Understanding the Blocking Bet
One concept that is not understood but a larger number of poker players is the idea known as the blocking bet. A player that thinks they will most likely have the best hand after the river card but are not certain uses a blocking bet. Blocking bets are usually made when you are in the hand with a single opponent as it is not nearly as effective against more than one opponent. In order to make a blocking bet you must be out of position so that for the betting round that happens after the river you are first to act. Being out of position and first to act is usually a disadvantage but by using a blocking bet before the river you take the inherent disadvantage that comes with being out of position and turns it into an advantage instead. There are numerous advantages to utilizing a blocking bet but there are a few that are more critical than others.
One such advantage is that it allows you to set the price for the information you are trying to get, namely whether or not you do, in fact, have the best hand. For example, if the pot is 120 and you decide to make a blocking bet of 80 to make it 200 in the pot there are a few different things that your opponent can do. The first thing that your opponent can do is fold his hand. This, obviously, not only wins you the hand but it proves that your suspicions that you were holding the best hand were almost certainly right. If you didn’t, something you will most likely not find out, it means that you happen to be playing against a weak opponent which is all the better for you anyway.
The next thing that can happen is that your opponent can call. By taking action first and setting out a blocking bet you are dictating the cost to see the river for your opponent. If you had checked and left this up to your opponent and your opponent had put out a larger bet, the decision of whether to call or fold would then be on you and it would be a more difficult decision to make. Not only are you avoiding a potentially higher cost to see the river but you are taking control away from your opponent and giving it to yourself.
Your opponent can reraise you in which case, you are then presented with a decision to make. Whether or not you call the raise is dependent on a number of factors including how your opponent has been playing, what the board looks like, how good your hand is, and the relative sizes of your chip stack when compared with the stack of your opponent. The first thing that you should do in this scenario is take a step back and think through how your opponent has played the hand to see if you may have pegged them to a different hand. If you think that you did, in fact, peg them to a hand that they probably do not have and you are beat, you can fold and get away from the hand for less than you would have if you had checked and let your opponent bet. In that instance you would have probably called the bet and had another chance to lose more chips on the river. If, however, you think that your analysis was right and you still have the winning hand, you can decide to smooth call or raise depending on what you feel is right in your best judgment.
In the end, poker is a game about control and the more control that you have over the game, the better off your chances will be. By using a blocking bet, you take control of the game away from your opponent and put it into your own hands. Instead of accepting the inherent weakness in being out of position, you combine the knowledge of the hand and your belief that you will be holding the best hand with your position and turn it into an advantage by forcing your opponent to react to your decision instead of the other way around.
Posted by Joel
on Jun 1 2010. Filed under Poker Strategy.
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