- Definition of Sizing in Poker
- Types of Games by Bet Size
- The Importance of Sizing in Poker
- Bankroll management
- Pot Size Manipulation
- Psychological impact on opponents
- Protecting your hand
- Using your opponents’ playing style
- Unpredictability
- The relationship between strategy and sizing
- Increasing the efficiency of bluffing
- Preflop Sizings
- Postflop Sizings
- How to Choose your Bet Sizes
- Small bets
- Medium bets
- Large bets
- Why big bets are better than small ones
- Poker Sizing Recommendations
- Poker Sizing Frequently Asked Questions
- What bet size should you use against an unknown opponent?
- When should you balance you sizings?
- When overbetting is good?
- What is called inconsistent sizing?
What are we talking about here? Sizing in poker is the size of the bet. Players can bet preflop and postflop. Experienced poker players constantly analyze the situation and adapt their bets to a specific hand and to certain opponents.
Why is it important? A competent choice of bet size, whether it is a bluff or a value bet with the best hand, is the foundation of the strategy. It must always be thoughtful. Bet sizing gives a player the opportunity to put pressure on opponents, increase profits, control the size of the pot and the dynamics of the game.
Definition of Sizing in Poker
Sizing in poker is the size of a bet in chips, both for preflop and postflop bets. Sometimes people mistakenly write “Siding” instead of “Sizing”, but it’s incorrect.
Bet size is an important component of poker strategy. Based on the sizing, you can evaluate the level of a poker player. For example, if a player adjusts his bet preflop according to the strength of his own hand, then most likely he is not a strong poker player.
There are no universal sizings for postflop situations. Players analyze the spot and consider the following factors, when choosing bet size:
- The purpose of the bet. For example, one goal is to make opponent fold, another is to make more money.
- The size of the effective stack.
- The style of the opponent’s game.
- Number of players in the pot.
- Stage of the tournament (for MTT games).
Along with the factors above, the size of the bets is also determined by the format of the game.
Types of Games by Bet Size
There are a number of types of poker games based on sizing:
- Pot Limit: The bet size cannot be higher than what is already in the pot.
- Limit: the bet is limited to a set amount. This game format allows you to avoid losing a lot of money in a single hand.
- No Limit: is the most common game type. It is enough to look at the lobby of any poker room to be convinced of the predominant number of games marked NL (No Limit).
The Importance of Sizing in Poker
Choosing bet size in poker is one of the key skills for every player. If you know sizings well enough you can tell quickly if your opponent is a weaker player or not. The ability to decide on the size of bets is important not only within one hand. It affects the dynamics of the entire game. Proper sizing not only ensures maximum winnings with a strong hand, but also reduces the amount of losses in tough spots.
Bankroll management
Bankroll (the amount of money you contribute to poker) management is just the complex of actions aimed at preventing the risk of going broke. Sizing plays a major role here. Proper management of bet sizes is a tool for controlling financial flow in a poker game.
The key principle of this process is the relationship between sizing and bankroll size. How to prevent the risk of going broke quickly in poker? According to the recommendations of experienced poker players, the bet should not be higher than 5% of the bankroll.
Another point is the level of bets during the game. If it is high enough, you should reduce the percentage of your bankroll that you can risk in one hand. This rule will ensure financial stability in the game.
Note that different types of poker games differ in the level of variance. For example, it is quite high in tournaments with large fields. In these cases, it is recommended to take a more conservative approach to bet sizing. Being careful will prevent you from busting out early in the tournament.
The peculiarities of modern poker are such that it is important for players to be able to adapt to the flow of the game when managing their bankroll. It is necessary to adjust the sizing to the situation at the table. For example, higher bankroll may lead to a more active style pf play, and with lower bankroll you can use smaller sizes. In the latter option, such a decision will allow you to protect the money you allocated to poker.
Proper bankroll management through sizing in poker is not only a tool for protecting against excessive losses over a long term, but also an important element of the player’s strategy for the future. Poker players should treat the game as an investment, where the goal is not to protect your capital, but to increasing it.
If a player is guided by the rules of bankroll management, he will not be governed by emotions when making decisions in the face of fluctuating stacks. Thus, the poker player will have a more balanced approach to the game, reducing the risk of losing a significant amount of his bankroll.
This strategy requires discipline. In addition, it should be accompanied by thoughtful choices of bet sizes. If a poker player constantly exceeds the recommended bet amount, his bankroll will rapidly decrease, and the risk of going broke, on the contrary, increases.
Pot Size Manipulation
A bet is a tool for controlling pot size in poker. To increase the winnings with a strong combination in hand, the player needs to increase the sizing. On the contrary, if we are not sure our hand is best and we want the pot not to increase too much, we can control the pot size by using smaller sizes.
Psychological impact on opponents
Using specific bet sizes, an experienced poker player can psychologically put pressure on opponents and force them to make mistakes. High bet sizes could intimidate opponents. Because of such pressure, opponents will sometimes fold even quite big hands. On the other hand, a small sizing can encourage opponents to call more.
