When Do You Check In Poker
Posted : admin On 4/7/2022Hand Guide: Preflop > Flop > Turn > River
In poker, players are allowed to check when no one has placed a bet before them. This means when you check, the players who occupy later positions have the option to bet, raise or check as well. If they place a bet, the action comes back to you. If a player wishes to remain in the game without betting, they 'check.' This means, in effect, that the player is making a 'bet of nothing.' A player may check provided no one before them in that betting interval has made a bet. If another player has bet, they cannot. You can only check-raise when you are playing OOP. When you check in position (IP), you will just see the next community-card, and hence a check-raise is not possible. Rightly used, the check-raise is a sneaky weapon. If you aim to play game theoretical-optimal Poker, you must check-raise with good frequency’s. In the game of poker, the play largely centers on the act of betting, and as such, a protocol has been developed to speed up play, lessen confusion, and increase security while playing.Different games are played using different types of bets, and small variations in etiquette exist between cardrooms, but for the most part the following rules and protocol are observed by the majority of poker.
To make a play (check, bet, call, raise, or fold) at the required time, compare to in turn. Acting out of turn A player in poker that either announces their actions or physically plays before their turn (checks, folds etc). Sometimes players act out of turn intentionally to get a read out of other players.
River strategy overview.
When you make it to the river (which actually happens a lot less often than you might think), all the players have been given the final card on the board with which to make their best 5-card hand. River strategy is different to strategy on other betting rounds because with every other street there are always more cards to come to help players improve their hands, but on the river you are stuck with what you are given.
The river betting round is free from all the complications of pot odds, implied odds and all other types of mathematics that are involved with drawing hands.
However, this does not necessarily mean that the river is an easier round to play. River strategy can become very tricky as players will either ‘have it’ or they won't, and so the players who don't make the hands that they were hoping for will sometimes make one last effort to try and take down the pot with a big bluff.
Therefore to play the river well, you should always think about all of the information you have gathered from each street in the hand you played against your opponent up until this point to help influence your decisions.
How to play the river.
As I just mentioned, you have to think about the way your opponent has played the hand on each street to help inform your decision on how to play on the river. The more information you have, the more pieces to the puzzle you can fit together to build a bigger picture of what your opponent may be holding.
By the river it is often likely that your opponent will have given off enough information through the way they have played to indicate what kind of hand they are holding, so it is just a case of thinking through the hand and looking for it.
Always take your time to evaluate all of the plays that have taken place up to that point on the river. You can find a lot of useful information if you think about the hand carefully.
If your opponent has been playing as if they had a drawing hand on each street, and then comes out with a bet when the river comes with a card that could not have helped them, you can be fairly sure that they are bluffing be happy to call their bet if you have a decent hand. Similarly, if an opponent has been playing very aggressively on previous streets by betting and raising but plays very weakly on the river by checking, you can happily sense they are trying to trap you and trying to induce a bluff.
Position on the river.
Playing the river can be a lot easier if you have position over your opponent. Acting after your opponent will prove to be a huge advantage on the river because you can see how your opponent reacts before making your final decision. When you reach the river you will be in one of the following situations regarding the strength of your hand:
- You are confident you have the best hand.
- You are confident you have the worst hand.
- You are unsure about whether you have the best hand.
The first two situations are easier to play in, both in and out of position, but things can become very tricky when you are not sure about whether or not you have the best hand. So here is a quick guide on how to play in or out of position when in each of the situations mentioned above.
Playing the river in position.
- You are confident you have the best hand.
If you are confident you have the best hand, you want to get as much money from your opponent as possible. This means that you should definitely bet and raise to get more and more money into the pot. It is better to make big pot-sized bets on the river rather than smaller bets to try and entice your opponent into calling. It will be more profitable to make big bets even if your opponent calls less often, as it is explained in the article on maximizing value.
- You are confident you have the worst hand.
When you feel that you have the worst hand, you should be happy to fold the majority of bets your opponent makes on the river. It is unlikely that opponents will bet into you out of position with a poor hand, so always lean toward folding rather than raising in an attempt to bluff.
If your opponent checks to you, you are now faced with the tough decision of whether or not to bluff. It is in these instances that you should use all the information from the way your opponent has played up until this point to decide whether a bluff is likely to work. Always try and be at least 80% sure that a bluff will be successful before making one, and fold if you have any doubts in your mind at all.
- You are unsure about whether you have the best hand.
If our opponent checks to us, then we should almost always check behind them and turn the cards over to see who has won. This is because if you ever bet in this position, it is unlikely that you will get a call from a player that we have beat, but it is likely that we are going to get a call from a player that has us beat. So just check it down and hope that your hand is the winning one after they have been turned over.
Don't bet marginal hands on the river. You are only going to get called by better hands the majority of the time.
If your opponent is betting into you on the river in this spot.
If our opponent is betting into us, once again we have to make the decision about whether or not we should call based upon the information we have gathered from previous betting rounds.
