-Raising tactics for one-card draws.
When there are several players at a full table that are known to call, an advanced betting strategy that works well is raising on-the-come. This tactic is designed to increase the pot on early streets (mainly fourth street) while most of the players are still in and you have one of the following hands; all with odds that they will hit because the cards you need to complete your hand are live:
[One card draw to a flush]
[One card draw to a straight]
[Top two-pair on fourth street with live outs to fill up to a full house]
[Rolled-up trips with paint card kicker or a card that looks like it may draw to
a straight]
[One card draw to a 7-or-better low in 7 card stud hi-low-split. No raise with
8-low]
When the fourth street card is dealt and you are holding one of these hands, you have an advantage to build the pot on an early street before other players see the fifth street card and decide to fold down. Many players will make the small investment to call and see the fifth street card before making a decision on whether or not to fold. Building the pot early when you have a strong draw may increase your take-down by several bets.
Because a natural thing to do is “check to the raiser”, if the next card that you hit isn’t the one that you needed, most likely you when the players check to you, you can check in last position allowing yourself and others to see the next card for free, while keeping other players in to add to the pot calling if their hand had any improvement.
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Hole/Pocket |
Door |
4th street | 5th street | |
call |
raise |
check for free card or bet |
In this example hand if your correct card falls on 6th street and a bet comes before you, you may want to attempt a check-raise if you know that someone will bet, there will be callers behind him, and it will not fold down too many players that would have added more to the pot by simply calling instead.
Hopefully at this point there will be many players with strong pair or straight draws still in the hand. With one dealing round checked around the table (5th street), when you hit your card and are able to bet out or raise a second time with the made hand, unsuspecting and inexperienced players will still call, still adding to the pot--only now it is on an expensive street. Remaining players will probably commit to calling to the river if their own personal hand has had any improvement.
Of the raise-able hands listed above, the best opportunity to use this strategy is with a one-card-draw to a flush. Callers that will stay in with a raise vs. this hand will usually complete a lesser hand such as a straight, three-of-a-kind and high two pair. Therefore, of the one-card draw hands to raise on-the-come with, a one-card flush-draw is one of your biggest opportunities to increase the pot without much fear of being over turned.
This strategy is preferable for use with family pots and players who are likely to call early raises on an inexpensive street. For three-way and heads-up play, hitting a fifth or sixth street flush after a fourth street come-raise is likely to fold down your players for obvious reasons. If in the case that a hand like this comes up during a three-way or heads-up game, consider if the players you are up against with this hand know how to fold high two-pair and/or will call raises with the hand you have showing. Proceed with betting strategy that will protect your hand against a possible late full house.