It is much easier to manipulate the pot odds that others are receiving in no limit or pot limit Texas Hold ‘Em than it is in the limit version of the same game. This is because you can easily make the pot odds so poor for your opponent, that unless they have a monster hand, they should immediately fold. For example, if someone is chasing a fifth flush card on the river, they have a 5.1-1 chance of making their hand. If you realize they are chasing a flush draw, you can instantly make their bet a losing proposition by doubling the size of the pot: a $50 bet into a $50 pot will make your opponents pot odds 2-1 ($100 in the pot with the opponent having to call an additional $50). Since the effective odds they are receiving from the pot are large than the odds of their making the hand, they will lose 5.1 times for every time that they win. Again, this does not guarantee that they will lose every hand. There is always a roughly 16 percent chance that they will win (1 / 6.1 = .163). But the times that you win will greatly outweigh the times that your opponent wins over the long term, thus ensuring a profit over a large enough sample.
The big bet into a big pot can backfire, though. Oftentimes people will employ this strategy as a bluff. If you have no hand, this can be disastrous since you will most certainly lose if you are called. If your opponent suspects that you are bluffing or will bluff, they can set this up to trap you if they have a strong hand. Remember that bluffs work best on small pots since there is less incentive for others to stay in the hand if their investment and return will be minimal.
The semi-bluff is an important distinction. If you have a realistic chance of improving your hand to the winning one, sometimes a large bet can pay off. Be careful that you have a good read on your opponents, though. You most certainly do not want to hit the hand you were hoping for only to lose to a better one.
Tags: Big pot hands, Pot odds in your favor, strong poker hands
