Bluffing: The C-Bet in Poker
The Continuation Bet, or “C-bet” as it is also called, is among the most well known, and most commonly used moves in Texas Hold ‘em. The move attained significant notoriety when it became the subject of an entire chapter in Dan Harrington and Bill Robertie’s excellent book Harrington on Hold ’em Vol I. Although the focus of that book was tournament poker strategy, the C-bet can be used just as effectively in cash games.
A continuation bet defines a situation when a player has raised preflop, is called by one or more players, and then bets again on the flop, in effect “continuing” the action that they begun with their pre-flop raise. A continuation bet can be made with the nuts, or as a complete bluff, or with anything in between. The remainder of this article will specifically discuss the use of a C-bet as a bluff.
The strength of the C-bet bluff is two-fold:
1. It tells a consistent story, and is therefore easily believable. “I raised preflop because my hand was strong. My hand is still strong on the flop, and may even have improved, therefore I am betting again”
2. A C-bet that is made as a bluff is usually indiscernible from a C-Bet that is being made as a value bet with a strong hand, or a bet being made as a semi-bluff.
A typical C-bet is between 50-70% of the pot, however the trend in recent years has been towards making C-bets closer to 2/3rd of the pot, rather than a half pot sized bet. There are several reasons for this: because bets of 50% of the pot are considered “standard”, they are more likely to be interpreted as a C-bet bluff, and are therefore defended against with more vigour. Also, bets of 2/3rd of the pot are generally more effective value bets, in that they give less profitable odds to drawing hands like straight and flush draws.
Additionally, the advent of multi-tabling online players has necessitated the creation of a “one bet fits all” sized C-bet that can be made by the aggressor close to 100% of the time, almost regardless of the flop. Betting only 50% of the pot would give a better risk/reward ratio when the aggressor is bluffing, but any play which incorporates bluffs, semi-bluffs, and also value bets must lean more towards what is optimal sizing for the value bets, because that is what the move is representing after all.
The profitability of a C-bet is easy to show. I will use the classic example by assuming a “standard” sized C-bet of 50% of the pot. If you only win 1 time out of 3, you will at least break even:
Bet 50% 2 times and lose = -100%
Bet 50% 1 time and win = +100%
Betting the more common amount of 2/3rd of the pot means that you need to win 2 times out of 5 to break even, which is slightly more often than when you bet half the pot (40% compared to 33.3%).
These figures are conservative however, as they assume that you will never win when your C-bet is called. In reality, you may hit a lucky card on the turn, or you might connect with a backdoor flush, or you might be able to bluff your opponent out on the turn or river. When the C-bet is used correctly, results significantly above break even should be attainable with most bet sizes.
When to C-bet
Against one player
I will usually C-bet against a single opponent as much as 80% of the time. I will C-bet with top set, bottom pair, the nut flush, a gutshot, overcards, underpairs, top-top or as an absolute bluff. Because I C-bet so often, I rarely slow-play my big hands. I will fire a C-bet with a straight just the same way as I would with 7-high. Semi bluffs are the same: If I’m heads up with a flush draw, I would usually bet. The fact that I might NOT be bluffing, is what makes the C-bet bluff so effective. I’ve raised preflop and shown strength, and now I’m betting again on the flop. If a player simply assumes that I’m bluffing every time I’ve raised pre-flop and then bet again on the flop, then they are going to lose money very swiftly to my made hands. Against a single player, my default play is to fire out some chips. It’s fun, and it’s effective, so why wouldn’t I do it? :-)
When you have position
Being In Position (IP) confers extra power to a player. When you C-bet in position, you stop your opponent from using a whole range of counter-moves against you. They can’t Call-Bluff when they are Out Of Position (OOP). They will be more inclined to fold marginal hands like middle pair when OOP, and even drawing hands will suffer from reduced implied odds when OOP, so those hands will be more likely to fold as well. If you fire a C-bet when you have position, you have a much greater chance of winning the pot than when you are OOP.