Smart manipulations with bet sizes force opponents to make difficult choices, for example, between calling and folding. In such a situation, mistakes are possible that lead to significant losses in the long run. You need to learn to understand the psychological state and behavior of your opponents in order to determine the size that can put maximum pressure on them.
Protecting your hand
Protecting your hand is an important poker concept that has a lot to do with bet sizing. When defending your hand, it is important to learn how to choose a bet size that makes it unprofitable for your opponent to call with a drawing hand (a hand that can improve significantly on following streets).
It is necessary to calculate the sizing in such a way that the pot odds make it unjustified for the opponent to call the bet, taking into account his hand. Let’s go over a simple example. If the pot is $150 and a player bets $75, his opponent must have a hand with at least a 25% chance of winning to call. Only in this case will calling the bet will be mathematically justified (the opponent needs to invest $75 to win $22). If your opponent’s equity is lower, then he needs to fold his hand.
If you protect your hands wisely, your opponent will not have an opportunity to see the next card cheaply and then possibly put pressure on you. It is important that the bet size is high enough for our opponent to be in a tough spot, where he has to make difficult decisions.
At the same time, a very high bet sizes will prevent your opponents from bluffing you on following streets, because you show strength and the pot is big, so they have to invest more money to bluff.
By choosing tactics based on the playing style of a particular opponent, you can force him to make wrong decisions in difficult situations. For example, villain has a strong hand, which is probably best, but he has to invest his whole stack to find out if he is ahead, so he has to make a difficult decision.
When defending his own hand, the player must control the size of the current pot to avoid increasing it too much relative to the strength of his own hand. Otherwise, you’ll have to make difficult decisions later in the game.
In many cases, using appropriate sizings in a spot where you want to keep small will also let you retain initiative in the hand. In other words, you will be the last player to be aggressive (make bet or raise). This position is always beneficial from a psychological standpoint and makes it possible to control the dynamics of the game.
Using your opponents’ playing style
Understanding the key tendencies of your opponents allows you to change your sizing strategy in such a way as to exploit their style of play. For example, if your opponent is quite aggressive, you should probably bet bigger with your bluffs. In turn, against a “tight” opponent, you can use a smaller size, which will facilitate his calling with a wider range of hands.
Unpredictability
To make your plays less predictable for your opponents, you should vary your bet sizing in different situations. This technique complicates the process of opponents adapting to your game and contributes to their mistakes.
The relationship between strategy and sizing
The bet size should correspond to your strategy of choice. For example, in tournament conditions, when it is especially important to preserve your stack, a conservative sizing strategy will be effective.
Increasing the efficiency of bluffing
The success of a bluff can be increased when you use believable sizings. By choosing the right bet size, you can bluff more convincingly, increasing the likelihood of taking the pot.
On the flop, a standard sizing of 1/2 to 2/3 of the current pot is often used. At multi-table poker tournaments, it is recommended to select bets based on the payout structure and effective stack size. If your opponents are not very experienced, you should increase the bet size with a strong hand, so you make more money when called. Accordingly, in a game with regulars, a varied sizing is more effective, allowing you to mask the strength of your hand.
Preflop Sizings
To enter the pot, poker players usually choose promising hands. Hands that make pocket pairs, different connectors, high cards and suited cards. In a situation where opponents begin to increase the pot preflop, without a premium hand it is better to just call. If no one raised and you are the one to act, you should enter the game using open-raise. Here is the formula for calculating the first raise size.
The size of the open raise preflop: R = 3 (4) * BB + N * BB, where:
- 3(4) – 3 or 4.
- BB is the size of the big blind.
- N is the number of limps.
In a game with a big blind of $50, if there are two players limping in front of a you, you should raise $250 = $50 *3 +2* $50.
We increase the size with two main goals:
- Increase the size of the pot.
- Put pressure on your opponents, which may result in them folding their hands.
A promising hand should be played aggressivel, but always take the size of the pot into account. You should make them put more money into the pot. If you play passively, you just give them free flop and they can easily improve weaker hands. You should prevent multiway pots by folding out most of the players. Reducing the number of players preflop increases the value of strong starting hands.
If a player has a strong hand preflop, he should not save chips. It is the stage of the game where you form the starting pot, which then you can increase drastically. Because the size of the pot is what dictates bet sizings postflop.
Postflop Sizings
When deciding how much to bet postflop, it is important to consider the current pot size. The player strives to increase the pot and possible profit with strong hands. Its purpose is to make it unprofitable for opponents to stay in the hand. If your opponent starts betting too often without considering his pot odds, he will lose chips in the long run, even if he wins a particular hand.
Size | Description |
Less than 25% | The opponent has the opportunity to call bets with any combination of cards when it is beneficial to him. He has the opportunity to stay in the hand cheaply. He still has chances to improve to a stronger combination, so he can often call. |
25-50% | The profitable call range of our opponents shrinks, yet still is wide enough. He can still call straight or flush draws and other hands. |
50-75% | It is not profitable for him to stay in the pot with many hands. Most of the times, calling is not profitable. Over time, hero can gain strategical advantage if opponent doesn’t understand pot odds. |
75-100% | Not profitable to call with draws. Maximizes winnings with bluffs, because opponents fold more. |
When bluffing, it is not profitable to use small raises. Opponents are more likely to call small bets. Bet would be good when chances of opponent calling it are low.
