Spotting bluffs from any type of player...

What are some key factors in spotting bluffs. I have my own ideas, but i'd like to hear some input on how to know if someone is bluffing or not.

I'll say the thing that comes to mind right now:
Raised pot with two people, board is low with a J, first to act bets, I call thinking it may be a continuation. turn blank, first to act checks, I check. Last card blank, First to act makes big bet.

The reason this is most likely a bluff is because the first two streets he played as if he was weak and had just made a continuation. Then on the river there is a complete blank and he bets hard, his hand obviously didn't improve so i think bluff. Obviously this hand wasn't played very well by me, but thats not the point here.

So lets hear input on spotting bluffs! From LAGG players, to TAGG players

Originally Posted by IowaSkinsFan

Raised pot with two people, board is low with a J, first to act bets, I call thinking it may be a continuation. turn blank, first to act checks, I check. Last card blank, First to act makes big bet.

Any kind of scenario like this where the betting pattern just doesn't make sense (something Harrington stresses in his books a lot), there's a good chance that the bettor is bluffing, or has a very marginal hand.

In that example, if the bettor raised preflop and actually had a jack it would likely be with AJ, KJ or maybe QJ (depending on his position and how loose he is). With one of those hands there's no way he would check a blank on the turn. Here he likely just missed the flop with AK, AQ, KQ etc (most likely) or has a pocket pair under jacks.

A pretty reliable tell online is when you make a raise preflop and one guy calls you who you have position on (in the blinds or limped in). Then the flop comes and he donkbets you for the minimum amount possible. This almost always signals weakness and I'll always put in a raise regardless of my cards.

Yea usually when his betting doesn't make sense he is probably bluffing. If he was very passive on the flop and then a total blank comes and he bets very hard...its very likely hes trying to steal the pot. Use psychology... would you bet the way hes betting if you had a good hand? Is this guy trying to extract money from you or trying to push you out? And obviously study his play from other hands to see if hes likely to be bluffing or not.

Another specific situation is when you flop middle pair and your opponent checks and you check. Then the turn pairs the high card and your opponent bets. This is almost always a bluff and I'll always call here.

Others have said it; a betting line that doesn’t make sense. One problem I have found with that is that his betting pattern may make sense for a different hand, one you didn’t put him on. The most common of these I have seen is a PP lower than TP. He missed so he checks the turn. You hit the board but with middle pair/bottom pair. On the river you both figure you are good so he bets, you call or raise only to find out his PP beats your split pair. This is a common case of not re-evaluating what you put him on when new information becomes available. When he makes that river bet, don’t assume he is bluffing. Re-evaluate to see if his betting line makes sense for another hand other than high unpaired cards.

When someone bets weak on the flop (1/2 pot or less) with a draw-heavy board....

When someone just check-calls on the flop with a draw heavy board, no apparent draw is made, and opp bets the turn or river big.

Originally Posted by WildBobAA

Another specific situation is when you flop middle pair and your opponent checks and you check. Then the turn pairs the high card and your opponent bets. This is almost always a bluff and I'll always call here.

Very good point, WildBob. I use this to call down with middle pair all the time.

Note that the difficulty is separating the bluffs from the fake bluffs.

For example in the first hand JXX board, c-bet, check, Bet the river hard - this is one way to play JJ on this board.

He c-bets to hide his monster. He checks turn to see if you bet. When you don't, he has to bet the river - he can either make a small value bet to get you to make a small mistake, or he can drop the hammer. If you are a moron OR if you are smarter than you think you will call.

So, yes, if someone has a funny betting pattern - they are either bluffing, or trapping.

I made some money off QQ this way.... flopped a set, bet out, got a call, then min bet the the turn just to look like an idiot (I have no fear of being drawn out or raised, just trying to act like a moron). Check river, victim bets I raise he calls with A-high.

Only works once though...

Pot sized bet on the river from an aggressive player is my favorite bluff to pick off. Most players with a good hand will value bet the river when they know they're ahead because they want a call. Big bet on the river merits a sign that says "Don't call me." In fact, we will call this the Rilla Playa bet because all his girls don't want him to call either.

