Bluff Your Way to Winning Holdem Pots

Learn the forgotten art of playing Texas Holdem. Get information about when to bluff at poker and when not to.

When playing any poker game and especially Texas Holdem, bluffing to win is a required tactic but a dangerous one. If you perform it well, you win, if you perform it badly, you will lose. At first glance, it seems that it is worth the chance, but no. Unless you can bluff like an expert and unless the conditions are right, do not bluff. Remember that if caught bluffing at Texas Holdem, you will not only lose, but you will lose a big amount of money.

1) Check to see that the group of players playing for the pot is small. The biggest reason why you should do this is that it is easier to fool a small group than a large one. Another viable problem is that if the players are many, some might simply be dumb and not fully understand the true extent of your bluff. Whatever the case you have to take into consideration that a large group is tougher to bluff. Do not argue. It is simply so.

3) If you are in the last position before the dealer and no one has raised the pot raise the hand bigger then anyone raised th4e hand so far. This will tell the other players you have a strong hand, and since no one raised the hand in the last round it means that they have no confidence in their hands or they are hoping to get the card they need in the next round, and a large bet here may make them change their minds about staying in the hand, but do not make the bet ridiculously large the good players at the table will see thru you and will call your bluff.

3) If you are seated in such a way that your turn is last, then, raise the bet more than usual if no one else has raised it before you. This means that none of the others have strong enough cards to win, but they are hoping to get the cards that will turn their hand into a formidable one. Such players may get frightened if they notice you betting with large amounts. This is the time to bluff. But bet just enough to frighten away the meek but not to shake the bold. Then, these will remain thinking you are bluffing.

4) The best time for bluffing is just after you have won a big round where someone forced you to expose your cards and you revealed a strong hand. All the players around will start to gaze at you with respect. Exactly this is the time to strike and bluff the next round while they are still weary of confronting you and the cards you hold. If possible, try and play this Texas hold'em round in exactly the same way you did the previous one and this will confuse them completely.

5) Watch the cards opened up on the deck. If there is a pair down, and if that pair is made up of a value less than nine, try and bluff. Odds are high that others will think you have the rest of that pair or at least a card to make up a triple. Use this and bet accordingly.

f) Just like in other games, you have to memorize the playing patterns of your opponents. Some will hesitate, some will bet always while others will think and then make their move confidently. What you have to do is to look for those particular players that are playing Texas Holdem carefully without taking any risks. These are the ones that you can bluff and make them fold their cards even if your cards amount to a big zero.

Summing it all up:

The better an actor and a liar you are the easier it will be for you to fool people with your bluff. When you do decide to bluff be careful not to go overboard, bluffing is a part of poker and everyone knows it and is always on the lookout for a bluff. Good Luck and Happy Playing.

Michael Renaldo looks at the download times, random number generators and other software information when he ranks a poker room. Go to his online casino examinations for more casino reports.