The Free Card

October 24, 2005

Most people who write about poker tend to make the mistake that everyone that reads about poker knows what all of the specialized lingo means. Examples of words and phrases with unique meanings are tilt, turn, river, value bet, nuts and hundreds of other terms. Of course I am as guilty as the next guy, or gal, so I decided to discuss one of the phrases that I didn’t understand the first time I heard it, the free card.

Often when you raise pre flop in late position, all of your opponents will check to you on the flop. You now have the option to check, and see the turn card for “free”. This is sometimes beneficial, but shows weakness to your opponents who may try to take the pot from you on the turn. Most of the time, the correct place to attempt for a free card is on the turn. With a pre flop raise, your opponents check to you on the flop and you bet, if your opponent’s just call, they will often check to you again on the turn. Remember that in limit, the bets double on the turn, so by checking on the turn to see the river for free, you may save yourself a double bet. Of course the only times you want to try for a free card are when the flop has missed you and you may improve to the best hand and when you are on a draw, such as a flush or open ended straight draw.

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The better your opponents play, the fewer free cards they will allow you to have, especially on the turn. The way you play against your opponents who show strength pre flop also ties into the free card. It is often correct to check to them on the flop, but if you have a strong hand, it may be dangerous to not bet into them on the turn. Unless you are 95% or more sure that your opponent will bet when you want them to, you are better to bet into them and not allow them to see the river for free. In addition, you will occasionally find an opponent who will have a good hand, but not as good as yours, who will cap the betting at this time and create a large pot.

Hopefully now all of you know the meaning of one more poker term, and more importantly, know how to work it into your game. Until next week, good luck at the tables.

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