Post Flop Plays to Win More Chips

Ready to win more chips in the post flop head to head? Check out these three easy ways that you can exploit your opponents and boost your win rate.

#1: Bet Bigger on Ace-High Boards If You Have an Ace If you’re on the flop, you’re holding an ace, and there’s not a bunch of other good hands out there, don’t be afraid to put your chips in the pot. One common mistake that a lot of players make is being too passive here. Checking is obviously bad because we want to bet for value, but we also should pay attention to our bet-sizing.

Would you rather bet half pot, ¾ pot, or 1.25 pot here? While many players would go for the smaller sizing because its “safer,” you’re leaving chips on the table! If your opponent

does end up calling, wouldn’t you rather it be a bigger bet? Don’t be afraid to rip it in.

#2: Raise Pairs on the Turn Against Weak Leaders Let’s say that the flop either checked around or you called a small bet. You’re pretty sure that your opponent doesn’t have any monsters in their range, and they make another smallish bet into you. You’re holding a pair. What do you do?

A lot of people will just call here, but this is wrong for two reasons. First, you’re going to let them realize their equity for all their draws. Second, you’re going to be able to get value from a bunch of worse hands if you do call. Next time raise it up! #3: Check-raise ace-high boards when you have the best kickers You’re holding AK in early position after calling a preflop bet. The flop comes something like AT3. What do you do?

A lot of people will instinctively check-call here, thinking that they want to string their opponents along and let them keep betting. The problem, however, is that it’s really easy to sniff this out. If your opponent can’t beat aces with a good kicker on the turn, then they’ll probably stop betting.

However, if you make a big check-raise, then they might think that your range is polarized, that you could be making a bluff here, and convince themselves to call with something worse. So, either they fold, and you win the pot outright, or they call while you have tons of equity, meaning they’re basically donating chips to your stack.