How to combat three betting
As you have probably noticed or at least read previously, poker and texas holdem in recent years is becoming much more aggressive. This is due to the fact that the young and up and coming poker players have the ability to play seven years worth of poker in a year online. So they are developing and changing the game of poker constantly.
One of the most significant changes to the game is the aggressiveness of which Texas Holdem is played. It used to be if a player re-raised on the flop, they would be holding either Aces, Kings, Queens or AK. This is no longer the fact. Today’s youth are much more aggressive and will re-raise (three betting) with marginal hands.
Combatting the three bet
One of the worst things you can do if your opponent has re-raised your bet is call, especially if your out of position. With the thought in your head to see a flop. This is because rarely will you improve on the flop with medium strength hands. Also your opponent also has position on you meaning he as the control of the pot, making it hard for you to take the pot down.
The two most recommended moves if you have been re-raised is to either fold and give up the hand, or re-raise his re-raise (four betting) giving you the advantage if he calls. It is also important to know what type of player that has re-raised you initial raise. As if the player is tight the likely hood is that he has a big hand and re-raising will only give him the option to move all-in. Whereas if it is a loose aggressive (LAG) player that re-raises your raise, this might be a good time to re-raise again.
Its also important to remember you can use four betting like three betting for value. For example, if you have Q-Q and your opponent re-raises alot you know your Queens are probably good. But you can also use four betting as a bluff when you think your opponent is three betting light, meaning he would have to fold to your re-raise.
But it is also very important to know the range of the three better, as well as take into consideration your opponents position before making th decision to four bet. It is possible to flat call a three bet, but this should only be done in the right situation. For example if you have position and you know that your opponent doesn’t have a ready made hand like Aces, Kings, Queens. But its important to remember that you are not calling to hopefully hit a hand, because most of the time you probably won’t. The reason you have flat called is because you are planning on taking the pot if your opponent shows any weakness or the board looks bad for your opponent.
The reason you need to bring four betting into your arsenal is because as the game of poker has become more aggressive , so has three betting. So as three beating has become more common, so has four betting. This is because the main goal in Texas Holdem is to keep the pressure on you opponent. This is because re-raising pre-flop is still a very strong move and is hard to combat against. This is because it asks the original raiser alot of hard questions leaving then a difficult choose to make about there hand.
I highly advice adding both three betting and the ability to combat three betting to the list of possible moves you can make. If you want to discuss this further pop into the GrinderX strategy forum to learn more.
