When to Turn a Made Hand Into a Bluff in Poker

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Arved Klöhn Pokerlistings Author
  • Fact Checked by: PokerListings
  • Last updated on: January 10, 2025

Turning a made hand into a bluff by accident can be a pretty serious poker mistake.

If a worse hand is never going to call and a better hand is never going to fold, you’ve successfully done just that – made a big mistake.

But quite often a better hand will fold and you can take the very bottom of your showdown-value range, turn it into a bluff and get a laydown.

Basically you take a hand that has some showdown value and give it more value as a bluff.

Example:

Imagine you’re in a $2/$5 No-Limit game with effective stacks of $400. You hold 9 9 on the button. The cutoff, a fairly aggressive player, raises to $15. You call, and everyone else folds. The flop comes K J 8 . Your opponent makes a continuation bet of $25, and you call with your pair of nines, which has some showdown value but is far from strong.

The turn is Q . Now your opponent checks. At this point, it’s unlikely your pair of nines is best against many of his holdings, so calling down might not offer much value. However, by betting $60 into a pot of about $85, you can credibly represent a strong Broadway-type hand. If he folds a hand like A-K or A-Q, you’ve successfully turned your marginal made hand into a bluff and won a pot you’d probably lose at showdown.

Some Showdown Value, More Bluff Value

$1/$2 No-Limit game; effective stacks $300.

You’re dealt 7 8 . Your good, hand-reading opponent raises to $8 and you call on the button.

The flop comes 8 J K . Your opponent bets $14 and you call. The turn comes J . Your opponent bets $30 and you call again.

The river comes 3  and your opponent bets $70. You raise to $248 all-in and your opponent folds.

You took a hand that had some showdown value (a pair of eights) and turned it into a bluff to get a fold from a better hand (a pair of kings).

In a spot like this turning your hand into a bluff works especially well because your eights don’t have a ton of showdown value. You basically can only beat a stone-cold bluff.

Calling here vs. his range is probably bad. If you look at your opponent’s third-barrel range, it’s much wider than just hands that can bet and profitably call a shove.

Our opponent can be barreling with missed draws, value-betting good kings, value-towning with aces and, of course, he could be firing with a jack. Of those hands, only the three jacks can really profitably call your shove.

The best part about this scenario is that you can’t often be bluffing in this spot in your opponent’s eyes. You flat-called the flop and flat-called the turn.

Generally that’s a sign of a made hand, and opponents won’t expect you to all of a sudden turn that made hand into a bluff. Your range in his eyes seems very strong, and with the second jack falling you can very credibly rep that jack.

Which is why it’s such a profitable play. Your opponents don’t expect it. You’re bluffing in a spot where you can only have made hands. It makes your bluff that much more credible.

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Your Hand Has to Gain Equity

The key component in turning your made hand into a bluff is that your hand strength can’t be so strong that you have more equity in seeing a showdown. Your hand has to actually gain equity when you turn it into a bluff.

If it meets that criteria and you’re up against someone that can read hands, you have a great spot to do it. Your opponent will never expect you to ruin a hand with showdown value by bluffing it!

Turning Your Hand Into a Bluff

The other day I was playing in a $1/$2 game at the local casino when this hand came up. The UTG player raises to $15. UTG+1 folds, UTG+2 calls; it’s folded to the cut-off who calls, as does the button.

The small blind folds and the big blind calls. The flop comes K K 9 . Everyone checks to the button, who bets $55. It’s folded to UTG+2, who shoves all-in.

Everyone folds and he proudly turns over pocket aces. Successfully trapped the field, right?

Wrong. What he did was he turned his pocket aces into a bluff. No worse hand will ever call the check-raise and no better hand is ever going to fold. So effectively his AA is just as good as say five-high.

When you make a bet in poker you want to do it for a reason. What reason would our hapless hero have to shove all-in? It wouldn’t be a value bet because he’s not very likely to get called by any worse hands.

So that makes it a bluff, meaning he wants to make a better hand fold. Unfortunately for him there are no better hands, except for trip kings or a full house. None of these is ever going to fold.

So he turns his hand with decent showdown value into a bluff since the only way he can win is by having his opponent fold.

A Counterintuitive Way to Play

This is a counterintuitive way to play poker. If you adhere to David Sklansky’s fundamental theory of poker you should play your hand the exact same way you would if you knew your opponent’s hole cards.

When you think about that in light of the pocket aces hand, would you:

  • a) Blow everyone out of the hand that didn’t contain a king?
  • b) Check-shove into someone who you knew had a king or a full house?

No; of course you wouldn’t. So don’t go doing the same thing now just because you don’t know your opponent’s cards.

Effectively it boils down to the same outcome. You’ll still only win the pot by having everyone fold and those times you are called you’re going to be waaaay behind in a big pot.

