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As far as those situations where you can beat some of his legitimate hands, they normally arise when it is going to be very close and you have to worry about third or fourth highest card. If a man bets
and you have
you have a call simply because he might have bet 7-6-5-3-2. Another example would be where your opponent has something like
and you have
You would normally be forced to call hoping that he is poker betting a 7-6-5-3-A, which he would since he only has to fear that you have specifically a 2-A in the hole.
Sometimes you are in a situation where there is a chance your opponent is bluffing and there is also a chance he is betting a hand that is slightly worse than yours.
When this arises, you have to add up the two chances in your mind and see if the sum of those chances makes it worth a call.
Let’s now discuss the situation where your opponent bets and you think you have the best hand.
It is now a question of whether you should raise. It is not correct to raise simply because in your mind you are favored to have the best poker hand.
There are two reasons for this: First he may not call you, second he may reraise you.
If doesn’t do you any good to raise with a hand that probably has him beaten if he will not call unless he has you beat.
It isn’t even correct to raise with a hand that probably has him beaten if he will not call unless he s favored to have you beaten.
You must still be the favorite to have him beaten even if he calls your raise in order to make a raise the correct play.
Of course, with all that money in the pot, most players will automatically call your raise once they bet. What about the possibility of a reraise?
Some people say you should not raise unless you are more than a 2-to-1 favorite to have the best hand since you will have to call if he reraises.
This may not be true. It is only approximately true if you are up against a poker player who is capable of reraising without having you beat.