When the board is unlikely to have hit your opponent
If you raise from the button, and a very tight player in the big blind calls, you need to give some though to what sort of hand that tight player is likely to have. If the board comes J-5-2, then C-betting makes a lot of sense. A tight player will usually only call a raise out of position with big cards, or perhaps a pair. A Jack high flop is unlikely to have connected with the cards that a tight player is likely to play, so go ahead and fire again. Here are some other examples of worthwhile C-betting flops:
8-5-3 rainbow: Go ahead and fire a C-bet. A tight player is unlikely to have hit this low board.
Q-6-4 rainbow: Another good flop for a C-bet. Flops containing 1 high card (but not an Ace) and a couple of low cards are generally excellent for C-betting. If your opponent has AQ or KQ, expect to get called, if not, expect to take the pot down.
T-7-7: Paired flops are unlikely to have hit anybody, therefore the first person to bet at paired flop usually wins. I would C-bet a flop like this about 80% of the time. Be aware that good players will realise that this flop is unlikely to have hit you though, and may call the flop bet with a weaker hand than they normally would (like a pair of 9’s perhaps). If you are up against such a player and they call your C-bet, you might consider firing a second barrel on the turn.
K-9-7 all of one suit: This is a flop where I would usually make a C-bet only when I have position. A C-bet on a flop like this puts a huge amount of pressure on your opponent. They would usually need at least a high card of that suit or a made hand such as top pair to continue. If your opponent is the one with position however, then they may be inclined to call with any card of that suit as part of a call-bluff. They may reason that they might hit a weak flush on the turn, or you might check the turn to them and then fold to their bet (which will probably be true in this case since you are C-bet bluffing).
When not to C-bet
Against multiple players
Against more than one player C-betting gets a lot more situational. It’s definitely not an automatic play any more. Firstly because you have multiplied the opponents, you have multiplied that chance that one of them has hit a hand that they like, and that’s a bad thing when you’re trying to bluff. Secondly, because you have multiple opponents, the pot is bigger than it would have been heads up, so those opponents are more inclined to hang around with weaker hands than they would have otherwise. That’s also a bad thing when you’re trying to bluff. Thirdly, because you have multiplied the opponents, you have multiplied the chance that one of them is willing to make a move on YOU if they think the situation looks good enough. All of which makes it very difficult when you’re trying to bluff. You will still fire a C-Bet bluff into 2 players on occasion, but you would usually need to have a very good understanding of your opponents playing styles, and a good grasp of whether or not the board would have hit them.
When you have draw, in position, against an aggressive opponent
Those are a lot of qualifications, so let me elaborate: If you flop a draw against an opponent who is particularly aggressive, you may be better off just checking in position, rather than making a C-bet semi-bluff. If you C-bet, your opponent gets the chance to check-raise an amount that you may not be getting the right odds to call. Usually when heads up I will bet all sorts of draws, but if I know that my opponent is the type who would check-raise on the flop, then I tend to C-bet less often with my draws. Keep in mind that this is only for the very aggressive players who check-raise often however. Against most players, betting your draws is the right way to play heads up.
When you are out of position, then you lose your option of getting a free card by checking, as your opponent will still be able to bet if you check. C-betting a draw in this situation is certainly better than checking and calling, as you may win the pot right away. You will still have a decision to make if your C-bet is raised, but you lose nothing by betting first.
When your opponent is likely to have hit
A flop like A-K-J is not a good flop for making a C-bet, regardless of whether your opponent is tight or loose. A flop like this is likely to have hit many of the hands that your opponents would call a raise with. Just let this one go. If your opponent checks to you again on the turn, you can consider making a move then.
When you are against a calling station or Recreational Player.
If your opponent is someone who will call a bet with any pair, any draw, or any high card, then bluffing is usually a bad idea. These types of players love to call, and by C-betting into them, you are playing right into their only strength: They can’t be bluffed. Recognize when you are up against such a player, and be willing to just check and fold when you miss a flop entirely. Adapting to you opponents tendencies is one of the most important skills a poker player can have. When you actually hit a strong hand, you will be able to bet for value on every street, and will probably get all their money.
There are many times when you will C-bet as a bluff and win the hand immediately. When you are called however, you don’t need to give up on the pot straight away. You might hit a lucky card on the turn, or you may pick up a draw of some kind, or you could even get the chance to win an even bigger pot by making another bluff on the turn.
