Postflop

7 lessons

C-bettingAs the preflop raiser you hold more strong aces than a caller does, so an A-high, disconnected flop favours your range. On boards like this you can bet small with almost everything: a made pair, and plenty of hands that whiffed too.
Facing RaisesA check-raise is strong, but its composition depends on the board. Wet boards supply flush draws, straight draws and pair-plus-draws, so a marginal made hand can bluff-catch far more often than it can on a dry board. Continue when you beat the bluffs; do not assign a made hand a made-up equity number by counting only its improvement outs.
Bet SizingSmall bets fit merged ranges on high-card boards: the caller is capped and one-pair-heavy, so a small size bets a wide value range thinly and keeps their dominated hands in. Even a set bets small there — for balance, and because it earns more from a range that folds too much to a pot-size bet. Polarity, not just holding a big hand, is what sizes you up.
Value & BluffsA semi-bluff bets a hand that’s behind now but can improve. It wins twice: better hands fold tonight, and when they don’t, your draw takes the pot often enough anyway.
Turn PlayOn the turn only one card is left, so outs × 2 is the exact chance to improve — the rule of 2 at its purest. A draw that was cheap to continue on the flop can be strictly priced out once the turn bet grows.
3-Bet PotsThe 3-bettor holds the range and nut advantage and the pot is already large, so overpairs on dry boards bet for value and to start stacking off. The low SPR means you're planning to get it in by the river, not pot-controlling.
River PlayFacing a river bet from a polarized range, a bluff-catcher only needs to beat the bluffs, not the value. Against a ¾-pot bet you defend roughly the top 60% of your range (MDF) — top pair clears that bar and calls.