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Know Your Goal

To ensure you’re not turning your hand into a bluff you need to be fully cognizant of what it is you’re trying to achieve. This isn’t always as obvious as check-shoving AA on a KKx board.

Let’s look at another example.

You’re playing $1/$2 NL, effective stacks $200. Game is tight-aggressive, six-max online. You have A K .

You raise to $9 from under the gun. It’s folded to the small blind, who calls. (The small blind plays a fairly standard TAG game. He’s a winner in the game and you have never seen him do anything too out of line.)

The big blind folds. The flop comes A 6 7 . Your opponent checks and you bet $15; your opponent flat-calls. The turn is 10 .

Your opponent now bets $45. Should you raise? I would argue no. If you raise, what are you hoping to accomplish?

Would it be a raise for value? A tight, solid player is very rarely going to be calling with a worse hand in this spot. Thus if you were to raise it would be to make a better hand fold.

However, there are very few better hands outs there. 6-7 is one, as well as 8-9, and A-T and 66, 77, TT. Of these, not one is going to fold to your turn raise. Meaning if you raise the turn, your hand becomes a bluff.

Whether you call or not is up to you and is situation-dependent. However, here raising is counterproductive. When you’re playing No-Limit Hold’em, you must realize turning a hand with good showdown value into a complete bluff is a grievous error that must be avoided at all costs.

Luckily for you, it is easy to avoid. If you ask yourself, “Am I raising for value or to get a better hand to fold?” before you act, you’ll usually be able to avoid these troublesome situations altogether!

Turning a Hand Into a Bluff

Sometimes, what makes a particular play profitable is not just the immediate situation but the deeper range dynamics and how your opponents perceive your betting lines. Skilled players often rely on range analysis that integrates solver-based insights, ensuring they balance their bluffs and made hands in a mathematically consistent way. By incorporating a solver-focused mindset, you’ll better identify marginal spots where turning your hand into a bluff generates positive expected value.

Equally crucial is the concept of keeping your range balanced on various streets. If you only raise or shove for value when you truly have the nuts, observant opponents will fold more frequently against your aggression. Mixing in a few made-hand-turned-into-bluff plays ensures your strong moves remain credible.

Leveraging Solver Insights

Solvers have become indispensable in today’s poker world, particularly among experienced players seeking to refine their betting frequencies and hand ranges. A solver analysis might reveal how often certain hands in your range should continue as bluffs or remain in a showdown line. This approach ensures you don’t over-bluff or under-bluff in key situations. For instance, a solver might recommend turning a hand like Q J into a bluff on certain runouts because it blocks top-pair combinations, making it less likely your opponent holds the strongest hands. By following these solver recommendations, you maintain balanced aggression and remain less predictable.

Solvers also highlight the importance of equity realization and denial. When you decide to bluff with a made hand that has marginal showdown value, you must weigh the percentage of times that hand could win at showdown versus the times it can force a fold from a range of stronger holdings. If the solver’s data indicates a profitable risk-reward ratio, you can confidently pull the trigger.

FAQ

What does it mean to turn a made hand into a bluff?

Turning a made hand into a bluff means taking a hand that has some showdown value and playing it aggressively with the intention of making a better hand fold. You forgo the small chance of winning at showdown in favor of a more profitable bluff line.

Why is it sometimes more profitable to bluff with a marginal hand than to check?

In certain situations, your marginal made hand will rarely win a showdown, so its equity is improved by turning it into a bluff. By betting or raising in a spot where your range appears strong, you can make your opponent fold hands that beat yours.

Are there times when a hand like pocket aces could be turned into a bluff profitably?

It’s theoretically possible if you’re in a very specific scenario where A A can’t realistically win at showdown, but it’s usually rare. The A A example in the article shows how players accidentally turn a strong hand into a bluff when they should be playing for value or controlling the pot.

How do solver tools influence decisions on turning made hands into bluffs?

Solvers guide you on which hands in your range benefit from bluffing rather than calling or folding. They consider blockers, pot odds, and your opponent’s likely range, helping you avoid over-bluffing or under-bluffing.

What should you do if your opponent is an inexperienced player who doesn’t fold often?

Inexperienced players who rarely fold can make turning a made hand into a bluff less effective. If they’re willing to call with marginal holdings, your fold equity diminishes, so you’re better off playing your made hand for its actual showdown value or waiting for stronger holdings to apply pressure.

How can I avoid accidentally turning a strong made hand into a bluff?

Always define your goal before you act. If you are betting for value, you want to be called by worse hands. If you’re bluffing, you need better hands to fold. By ensuring you know which of these objectives you’re pursuing, you won’t unintentionally turn a valuable hand into a bluff.

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