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AFTER THE FLOP

After the flop, you would have known five of the seven cards that would have formed your hand. Because three of these five had been community cards, the poker player who had been holding the best hand after the flop would have been a heavy favorite to win. It would have been much harder to out-draw someone in Holdem than in other forms of poker. The cards that would have followed the flop may have improved your hand, but often they would have improved the strongest hand even more.

Immediately after the flop, the questions you should have asked were:

1.Did I have the best hand thus far

2.What cards would have been needed to make my hand the best?

3.Why had my opponents still been playing?

4.What cards had my opponents been looking for?

Answering these would question the skill of ‘reading the flop.’You should consider the following categories of flops:

Flops with scare cards (aces and face cards).

A face card would be a king, queen or jack. Because people will play aces and face cards in Holdem poker, a flop with these cards would usually mean someone would have at least one pair. Therefore the term ‘scare’ card, when an ace or face card were to appear on the board. A person who was to raise before the flop might well be having a big pair or ace-face in the pocket. After a flop with scare cards, that poker player might be having trips or two pair. To continue playing after such a flop, you would have to have at least the top pair and a high kicker.

For instance, with a flop of queen, jack and seven, you would have to hold a queen with another ace or face card to keep playing.

Flops with garbage cards.

A flop with low cards would be less likely to have paired someone. When the flop were to be a two of clubs, a five of hearts and a seven of diamonds, people holding high pairs and high cards in the pocket would have a great advantage since it would be unlikely the flop would have helped anyone. You would have to beware though, of poker players in the blind who will have not called a raise to see the flop. The blind ’s two cards could have been anything since at this point the blind wouldn’t be in the hand by choice.

If a blind were to get excited by a flop of little cards, their hand could have been two pair or better. You shouldn’t underestimate their strength.

Flop with pairs.

To win when this type of flop would have appeared, you would usually have needed to form another pair higher than the one on the board.

If the flop were to be ten of hearts, ten of clubs and three of spades, and you were to be holding an ace of clubs a three of clubs; your two pair would not have won without improvement. You would need to pair your ace. Everyone would have had a pair of tens so anyone with another pair higher than your threes would have beaten you. Also, anytime there was a pair on the flop, it would have been possible for a poker player to have a full house. This would become more likely when there would be high cards on the board. A flop of queen of clubs, queen of spades and the jack of hearts would be more likely to have made a full house for someone than the five of clubs, five of hearts and the eight of diamonds.

Drawing flops.

Would contain matched suits and cards in (or close to) sequence. This type of flop would allow for the creation of straights and flushes. When playing poker, you would have to learn to recognize when they were present and when they weren’t. Any flop containing two cards of the same suit would have attracted players holding two cards of that suit since they would have had a 33% chance of making the flush by the end. Flops with connected cards would attract people looking to draw to a straight.

Flops that allow pat hands.

In poker, flops such as three of the same suit or three connected cards, should not have been played against unless you could have made the flush or the high end of the straight. If there had been substantial betting and raising, someone already had the hand or a good draw, and you should have folded.

Combination flops.

These flops would allow the formation of a variety of monster hands. Consider K♦ K♠ Q♦ . If many poker players have been holding face cards, many monster hands could have resulted from later cards. An Ace-high or King-high straight, Diamond flush, Kings-full, Queens-full, even a royal flush could have occurred in this case. If you were holding Q♠ J♣ , and there was substantial poker betting, you should have got out. Your two pair would have had little chance of improving and many ways to lose. With practice and observation, you would learn to read flops and to judge the kinds of hands the other poker players are playing. You should consider these scenarios:

Scenario 3:

You had been holding the ace of diamonds and queen or hearts and were in a late position. The flop was queen of clubs, seven or diamonds and the three of spades and the action were checked around the table to you. You had been hesitant to bet since you only had a pair of queens. Your pair of queens with an ace kicker would have probably been the best hand at that point and should have been bet. Additional cards would have stood a better chance of improving your hand more than the other poker players’ hands.

For instance, if an ace had appeared, an opponent had been holding an ace, a king would have had a pair of aces, but you would have had aces and queens. Another queen would have given you trip-queens. If a seven had appeared, an opponent had been holding a pair of jacks had jacks and sevens, but you would have still won with queens and sevens. There would have been ways for you to lose: someone might have had a pair of sevens in the pocket, but they would have bet them ahead of you. Most likely you would have had the best hand, and you should have bet accordingly.

Scenario 4:

You had been holding a six of diamonds and seven of diamonds and were in a late position. You and six other poker players had been competing for the pot. The flop had come eight of spades, nine of spades and ten of hearts. There had been a bet ahead of you, a raise, and someone had called that raise. Excited about your straight, you had called the raise. You should have folded. With this many poker players betting and raising, someone would have already had a higher straight (like a jack, queen), and the poker players that had called were on a flush draw or had been holding king-queen straight. Your hand had already been second best and could never have improved. You ought to remember that people play the high cards in Holdem poker. It had been time to get out.

Summary of Post-flop Play

1.Unless you had had the best hand, or had a draw to the best hand, you should not have invested additional money after the flop.

2.Knowing when a mediocre hand had been the best and should have been bet, and knowing when a strong hand had been second best and needed to be folded, would have been the hallmark of a good poker player.