Poker strategy and tactics from professional players

Every top-tier poker player will tell you that the key to continued success is to be able to extract the maximum value from each hand you play. Sometimes, the best way to get value from a hand is not to be more but to bet less. This is where a blocker bet comes in.

A blocker bet is different from a value bet in that it is much smaller and is generally defensive in nature. Its primary goal is to prevent your opponent from making a larger bet that you may not want to call. For example, you may hold Ts-Tc on a board reading Ks-Jc-7d-5d-2h and are out of position against an opponent. Your pocket tens has some showdown value, but if you check and your opponents bets three-quarters pot, you will have a hard time calling. By firing a one-third pot blocker bet, you are setting the price and can see how your opponent reacts.

Blocker bets control the size of the pot, which is another key poker skill. You can also use a blocker bet to induce a bluff from an opponent. Blocker bets are often seen as weak, so making one while you are strong could result in your opponent raising, leaving you in a great situation.

A squeeze play is a commonly applied move particularly in a tournament setting and when you or an opponent is down to a sub-20 big blind stack. For example, the player in the cutoff raises, the button calls, and you then raise from the big blind; you have squeezed.

Squeezing can be a profitable and powerful move in the right circumstances, but it is also a play that can put a significant percentage of your chips at risk. There are several factors in play that make a squeeze play successful or not.

First, you must have a strong table image and not have been seen splashing around in pots. Having a tight-aggressive image increases the chances of a squeeze play working. Second, you must have a good read on your opponents and know they are raising with a hand they are prepared to fold to your squeeze.

Stack sizes are also important because the initial raiser and caller(s) could be priced into calling your squeeze if they are short stacked.

Your hand strength does not play a significant role in your decision to squeeze. Obviously, making a squeeze play with a strong hand is ideal, but a squeeze play is taking advantage of perceived weakness. A late position raise is often made with a wide range of hands, and someone simply calling that raise has not given much indication about having a strong hand. You can make a squeeze play with any two cards if the situation is right, but that comes with a high degree of risk.

Mixing up your play, or changing gears is something every poker player needs to be able to do otherwise they become easier to read and become exploitable. While most players prefer a particular style, like tight-aggressive or loose-aggressive, the best players are able to change their approach and do so at the flick of a switch.

If an opponent knows you only play a tight-aggressive style, they can quickly figure out which hands are not in your range, making it easier for them to steal pots and bluff you off a hand. However, if you regularly mix up your play, your opponent has a more challenging time putting you on a style of play and has no idea about your possible hand ranges.

Put yourself in this situation and you will quickly realize how important it is to mix up your play. You usually play tight-aggressive poker but have been card dead for the last 20 hands, only getting involved in one or two pots. You then decide to flip the switch and play a loose-aggressive style and play seven out of the next ten pots before instantly reverting to a tight-aggressive style. How on Earth do your opponents read you? Did you have a great run of cards or are you a crazy horse? Are you a loose-aggressive player who has now gone card dead? Have you hit that ace on the flop, could you have hit a Ts-5d-3h board when you check-raised?

Keeping your opponent guessing and playing in an opposing style to theirs is crucial to success. It is also important to change gears instantly rather than gradually; play tight, go nuts, and revert to tight again!