You may also need to factor in the odds that your opponent is giving you to call, because if your opponent makes a very small bet, you may well be given the correct odds to call because of the likelihood that your hand will sometimes win. But at the end of the day, there are no concrete rules for these situations and it is just a part of poker that will take time, patience and a thorough understanding of the game to master.
Playing the river out of position.
- You are confident you have the best hand.
It is nice to feel that you have the best hand, but unfortunately we do not have position to help maximize our winnings in these situations. If you feel that your opponent has a half decent hand, you should look to make a decent bet and hope that they will call, as it is not likely that they will bet if they are unsure about whether they have the best hand.
If you think that your opponent missed a draw and has a very weak hand, it may be more profitable to check in an attempt to induce a bluff. If you bet and it turns out they have no hand at all, then you are not going to win any more money because they are just going to fold. If you check however, you are giving them the opportunity to make a bluff and squeeze out that little extra money from them at the end.
- You are confident you have the worst hand.
It's pretty unfortunate to have the worst hand and be out of position, but its not all that bad. At least in these situations you will have a clear idea about what to do… check and fold to any action. It is rarely a good idea to try and bluff when out of position in these spots, so save your money for another time. Only bet if you are incredibly sure that you can get your opponent off the hand, otherwise betting out here is not going to be profitable at all.
- You are unsure about whether you have the best hand.
Although this might seem like a bit of a dilemma, its not as bad you think. The last thing you want to do here is bet out… its one of the biggest mistakes you can make in poker when you think about it logically. When you bet out not knowing if you have the best hand or not, you are only going to get calls from hands that beat you, and you are not going to get calls from hands that you are beating. It is a completely lose-lose situation, so never bet out if you are unsure about whether you hold the best hand or not.
Never bet out when first to act on the river if you have a hand that could easily be either the best or worst hand.
The only hard part in these spots is when your opponent comes back at you with a bet. In these situations you have to once again consider the way the hand has been played out up to that point, as well as think about they way your opponent has been playing in other hands as well as this one.
If you think you have a decent chance of winning because your opponent is loose and bluffs frequently, then you have a good reason to call. However if you are not confident that you are ahead, you should be looking to fold unless you are being given good enough pot odds to make the call to see if you are ahead. It's all about practice and a good knowledge of your opponent's playing style.
Other river strategy tips.
Don't bet on the river if you are unsure about whether or not you have the best hand. I know I have mentioned it before, but it is something that you should always remember. You are only going to get a call from a better hand and a fold from a worse hand, so don't make that bet!
Always think about each play that led up to this point into the hand, and use it to influence the decisions that you make on the river. There is no better tell than the way an opponent has played their hand and the information they have given you by the way they have checked, bet or raised.
Always bet around the size of the pot when you want a call when you hold the best hand. Even though you may well get called less often than if you made small bets, you will be winning more in the long run. Its more profitable to win $50 1 in 10 times than it is to win $5 8 out of 10 times. It's all about maximizing value from your hands over the long run.
Useful river strategy articles:
- Playing Styles (Intermediate)
- Taking Player Notes (Intermediate)
- The Blocking Bet (Intermediate)
- Maximizing Value (Value Betting) (Advanced)
- Putting Opponents On A Hand (Advanced)
- Thin Value (Advanced)
Go back to the thorough hand guide.
If you are interested to get the best rakeback deals and private promotions on poker sites head on to PokerPro website (PS: there are plenty of options to choose from also for the USA players).
In poker, checking means passing up on the opportunity to make a bet when it’s your turn. When it’s a player’s turn to act, he/she has the option of calling the previous bet, raising the bet, or checking. Calling means to match the previous bet, raising means betting a higher amount while checking simply means to pass on the chance to bet. So what happens if everyone decides to check? Read all the details below.
What happens if everyone checks in poker? If everyone checks in poker, they’ll have to wait till the next betting round to act their turn again. Specifically, this scenario means a round is completed without anyone placing a bet.
At the end of a round where everyone checks, a free card is dealt before the next round begins.
If the checking happens in the last round, all players are mandated to show their cards at a showdown.
Many players employ different forms of checking as a strategy in their gameplay. While certain players may try to limit the size of the pot by checking, others can also employ it to grow the pot.
Checking Round the Table
In poker, players are allowed to check when no one has placed a bet before them. This means when you check, the players who occupy later positions have the option to bet, raise or check as well. If they place a bet, the action comes back to you. If they don’t place a bet, the round ends, and the new community card is dealt(on the board) or three cards if it was preflop.
However, there’s a slight difference when this scenario plays out in the last stage. If everyone checks in the last round, the hand is settled by a show of cards. The rules of the game state that the first player to check from the small blind is expected to show his/her card first. The action then goes round the table in a clockwise direction.
Who can Check in Poker
Anyone whose bet hasn’t been raised is allowed to check in poker. Usually, a player has the option to bet, call, fold, raise, or check when the action comes to them. While the other options are default, a check requires a specific condition.
