Win the Pots with Information Bets

When you are in a situation that allows you to bluff there are times when you have to be prepared to fire the third shot. This particularly happens when you are holding a middle pair like [J][J] or [T][T] and you call a raise in position. When there are only two players involved and you are heads up you cannot simply fold the hand even with a board like [Q][8][2]. The reason is because many times your opponent will be raising with hands like [A][K],[A][J],[A][Q]. Yes, it is possible you would be beat with Ace Queen but you still need to give yourself a chance to win the pot.

With that board I am going to make a small bet to see where I am at in the hand. Many times you will find that either you get flat called or you win the hand outright. Let's say the turn brings a [9] giving you and inside straight draw. Again, you decide to bet out and you get flat called again. You can now be fairly comfortable your opponent is on Ace King otherwise he would have raised. Armed with this information as long as small cards hit on the river you can make a strong bet on the river to win the pot. True, you had the best hand all the way through but many times players will incorrectly fold with a bigger card on the flop instead of making information bets.