The flop is the most important part of a No Limit Hold’em poker hand, as that is where the bulk of decisions will be made about how to progress, but it is just as important to know how to correctly play the turn card.
Six of the available seven cards with which to make your poker hand are visible, which is a lot of information. A straight or flush draw will come in after the turn less than one-fifth of the time and whoever led on the flop is likely to still be leading by the turn.
If the pot contains a significant amount of chips and you feel that your hand is best, then the turn card is the time to secure the hand.. Unless you were holding the nuts or close to it on the flop and are continuing to lay a trap, there’s always the chance of being outdrawn on the river or being outplayed by a better poker player. Overbetting the pot after the turn is a good strategy, as a sizeable bet is likely to scare players away and anyone who does call is unlikely to be getting the correct pot odds, so is making a mistake.
If the turn card improved your hand greatly, you should still be aggressive. Aggression is always good in poker, particularly in No Limit Hold’em and the turn card is not really the place to get cute. If you believe that you are ahead, your opponent must not be allowed to draw to beat you, so bet or raise strongly and look to win the pot or force your opponents to call with poor pot odds.
If the turn brings a real monster, such as a full house and you put your opponent on a flush or straight draw, a nice tactic is to bet around one-third of the pot, allowing them to feel they are getting the right price about their draw and that their call is correct. If their draw hits, you should end up with most of their chips.
If you feel that the turn card could have helped your opponents, there is no shame in surrendering the lead. Checking and calling is fine, as if they are on a straight or flush draw, as previously stated, it’s going to hit less than one-fifth of the time. If you have a marginal hand, there is little value in raising, as the only hands calling you are the ones that will have you beaten. Many poker players who complete a monster on the turn card will go for a check-raise, so disappoint them.
In summary, long term winning poker players do not get tricky on the turn. If you feel that your hand is best, look to take it down. If you think the turn improved your opponent, don’t worry about slowing down.
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