The Importance of Flop Texture
Posted by Mal | January 5, 2010 | Posted in: Articles | Comments (0)When you play online poker you must consider flop texture when you analyse your opponents. Changing a setting within your poker room can help immensely. The hint is to use the four colour deck option in the poker room settings. This is particularly useful because whilst you can be playing multiple tables being able to quickly distinguish between the suits of the flop is vital to your success. Avoiding misreading hands can be helped by the obvious colour differences when you are looking at each table at speed.
Your online poker strategy should be to manipulate your opponents but in order to do so you must be aware of the exact nature of the flop in terms of the opportunities and dangers the flop presents to you. Flop texture analysis is almost considered a fundamental aspect of poker most players are aware of but as it is rarely mentioned in poker articles it can be easily forgotten. Bluff timing for example is based on scary flops and representing.
Using Pocket Aces (As-Ac) as our hole cards we can consider what flops are dangerous and what flops are comparatively safe for us. We have raised and received two callers. This in itself is less than ideal because we would prefer to be heads up.
Example Flop 1: Kh-Jh-Th
You should immediately classify this as a terrible flop for Aces. As our opponents did not re-raise and simply called some of the high suited connectors that would give him a flush or strong draw are possible hands they may hold. Whilst it is unlikely they hold the Ace if they do it is probably AQ, AK and they therefore have a fifty per cent chance that it gives them the Royal flush draw holding the Ah. We may already be beat if they have the straight with but AQ. This would be bad news for you holding your prized pocket rockets. It is important to note how the flop devalues your strong hole cards.
I would make a three quarter to a pot sized bet here and depending on the opponent fold to a re-raise. If I am called on the turn hopefully I am given the chance to take the free card to the river. The flop has made things very tricky.
Example Flop 2: 5h 8c 2s
This is a good flop texture for AA but we are holding such a strong hand and there are no obvious draws that would keep our opponents interested when facing a bet. This would be a flop where I may check to try and induce one bet, especially against an aggressive player who would try and steal. Lots of action indicates a flopped set.
Example Flop 3: Q-Q-3
I have not suited the cards deliberately. If you hold a pocket pair here and have limped in, the action suggests that no-one had a high pocket pair so you should bet out. If you raised and faced one or two callers some of the hands they may have like QJ, QT or KQ have you dominated. Always marry the action with the flop texture to work out what your opponents might have.
The way that I try and put an opponent on a hand goes something like this. I will already have the player classified as tight, passive, weak, aggressive etc. Then I consider his betting. Did he call my raise, limp, or re-raise? Depending on the flop, my opinion of him as a player and his action into me (hopefully you are in position most of the time) I use this to consider whether he is likely to be drawing to the win, ahead right now or value betting. Then I consider my own hand. As you can see there is a lot to work out but flop texture and your opponent’s reaction to it in the form of their bets or checks tell you a lot. If they continue to bet into you on a scary board you must work out whether this is a bluff or whether they are a tight player who only bets into scary boards when they have the goods.
By Malcolm Clarke
