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Message: [QUOTE="John A, post: 2329690, member: 88730"] [B]Alright so point #3. Being Lost on the Turn.[/B] I typically stop students when going over hands and ask them what their plan is from the flop on. The turn is generally the biggest mess. I guess that's why they say the turn is what separates the pretenders from the contenders. So the first thing I get students to do is to make sure they are asking themselves one important question on the turn, which generally makes the rest of the hand MUCH easier. That question is: [B]If I check this turn, am I turning my hand into a bluff catcher or am I giving up on my hand?[/B] Then add: Am I betting for value, or am I setting up another bluff on the river? But the first question is most important for beginning players. You want to make sure you are getting the correct value from your hands, and that you know how to [U]control the hand properly[/U]. Most of the time you're going to have medium strength to really weak hands on the turn. You want to make sure you're playing those spots effectively. Let me give an example of what I mean by controlling the hand, and why you should be asking the above question. You open JTs in the CO, and a player in the BB calls. Flop comes: Ks Th 7c. Your opponent checks, and you make a standard c-bet. The turn comes: 6c. Your opponent checks. This is where you ask that question - If I check, am I turning my hand into a bluff catcher? You need to be clear about this question before you decide what you're doing. If you check in spots (and similar spots like this), then you should know either A) my opponent IS capable of bluffing, and I'm checking to control the pot and snap off a bluff or B) My opponent is not generally capable. If the answer is B - then you need to know how bad your opponent is. The weaker they are, the more likely it is they should be. [B]If they fall somewhere in between, and you're NOT sure, then it's generally better to bet. [/B]Why? Because then you're just going to be guessing on the river, AND you will have lost control of the hand and how much you pay. So say you bet a little over half on the turn, which in this case is ~8.5 bbs. [U]If you are willing to call a bet of at least that on the river because you're somewhere in between on your read of your opponent, then it's better to bet yourself for a couple of reasons.[/U] 1) You set the price. If you bet the flop and turn, your opponent will generally check the river. Then you can decide to value bet again or check behind. 2) A percentage of the time in these marginal spots you can push out better hands. In this example, QT might sometimes fold. If your opponent is capable of bluffing, and you're confident that you want to bluff catch, then just be clear on that. Keep in mind you don't know how much you'll be calling. Lastly, if you're looking to bet the turn to setup a river bluff, make sure you have an opponent capable of folding (ir, not a sticky fish), and that you size your bets to make a good size river bluff that has good fold equity. I hope that helps some people, as I've found just adding those questions has dramatically improved the confidence in people I've worked with. It might sound somewhat simple, but if you get in the habit of always asking yourself, it makes the rest of the hand that much easier to play. Hope everyone has a great weekend. [/QUOTE]

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