Betting big can be profitable, but it doesn’t mean we want to bet 75-100% always. Sometimes it makes more sense to use smaller bets:
- If you have a strong hand against tight opponent, it is important to disguise the nut hand by presenting it as a weak one. If you bet too big, you can just scare away tight player with a narrow range. He will simply fold if you bet too much. In this case, you can use what’s called slowplay. Small raises will induce your opponent to put money in and keep him in the pot.
- A strong hand against an aggressive opponent. The opponent reacts to pretty much any bet by raising. It is advisable to iduce a raise, so that he is the one increasing the pot. It might be worth calling his raises.
In both scenarios, the player’s main goal is to create a situation in which staying in the hand becomes disadvantageous for the opponent, given his chances of success. It is important to increase the size of the pot without knocking your opponent out. Slowplay is the optimal tactic. If the situation and the board clearly indicate that we have an advantage, villain will most likely fold his hand to a large bet.
How to Choose your Bet Sizes
When considering sizing in poker, there are basically three options for you. Those options are determined by the size of the pot:
- Bets that are less than 35% of the pot are considered small.
- Bets ranging 35% to 65% are considered medium.
- Bets higher than 65% are considered large.
At the beginning of the 2000s, there was a large percentage of poker players playing purely for fun. Players who played consistently (regulars) for profit preferred large and medium sizings.
Today, beginners are much better educated, which has led to a change in strategy in choosing bet sizes.
Small bets
Bets that are less than 20% of the pot are not used. In most situations, betting too small can give opponents too favorable pot odds. However, betting based on hand value may be an exception.
Medium bets
They are used to extract maximum profit from a hand that is not very strong and for bluffing. It all depends on the player’s position at the table. Sizing is determined by the following factors:
- the current size off the pot;
- the number of players in the hand;
- the range of their possible hands;
- decisions made by players at previous stages of the game.
Large bets
Players at low stakes often prefer a straightforward approach. Because of this, significant raises and calls occur less frequently. As the stakes increase, the number of all-ins becomes larger. Experienced poker players take risks to put pressure on their opponents, often with bluffs.
Why big bets are better than small ones
Regulars’ arguments:
- Large sizes provide more information. To call a raise, a player needs a strong hand or a hand with some potential to improve. A large bet helps to clarify the range of combinations of players in the hand, which is an advantage. However, using large raises solely for collecting additional data may not be effective.
- Raising the bet with a strong hand. The player who has the nuts or the strongest hand must control the dynamic of the hand. It is important for him to increase the size of the pot and force out his opponents. Therefore, he will bet his entire stack at some point.
A small sizing or slowplay can produce results if a player has potentially the strongest hand and his opponent is a nit with a narrow range.
Poker Sizing Recommendations
Here are some basic recommendations on how to choose sizing:
- When choosing bet size, you should focus on the size of the pot (the larger it is, the higher the bets and raises should be). Typically, preflop sizing is 3-4 big blinds plus one blind for every limp, and postflop it is mostly 2/3 of the pot and more.
- To disguise the strength of your hand, it is important that value bets and bluffs look similar, which makes you unpredictable for your opponents and makes it difficult for your opponents to read your hand.
- When playing against weak opponents, it is worth adapting your strategy and deviating from the general rule. Against such players, you can use larger bets with value hands, but you should avoid bluffing altogether.
- When defending against potential draws, it is important to consider the chances of your opponent to improve on later streets, and not give him enough odds to call profitably.
Correct bet sizing is a key element of success in poker. The ability to choose the right sizing makes the strategy less predictable and significantly increases winnings in the long term.
Poker Sizing Frequently Asked Questions
What bet size should you use against an unknown opponent?
In the absence of statistics and information about the opponent’s playing style, it is recommended to consider him a regular when making decisions. After a few hands, your opponent’s level of play will become clear.
When should you balance you sizings?
You should balance sizings in the spots that occur repeatedly (for example, continuation bets, 3-bets, check-raises on the turn and river). It helps you to both disguise a strong hand and to bluff with air.
When overbetting is good?
Beginner poker players who play at micro-stake should not use overbets. Bets that are larger than the pot are used to knock out players with mediocre hands. This does not allow draws to make maximum profit.
What is called inconsistent sizing?
Inconsistent sizing is a strategy in which the size of the bet changes depending on the specific opponent. It is effective against recreational players who reach the turn quite often. In such cases, you can expect a larger return on bets.
To summarize, we should again highlight that solid bet sizing is the basis of an effective poker strategy. When making a bet, no matter why, whether it is a bluff or a value-bet or bet for protection, there must be a reason for betting, based on your goals and the situation. The ability to manage sizing makes it possible to psychologically influence opponents, increase ROI, reduce losses and effectively manage the dynamics of the game and the size of the pot.
We are in an era of online poker where there are vast opportunities to learn sizing management and to gain in-game experience. You can find not only video tutorials on this topic, but also special assisting software online. Despite the endless possibilities, it should be borne in mind that no online technology can replace human intuition and thinking, which remain the decisive factors for a successful poker game.