But what is stronger than a bet? A check-raise, of course! It’s like the Muhammad Ali rope-a-dope against George Foreman. You soak up the damage of a bet and then coming out swinging with a raise of your own. The check-raise is a sign of ultimate confidence and is the default line taken by players who have called out of position and hit a set with their pocket pair.
Check-raising with two pair and sets is the ideal line against a player who has previously proved unable to get away from an overpair or top pair, good kicker once they have declared their strength. Against other players check-raising with a wider range of hands is advisable, particularly against aggressive players in late position. In fact, check-raising 8-8 on a relatively dry board, such as Qc-7d-5h, is a very good line to take. Leading out (aka donk-betting) is going to fold out hands that you’re beating and also open yourself to a player floating or raising you off your hand. A check-raise here will trap you extra chips from someone c-betting with Ace-high and may even fold out a hand beating you like 9-9 through J-J, depending on who you’re playing and the image they have of you.
By mixing the occasional marginal hand into your solid check-raises you’ll be more likely to get action the times you’re ahead. And that’s always a good thing.
Semi-bluffing
The classic check-raise is the semi-bluff with a draw, preferably the nut flush, but any draw will do (okay, maybe the gutshot isn’t a great idea). The check-raise with a draw plays on the key tenet of no-limit Hold’em, and that is that there are two ways to win a hand: by having the best hand or making your opponent think you do.
You can take the pot down right there and then or you can win by hitting your draw – and possibly overcards – on the turn or river. This is particularly effective with an all-in shove given the correct stack sizes. Assuming you’ve got fold equity, the check-raise shove is a great way to pick up a tidy pot – especially if your opponent has enough chips to fold and continue if you make the move in a tournament.
Read Part 1...
Read Part 2...