To have the option to check, you must either be on the big blind, and nobody has raised preflop yet. Or nobody has placed a bet yet when the action is on you postflop.
This way, only the BB can check preflop.
Why do People Check in Poker?
The most popular reason poker players check preflop is to limit the size of the pot. In a table where everyone checks often, the pot is likely to be small. Players use this strategy when they hold a weak or marginal hand. However, it can also be used to mislead your opponents when you hold a strong hand. This is called slowplaying.
Players also check continually when they’re playing out of position against an opponent that made the last aggressive action on a previous round. While many professional players recon that this is not a great strategy, many players still prefer to check against any opponent who played aggressively on a previous street.
Another reason players check during a game is when they’re trying to gather info on what their opponents hold. This strategy is a common sight after the flop. Consider a scenario where 3 people are left in a hand, and they all check when the flop comes. This scenario is common when you play online, especially on micro stakes.
Playing online makes it difficult to read your opponents as you can’t see them. That is why many professionals rely on 3rd party software (also known as HUDs), which gives them a lot of information about opponents’ playstyle.
With a check, however, the message usually is that players are checking because they have a weak hand.
When you check first on the flop, and your opponents checks after you, then you should come out firing on all cylinders when the turn comes.
Of course, you could lose your bet if another player checks-raises you or a player calls you. This is why this is best done when you are up against only one opponent.
Even if you get called on the turn, you improved your image by showing your opponents that you’re not the type of player who checks terrible hands, and if you ever try to slowplay a hand, your opponents won’t have a clue.
Check-raise
Check Raise is mainly used for:
- To build the pot with a good hand (can be dangerous, as you risk giving a free card)
- To make people fold their weak hands (as a bluff check-raise)
- To combat late position steals (very hard to steal with weak hands if you get check-raised all the time)
In poker, a check-raise happens when a player checks early during a hand with the hope that an opponent bets. When an opponent does bet, the player who is making a check-raise can then make a re-raise. Players usually make a check-raise when they suspect that their opponent will try to bluff with a weak hand but wouldn’t be interested in calling a direct bet, or if they have a strong enough hand to even call the check-raise and we build the pot with a good hand.
The idea behind this is that when other players aren’t willing to place a bet, a player who wants to make a raise can only do so once. If an opponent bets first, the player who is check-raising can then raise to increase the pot size. This way, you get paid more when you hold a dominant hand like sets, or flushes, or straights, and an opponent has a good hand, unwilling to let go.
Apart from building the pot, a check-raise may also be used to intimidate players who frequently steal the pot. When players are check-raised frequently, they are less likely to try to steal pots. While this is an excellent way to increase the pot size for a good win, it has an element of risk to it as well.
If you check in the hope that an opponent bets, but nobody does, you face a scenario where everyone checks around the table and go on to see a card. Hence, a check-raise is a strategy that must be employed with utmost caution.
Although check-raises can be a strong strategy, it’s not allowed in certain cash games. Also, not all players are fond of the check-raise.
Doyle Brunson once claimed that it was more profitable to bet a good hand irrespective of an opponent’s tendency to bluff.
Call And Check In Poker
According to his logic, a failed check-raise is a recipe for disaster as it allows your opponent to see a free card while also revealing to your opponents that you may have a strong hand.
Final Thoughts
A check is a strategic move that players employ for several reasons. In the scenario that everyone checks around the table, the current hand will end with no winner while everyone gets another card. This card can be crucial for some players. This is why it is never advisable to check when you’ve got a strong hand.
If you check and everyone else checks across the table, an opponent who has a weak hand can improve their chances with an additional card, thereby reducing your odds of winning the hand. Then again, a check-raise could be utilized to significant effect in several situations, so it’s all about how you want to play your cards, literarily.
It would be really bad to give a free card when you hold top set against 3 opponents. it happens quite often that one of them hits a gutshot straight, or even a higher set on turn or river. That is a great way to get you on tilt and cause you to start playing bad.
Related questions
How do you know when to check in Online poker? The computer will indicate when you have the option to check (check the image above). The scenario is the same as in standard live games. You can only check when you are to act either in the big blind preflop, and nobody has made the raise. Or postflop if action is on you, and nobody has placed a bet.
Check A Cinch In Poker
How often should you check? There’s no limit on your tendency to check. It all depends on your strategy and the scenario. However, it is always advisable to not check with a strong hand as you run the risk of everyone else checking and getting a free card that could strengthen their hand.
Can the blinds check preflop? Yes, the blinds can check preflop if no one else has made a preflop raise. This would be the case where both small blind and big blinds are of the same amount. 5/5 live games, for example. But where small blind is smaller (this is the typical scenario), then only the big blind gets the option to check if nobody has raised, and at least one person only called preflop (matched the big blind – ‘limped’).
When Do You Check-in Poker
Related post links:
When Do You Split In Poker
- What Happens if Everyone Folds in Poker?
- How To Play a Missed Flop – Guide