Let’s Bluff: Seven Actionable Tips
Bluffing is an art form, much less flashy and dramatic than movies make it out to be.
Assuming that my back-of-the-envelope math is correct, I must have fired over one billion dollars worth of bluffs over the course of my career. If I were shown a highlight reel of my most memorable bluffs, there would indeed be some glorious car crashes. But the majority of my bluffs fired would be ordinary and well within the speed limits.
It’s those normal and unexciting bluffs that make the most money in the long run, and in order to find them, you need to know what you’re looking for.
In fact, not bluffing enough is one of the biggest and most common leaks among poker players.
To Bluff or Not to Bluff
Let's say that you’re on the river with a terrible hand, and you’re trying to decide whether to bet or not. The hand has already gone poorly for you, but if you just check and don't bluff, you can't lose any more money. A lot of players shy away from bluffing, because loss aversion is a stronger force than the excitement of winning.
And in close situations, people tend to think: "Okay, I think it's going to be close. I'm not sure if it's a good or a bad bluff, so I'm just not going to make it."
This approach can win some money against bad players – you start with a very tight pre-flop range, build big pots with big hands only, and otherwise bow out.
But if you’re playing against anybody who’s a half-decent hand-reader and you're missing most bluffs, you'll lose out on a lot of money when you have a good hand.
If you're playing in my game, and I see you show down a winner every time you bet the river, yet I’ve seen you miss multiple bluffs… when you check-raise the turn and I have top pair, I'm just going to fold. You have a better hand than top pair when you're raising, so you're not getting more of my money.
Actionable Tips
So, we know you likely need to find bluffs – in theory, there are percentages you should hit based on your bet size – but how should one decide when to go for it?
Here are seven actionable tips to make your bluffs more profitable:
Tip #1: Attack Boards That Miss Your Opponent’s Range
If your opponent’s range is high card heavy, they won't love the 6❤️4❤️3♠️ flop.
If stacks are deep enough that they can’t just rip it in with KK, consider lots of small semi-bluff raises with gutshots, flush draws, and even pairs.
Tip #2: Be Careful When Draws Miss
When you’ve called two bets on J♦️9♦️4♣️5♣️, and get checked to on the A❤️ river, you need to restrict your bluffs.
Why?
In theory, because you have many missed draws.
In practice, people know & they like to overcall.
Tip #3: Know What You’re Representing
Knowing that your hand and the situation are good for bluffing is a good first step, but it’s not enough.
You need to know what you’re trying to represent with your chosen bet size and whether or not it makes sense with your previous actions. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught bluffs because someone bet a sizing that made no sense with their other actions throughout the hand.
Think of a specific hand you want to represent, review your past action to confirm your story makes sense, and bet like you have it!
Tip #4: Against Weak Players, Focus on Their Hand
Weaker players aren’t adept hand readers. They tend to fold weak hands and call or raise strong hands.
If you can put them on a weak range, attack! They are going to overfold when they have weak hands.
It’s as simple as that.
Tip #5: Against Strong Players, Focus on Your Range
Strong players, on the other hand, are good hand readers.
They'll have a rough idea of whether your range contains more potential value bets or bluffs.
So, you should too.
They’ll also analyze the story you’re telling (Tip #3), so make it a good one!
Tip #6: Know Your Opponent
Can you tell that your opponent is afraid of losing a big pot because he’s been down money all session and finally got even?
How important is this tournament chip stack to this guy? Is this his deepest run ever?
Understand what losing a big pot means to them, and bluff the right players.
Tip #7: Use Leverage
When you’re c-betting the turn or check-raising the flop, your opponent knows they might need to call more than just this bet.
Put yourself in their shoes. Have you ever thought to yourself, “If I call this turn bet, I’m going to face a huge river bet,” and decided you’d rather not deal with it?
Your opponents are human, too. Make it clear early in the hand that you might be threatening their stack, and they’ll be more likely to get out of your way.
One Final Push
If you’re a player who’s under-bluffing in a game with decent players, and you have some fear surrounding it, it’s going to be a much better experience than you think!
You’ve been building a great bluffing image with your default game, so the pots are ripe for the picking! Don’t be surprised if you shed your fear after your first few big bluffs.
It’s also likely that you’re going to go from way under-bluffing to still under-bluffing, but not by as much. What does this mean?
They’re still going to overfold to you if they’re observant.
Your bluffs will often be “unexploitable,” by which I mean: They’ll still be making a mistake in most spots if they call you.
I hope these tips have armed you with some more confidence to take down more than your fair share of pots.
Happy bluffing!
