Bluff Your Way To Fortune With Texas Holdem
A very good bluff that does not even look like a bluff is raising before the flop with Big Slick Ace/King. Before you do this you must be mindful of your position on the table. Cool, if you are the dealer or acting just before the dealer but of less use as you travel back toward the blinds.
Before you decide that you are going to bluff. Look at the reward if you pull it off. The first consideration is how much money is in the pot. There is no point in risking a bluff if the payoff is low. Some people call this pot odds, and have a whole lot of complicated calculations to make before they decide. I just look at it. There is either a large stack of chips or a small stack. If there is a large stack of chips I will attempt a bluff. Bluffing is simply selling an idea. The idea is that you have the best hand. It helps a lot that your opponent can see right on the table that there is a possible straight or flush. Is there a pair? You might have three of a kind or a full house.
I often decide to try and run a bluff even before the pocket cards are delt. Of course, almost as often I decide against it just as soon as the betting starts. Do not try and run a bluff if there are indications that more than one person is holding a good hand. A bluff works best if it is run against mediocre hands. Even the one person holding a good hand can cost you lots of money, make him think you are a moron, and mark you as a loose player.
Don't show your hand to any spectators in an attempt to bluff. Everybody knows that if you show your hand after the cards are on the table then you are probably bluffing