Flush draws can be a powerful tool in live and online poker Texas Holdem, but they are also one of the most underutilized hands. Playing with flush draws requires understanding pot odds, implied odds, and how to protect your hand from being drawn out. It also involves making calculated decisions about whether or not to commit chips.
Many players have trouble playing flush draws. When they hit their flush draws, they either don’t make much money or, even worse, their opponent eventually has a stronger flush.
Continue reading if you want to use the best strategies when playing with your flush draws in your live or online Holdem poker game.
Think of Equity When Playing With These Hands
All skilled poker players consider equity.
Consider the scenario where the button raises, and you are in the Big Blind (BB) with pocket nines. Even though you already have a strong hand, you also have very strong equity against your opponent’s button-raising range in this scenario.
On the other hand, imagine that you are in the BB holding the identical pocket nines and that the player Under The Gun (UTG) raises, the player in the Lojack 3-bets, and the guy on the button 4-bets.
Even if your hand is the same, the situation becomes a little riskier because your equity versus these players’ ranges is noticeably worse than in the first scenario. The same is true for flush draws; how you choose to play them is greatly influenced by the amount of equity you have in hand.
Not all flush draws are made equal. You may have 10% equity in some instances while having 80% equity in others.
Play Aggressively With High Fold Equity
Having a nut flush draw improves your hand. As a result, it is commonly accepted that you should play a nut flush draw as aggressively as you can in poker. The nut flush draw in poker games online is not yet the best hand. It is simply a high-card hand that might only require one more card to surpass all other hands.
Play the nut flush aggressively in poker, but only when you anticipate a lot of fold equity. This is because even if your nut flush is a likely hand to win in poker, it is still not the best. If you keep adding money to the pot in this scenario without having a strong enough fold equity, you will probably lose significant chips.
Thus, step back and play passively if you have a nut flush but do not anticipate having good fold equity. After you make the nut flush, you should become more aggressive until you win the pot.
Raise With Strong Draws
Players frequently overplay weaker flush draws, check-raise, and rush out like crazy but then check their nut flush draw excessively.
It’s uncommon that raising a flush draw will be a grave error. People playing back at you aggressively and putting you in difficult circumstances with weaker draws are the biggest issue you will encounter.
This doesn’t suggest you play poker online passively, especially regarding non-nut flush draws. Instead, here’s what you can do.
Your greatest options are your ace high and king high draws and draws where both cards are over-cards to the board (such as Qs-8s on a flop of 7s-3s-2h). The rest of your draws are inferior.
Start raising your strongest drawings far more frequently than your lesser draws. While it won’t hold in all circumstances or with all hands, this is still a sound general principle. More regularly, call or fold some of your inferior hands.
When Short-Stacked, Check With Weaker Flush Draws
Poker essentially changes into a different game as you grow shorter-stacked. You start to focus less on trying to develop enormous pots and more on protection and equity denial. It’s vital to reduce your c-betting and barreling with draws and concentrate more on pot management and defense because your opponents can force you to decide regarding all of your chips.
In general, you should try to maintain your equity by checking rather than pushing all-in after getting shoved on by your opponent when you have a weak draw. Also, by safeguarding your checking range, you’ll be able to have flushes later on in the hand after checking the flop and turn.
One of the easiest strategies to start better realizing your poker equity is simplifying your game plan. When you have 30bb or fewer, you should check back with inferior hands on the flop and turn or bet your strongest draws that can go against raises and shoves of your opponents.
Playing Against More Than 3 Players
Frequently, you can play for value on the flop in Texas Holdem poker multi-way pots. When holding the nut flush draw, a player has 35% pot equity and ought to aim to keep as many opponents in the hand as possible.
Looking at the pre-flop action will help you determine the best line to take. To put additional money into the pot, you could, for instance, trap players to put them between you and the pre-flop aggressor.
With a multi-way pot, your showdown value is minimal or nonexistent. You are unable to produce significant fold equity. If you fail to improve on the turn, you should either check or call, bet or triple bet, or check or raise for value, depending on your position.
In general, play passively with weak draws (gutshots). Seldom can you raise for value, and you shouldn’t count on a bet or raise to produce fold equity. Yet, you’ll typically have the best chance if you call.
Conclusion
When playing flush draws in poker, it is essential to remember that you should become more aware of your equity before making a move. Additionally, considering your position and chip stack may influence how you play the game. Be more aggressive with nut flush draws and play passively with weak draws. With these tips in mind and properly managing your bets, you can win the pot or avoid throwing more chips away.