The last card turned on the board in Texas Hold ‘Em online poker is called the River. When players go to the river at the casino, it produces the final round of betting. Sometimes it will be a heads-up situation, sometimes there are multiple players left.

If you’ve made it to the river, then presumably you holding good cards. Some folks may go to the river on a draw for a flush or straight. Others may be holding top pair or trips. It is essential to read the board carefully and determine what is the best possible hand that could be completed by the five cards out there. When you know you are holding the best poker hand possible – the absolute nuts — then your bet has to be calculated based on how well you know your opponents’ play. Will a value bet get called so you can create a bigger pot?

River betting is much trickier if you do not hold the absolute best possible hand. Your opponent has lasted this far, and could be holding the straight that beats your trips. You may have the winning hand, but maybe not. When you are out of position, i.e. first to bet with an opponent behind you, a check is often the wisest move. A bet that is called in this situation probably has you beat. If your opponent does not have the nuts, that player will probably not bluff since you could be attempting a check raise Be cautious at the river if you do not hold the absolute best hand.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 4:12 pm and is filed under Fun Infos, Gambling World, Games + Cheats. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.