Keeping the Initiative in Poker
December 20, 2010
In poker then it can be very important to be in a situation where you can put in the last bet. This places your opponent into a situation where they cannot gain any fold equity and need to call and have the best hand.
Slipping into Sit and Go mode for a while, double your money SNG’s are becoming all the rage recently but yet it is important when maintaining your stack that you get in the last bet. So if it has been folded to you and you want to amass chips then shoving all-in is getting the last bet in a way.
How to Keep the Initiative
You have denied your opponent the opportunity to win the pot in two ways by shoving and calling and having the best hand and it is you that has taken the initiative. But this reminds me of one of the most important concepts in no-limit poker and that is the power of getting in the last bet. This is why three barrelling is such a powerful concept because the final barrel on the river usually means getting in the final bet.
Example of Keeping Initiative in a Poker Hand
Let us look at an example here from NL400 and it has been folded around to the button who raises and we have the As-Qs and re-raise from the big blind. The original raiser calls and we see a flop of 10-3-2 rainbow.
We race out and bet the flop and get called. So our opponent has made quite a substantial statement here by open raising and then calling the raise and also calling the flop c-bet.
We then bet the turn as well and that bet also gets called. Whatever comes on the river then I would continue the initiative and bet the river.
This is getting in the last bet if you shove all-in. A weaker betting line would be if you bet the river against a very good and aggressive opponent who then shoved all in.
Importance of Getting the Last Bet
This instance would be presenting your opponent with the opportunity to get in the last bet and place the pressure on you. This is why that if you start to commit to firing multiple barrels that you should commit and go all the way. You will see many strong online players who structure their betting so that they can get in the last bet.
There are very good reasons why this is and your opponent then knows that he has zero fold equity when you have got in the last bet and your opponent does not have the chance to come back over the top of you with a re-raise.
Many players are aware of how important it is to put in the last bet in tournament play and SNG’s but yet may not be aware of how important it is in cash games as well.
It is for this reason why you need to be properly bankrolled in cash games because you need to be more aggressive than you need to be at the lower levels of play.
Want to read more? Take a look at these simple tips for novice poker players.
