table, if someone defends their blinds with a relatively short stack like 20BB. Many players will fold a lot to C-bets in this situation.

The board favour my range
Boards like dry A high are great for C-betting, because many players will think "yeah he raised preflop, so he probably hit that ace."

The board is difficult for him to have hit
On boards like 662 rainbow your opponents will have missed a lot and therefore C-betting can be great. Here however you need to know your customer a little bit, since slightly more advanced players will understand, you have also missed a lot, and they might fight back by raising you with air.

I have any kind of equity
I always look for any kind of equity when selecting hands to C-bet like even a gutshot or a backdoor draw, since it can allow me to barrel more turns. You cant always C-bet in a "one and done" sense, you need to at least sometimes be ready to also fire the turn and maybe even the river. Also sometimes a C-bet, which appears to be a bluff, is actually more of a combo bet, like when you bet with A high and get 22 to fold but QT to call, because it has a straightdraw. On the other sine its always fine to simply give up with your worst hands, which completely missed the flop.

Whether you c-bet depends on many factors. How many opponents called your raise preflop? How do you rate your opponents? Bluffing calling stations is money wasted. And then it also depends on how strong your hand is and which cards came on the flop. Let's say you raised with AK preflop. The flop comes Q83 rainbow. Apart from a weak draw, namely 2 overcards, you have nothing. Still, I'd raise one or two opponents on this flop. They may also not have hit anything and will fold. You can also represent a top pair because you may well have raised with AQ preflop. It looks different if the flop brings T9J and two cards have the same symbol. The flop is very drawy. Many opponents can have hit something. Here I would advise against a c-bet if you haven't hit anything yourself.


If you have top pair with top kicker or an over pair after the flop, I would always c-bet. Unless the flop, for example, brings three cards of the same symbol and you have an overpair and no flash draw. If there is a lot of action going on before or after you then you have probably already been beaten and even if you still have the best hand there are many ways to beat you. Otherwise I would always bet to protect your hand and to place value bets.