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There Are Other Ways to Trap Than by Slow Playing
February 16, 2024 Sid Gaughan
When
some no-limit hold'em players think of "trapping" they immediately think of "slow
playing." In fact, some will equate the two, mistakenly believing the only way to trap
an opponent after the flop is by slow playing.
Trapping actually refers to a broader
postflop strategy that can but doesn't necessarily involve slow playing. You can "trap"
and still play a hand "fast" by betting and raising right away for value.
Trapping by
Slow Playing
We're all familiar with slow playing, a strategy that can work especially
well in certain situations, particularly against aggressive opponents. It's kind of the
opposite of bluffing. Instead of betting with a weak hand, you check or call with a
strong hand, giving the impression from your action that you are weak.
Earlier this
week, Matthew Pitt recounted "The Top 5 Hands from 888Live Rozvadov," one of which
provides a ready example of someone slow playing a strong hand in order to earn maximum
value.
With eight players remaining in the €5,300 High Roller, Enzo Del Piero raised
with 8♥7♥ and was called by Pierre Neuville from the blinds who had J♥9♥. The flop fell
9♠9♦K♦ to give Neuville trips, and rather than leading with a bet he chose to check and
allow the preflop raiser to continuation bet, as Del Piero did.
Neuville just called
the c-bet, and checked again after the very safe-looking 4♣ turn card fell, remaning
reasonably sure his trip nines remained the best hand. Del Piero checked behind this
time, and the river brought the A♣.
With other river cards Neuville might have chosen
this as a time finally to bet his hand. But he knew the ace was likely either to have
improved Del Piero to a good but in this case second-best hand, or if it didn't improve
him the card might encourage Del Piero to bluff and represent having an ace in his
hand. Neuville therefore checked again, and Del Piero fell into the trap by moving all
in.
Neuville called right away to win the pot and eliminate Del Piero in
eighth.
Trapping by Betting
While that was certainly an example of slow playing,
Neuville's call of a raise with J♥9♥ more generally illustrates a key principle of
"trapping" — namely, playing a speculative hand and then finding a way to earn full
value when the hand manages to hit the board hard.
Such examples of trapping can begin
in various ways. A player might choose to open-raise before the flop with J♥9♥ — a
"suited one-gapper" with potential to flop flush or straight draws. Suited connectors
(e.g., Q♦J♦, 9♠8♠, etc.) and small pairs also qualify as speculative hands that need to
improve postflop to outperform stronger starting hands.
When such hands do improve, the
likelihood of their earning value increases since opponents often think first of
stronger starting hands when others raise preflop. Especially if you've cultivated a
somewhat tight image, if you raise with J♥9♥ and a flop comes 10♥8♦4♥, your opponent
won't necessarily appreciate how hard that flop has hit your hand (giving you both
straight and flush draws). Or if you raise with 6♦5♦ and a flop comes 9♣5♠5♥ — a board
that looks like a big whiff to a preflop raiser holding a couple of Broadway cards.
In
such cases, continuation bets are more likely to be called, as might turn and/or river
bets as you seek even more value. The "trap" here is achieved not by slow playing, but
rather by betting and/or raising throughout.
A hand like this can prove beneficial in
other ways, too, favorably affecting your image. You raised with six-five then barreled
away postflop? Some opponents won't appreciate how those later bets were for value,
instead remembering what seemed a very loose preflop play. You might actually be on the
tight side, but now you appear loose, and thus are set up well to earn action when
raising with genuinely strong starting hands.
Going ahead and betting after flopping a
set with a small pocket pair is another way potentially to trap an opponent into paying
you off. You have 4♦4♣ and the flop comes Q♣9♦4♠. In some cases slow playing might be
the right option, but in others going ahead and betting will be even more deceptive and
thus a more effective "trap" in which to ensnare an opponent.
However it is achieved,
trapping means underrepresenting the strength of your hand in order to encourage
opponents to commit chips when you have them beat. But slow playing — that is, checking
and calling — isn't the only way to underrepresent a hand. Betting can also connote
weakness, in certain situations, and thus deliver the signal that you're not nearly as
strong as you are.
Continuation betting "dry" flops that appear unlikely to have hit
the hand you raised with before the flop is one example. So, too, might "donk betting"
— leading with a bet from out of position after calling a preflop raise — on a "wet"
flop that happened to have hit your hand hard. Even a postflop check-raise, usually a
very aggressive move signaling obvious strength, can in certain, special situations be
regarded as suggesting weakness, interpreted as a bluff rather than appreciated for a
genuine attempt to build a pot.
Conclusion
Slow playing can be an effective way to win
big pots, especially against aggressive opponents. But remember there are other ways to
trap, too, including by going ahead and betting strong hands yourself in situations
where your bets might appear more like bluffs than for value.
Sharelines Trapping
doesn't always mean slow playing. You can trap by betting or raising with strong hands,
too.
Learn different ways to underrepresent your strong hands and trap opponents into
paying you off.
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