Check-raise Bluffing

I want to talk about check-raise bluffing in open play, especially against more skilled opponents, good TAGs and LAGs. Better opponents are something you will have to face if you want to move up through the mid-stakes and improve as a player. They can and should be avoided of course, but very often you will be competing against one or two fish and four or five decent regulars.
Knowing how to play effectively against regular players and go a level beyond them will make you a much tougher player. In smaller player fields, you will become feared and will be actively avoided by other good regulars. This has the added benefit of allowing you to get away with a lot more, purely because you have a psychological advantage. Being feared at the tables is a very good thing.

Balancing Your Play

Check-raise bluffing is all part and parcel of being a balanced six-max player. You cannot just check-raise turns or rivers with the nuts, as you will very quickly become exploitable by players doing their homework. Check-raising marginal hands is generally somewhat ‘fancy play syndrome’ at low- to mid-stakes, as range-merging will generally be inferior to folding or check-calling without a lot of history.

For example, you have Ac-Js out of position on a Kh-Jc-4h-5d-6s board, check-call the flop, check-call the turn and check-raise the river. If you had an awful lot of history, this could be a spectacular spot for thin value, but generally you will be turning a made hand into a bluff. Your raise will only be called by better hands and for the most part it’s just spewy.

In this instance, the range of hands with which you can check-raise the turn are very strong hands, big and small draws and bluffs. The range of hands you can check-raise the river with are very strong hands, strong hands and bluffs. This is fundamental to understanding the check-raise bluff and it is very important to utilise it as an effective weapon. You have to recognise that a check-raise on the turn represents a much wider range than a check-raise on the river, which is still the rarest bluff in six-max poker.

When To Check-raise

Generally you will know when you should start to incorporate check-raise bluffs against good regulars. As with all bluffs, they are generally high variance plays, with the likelihood of success decreasing on later streets. Most 100 big blind stacks will be committing close to 50 big blinds with a turn check-raise in a raised pot, which presents fairly good pot odds for your opponent.
Usually you will have to start using check-raise bluffs to combat good players frequently floating your continuation bets. You might decide to incorporate more check-raise bluffs as you feel your range is way too polarised. You will need a clean image, if not over a decent timeline then at least for the most recent sessions you have played against the specific villain.

Who To Target

Fancy plays where you represent very narrow ranges only work against good players who can hand read well and understand betting patterns. Your image is crucial to being able to get away with well-timed check-raise bluffs, so if you play 32/24/3 don’t write in whining that your beautiful river check-raise against a good regular didn’t work.

Also take into account the players present. If you check-raise in a multi-way pot and a nit has the lead pre-flop, your range starts to look a lot stronger than if you just check-raised some reasonable LAG who is getting really out of line all the time. Check-raises in multi-way pots often look stronger than heads-up moves.

Make sure when you elect to check-raise you make your bets as profitable as possible. If you just want to check-raise an opponent off a missed flush draw, you don’t need to go crazy with the betting. If, however, you want to check-raise a guy and get him off an overpair, you have to make it painful. Too small and they just call.

Check-raising The Turn

On the turn you should be careful about check-raising semi-bluffs, especially if you won’t be able to continue if shoved on. For example, you are playing $2/$4 and open-raise with Ah-5h to $14 under the gun. You are called by a good TAG on the button with a $600 stack that you cover. On a flop of 5c-2h-3s you bet $22 and get raised to $64. You elect to call with a very deceptive draw as you have a note that he never bluff-raises flops. The turn is the Jh. The pot is now $156 and the villain bets $95.

This is generally a bad spot to check-raise bluff, primarily because you have a dominating draw. Against his value raising range on the flop we do have good equity by the turn but probably little or no fold equity. Twelve clean outs is not enough to check-raise all-in with on the turn and given that he won’t be folding, calling is probably the better play.

Good spots to check-raise semi-bluff on the turn are against more creative TAGs. In the hand above you can exploit aggressive tendencies and wide ranges by check-raising the turn with a big draw. You always have good equity but most importantly a lot of fold equity. The stack sizes are not ideal, as if you check-raise and he shoves it will be a reluctant call, but you will have a minimum of 25% equity.

Planning Ahead

You should always have a plan for later streets. Let’s say you are playing a good LAG out of position. He calls a three-bet from the button when you are in the small blind holding Qh-Jc with stacks a little over 150 big blinds deep. The Ks-4c-5s flop sees you continuation bet and your opponent call. The turn is a 9s. You check, he bets and you raise. This is fine as he will rarely have a flush in his range or a set or AK/KQ. Your range looks super strong and it is really hard for him to continue. For what it’s worth, it’s a fold if he shoves. We don’t put our money in with a gutshot and two undercards no matter what price.

Check-raising the turn is interesting. Bear in mind, the common thoughts of most mid-stakes TAGs is, ‘I will not go broke with one pair when I am check-raised on the turn.’ If the board is getting uglier to a TAG’s range on the turn, check-raise and threaten his stack. Check-raise lines which work well also include targeting a TAG who checks back his one-pair type hands on the turn for pot control.

For example, let’s say you call a three-bet with 6s-5s when deep-stacked against a standard TAG. The 3s-7c-9d flop gives you a double gutshot, but you don’t check-raise as you don’t want to be blown off your hand by an aggressively played overpair. The turn is a 6h and the villain checks behind. The river is a Js and you check-raise him big. This is a check-raise that works well because we kind of know the villain’s hand is some big pair.

He checks back on the turn, because he hates being check-raised. But he feels like a nit if he checks back Qc-Qs on the river. When you check-raise you give him a really tough decision. Your line is conducive with a super wide range of very strong hands and has a high chance of success if villain is a decent thinking player.

Bluffing The River

River check-raise bluffs are sexy but they are generally ill advised and you need a good reason to even think about using them. A great spot to check-raise bluff the river is where you have a missed draw, but your opponent knows you can have a huge hand. If there is a flush on board and you have a clean image then your range looks super strong. They will feel they can profitably value-bet but they cannot call a shove with most of their range without a very good reason. Just ensure that your story make sense.