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Strategic Raising in Limit Texas Hold'em
One of the most important weapons you have as a poker player is your ability to raise. Betting is what gives poker its soul, and the raise is what drives poker action and forces players to make decisions. In limit hold'em, as the name implies, your ability to raise is limited. How should you include raising in your limit Texas Hold em strategy?
It's a wonderful thing in hold'em to be dealt a high pocket pair such as aces or kings. Flopping a pair with a hand like ace king is great too. The sad fact though, is that due to the fixed nature of the betting limits, hands like these are very difficult to protect. It is almost always correct to call with a drawing hand in limit texas hold'em for just one bet due to the size of the pot. Conversely, if you flop a very powerful hand such as a full house, you would love to get extra bets into the pot, but of course are only allowed to make a single bet. Fortunately, you do have some recourse.
When you play Texas Holdem, it is possible to bet strategically based on your opponents actions in order to thin the field or build the pot. You do this by making plays that will force your opponents out by making it two bets to them when you are trying to thin the field, or will force them to pay two bets when you have a monster.
Let's say you are in early position with AK and a late position player raises. You call, as do two players in between. The flop comes Ah 8h Ts. There is a strong likelihood that you have the best hand at this time. However, when you bet, any flush draw or straight draw will correctly call you. Now you are playing a multi way pot with a somewhat threatening board and a strong enough hand to make folding difficult, which is unfavorable. However, if you know the late position player is an aggressive player who makes continuation bets, it can be a better idea to check in this situation. Now, most flush and straight draws will check, hoping to get a free card. When the late position player bets, you can re-raise. Now it is two bets to the drawing hands, and the odds are no longer as favorable, making it likely you can get heads up with the original raiser, which is ideal for you. If there were no one in between you and the pre-flop raiser, you would bet out, hoping that he would make it two bets and force out the remaining players.
Lets say the flop came Ts Jh Qc. Now you would like to build the pot. Here you can make the opposite play. You bet out, hopefully the two middle players call, and the pre-flop raiser raises again. Now you can flat call, and the pot odds will force your opponents (who don't know you have the nuts) to each put in another bet, and possibly get tied on for more bets later in the hand. Just as in the last example, if there is no one in between you and the pre-flop raiser, you reverse your strategy, checking so that the pre-flop raiser bets again, then raising after the players in between have called.
Raising is a powerful weapon in Texas Holdem. Using these tactics can make raising in limit hold'em an even more powerful weapon. Good luck.
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