Poker Probing with Bets
10/11/08 18:39 Filed in: Poker-Tips
Online poker can make finding out your opponent’s habits and play style difficult but many superb internet-only professionals are able to employ a few unique tools to overcome anonymity and figure out their opponents.
Probing with bets simply refers to the act of spending a bit of money to force your competitors into the open. Since you can’t rely on visual tells in online poker, you’re often forced to raise in order to determine what kind of hand your opponents have. Probe bets are the best way to do this; putting some of your bankroll down as a sacrifice in order to figure out how much others are willing to gamble on a hand.
Obviously probe bets are only a wise move when you actually have a hand worth spending a bit of money on. Throw a small number of chips into at least the first turn if you think your pocket is enough to take the hand with. If others respond by upping the pot then you know they probably have something worth playing as well. Of course it’s worth mentioning that others may do the same thing to you (or try to bluff you out of the hand) but experimenting with probe bets is essential toward improving your game.
Probing with bets simply refers to the act of spending a bit of money to force your competitors into the open. Since you can’t rely on visual tells in online poker, you’re often forced to raise in order to determine what kind of hand your opponents have. Probe bets are the best way to do this; putting some of your bankroll down as a sacrifice in order to figure out how much others are willing to gamble on a hand.
Obviously probe bets are only a wise move when you actually have a hand worth spending a bit of money on. Throw a small number of chips into at least the first turn if you think your pocket is enough to take the hand with. If others respond by upping the pot then you know they probably have something worth playing as well. Of course it’s worth mentioning that others may do the same thing to you (or try to bluff you out of the hand) but experimenting with probe bets is essential toward improving your game.