Originally Posted by WildBobAA

Another specific situation is when you flop middle pair and your opponent checks and you check. Then the turn pairs the high card and your opponent bets. This is almost always a bluff and I'll always call here.

Why not reraise for info? Then you're giving yourself two ways to win which is always better than forcing a showdown.

True, but then you miss out on the money he might bluff on the river. Plus I like keep pots small and playing a lot of them.

You should only re-raise for info if you can only beat a bluff, i.e,. you are bluffing yourself. If, by some chance, they are not bluffing, this just costs you $$$.

Zenbitz has the right idea

The turn can often be where you set the noose. In some situations that become more frequent after loosening a table, I allow my opponent to feel ahead if they want to when I'm very strong, and then hit the river hard if it's the right kind of card. I see a lot of wasted value by people who don't prime their loose (or loosened) opponent (See LAG) to call a big bet. They just bet $4 on the flop, bet $6 on the turn, bet $6 on the river. They give their drawing opponents odds, and their loose opponents reasonably cheap showdowns. Boooooring. I have been known to check the turn behind if I can put them OFF a draw, and slam the river blank for like $25 to seem like I was the one drawing and missed. Sieze every opportunity to extract large chunks. They are there.

If you can put a loose opponent on a weaker kicker, or top pair when you have trips or two pair, then don't miss out on the value that exists in that situation. The trick is to put the opponent OFF or ON a draw. It's so important. It sets up everything else from the flop on. I think a large amount of mistakes are a DIRECT result of not pinpointing which opponents are drawing strong, and which ones are not. Sometimes giving a free or cheap card is just what the doctor ordered. Seems weird, but it can actually increase your implied odds.

Just make sure when you're giving free or cheap cards in the name of deception, they're not likely to hurt you. Zenbitz is right on. If a player seems solid, then erratic can mean very strong.

Originally Posted by Rondavu

I have been known to check the turn behind if I can put them OFF a draw, and slam the river blank for like $25 to seem like I was the one drawing and missed. Sieze every opportunity to extract large chunks. They are there.

...and always overbet the nuts...

Originally Posted by harmisajedi

Originally Posted by Rondavu

I have been known to check the turn behind if I can put them OFF a draw, and slam the river blank for like $25 to seem like I was the one drawing and missed. Sieze every opportunity to extract large chunks. They are there.

...and always overbet the nuts...

Please show how this is more +EV than value betting.

Originally Posted by WildBobAA

A pretty reliable tell online is when you make a raise preflop and one guy calls you who you have position on (in the blinds or limped in). Then the flop comes and he donkbets you for the minimum amount possible. This almost always signals weakness and I'll always put in a raise regardless of my cards.

If he's not really very good, then he's weak. But many times against better players, this is a fairly transparent weak lead trap. He's got a set.

Originally Posted by Rondavu

I have been known to check the turn behind if I can put them OFF a draw, and slam the river blank for like $25 to seem like I was the one drawing and missed. Sieze every opportunity to extract large chunks. They are there.

This is a nice post. But you should guard these betting strategies and keep them to yourself. No point in giving them away.

The best thing about checking behind with a monster and repping the draw is that it allows you to WAY overbet the pot on the river. It's one of the best ways to double up from a limped pot.

Originally Posted by zenbitz

Note that the difficulty is separating the bluffs from the fake bluffs.

For example in the first hand JXX board, c-bet, check, Bet the river hard - this is one way to play JJ on this board.

He c-bets to hide his monster. He checks turn to see if you bet. When you don't, he has to bet the river - he can either make a small value bet to get you to make a small mistake, or he can drop the hammer. If you are a moron OR if you are smarter than you think you will call.

So, yes, if someone has a funny betting pattern - they are either bluffing, or trapping.

I made some money off QQ this way.... flopped a set, bet out, got a call, then min bet the the turn just to look like an idiot (I have no fear of being drawn out or raised, just trying to act like a moron). Check river, victim bets I raise he calls with A-high.

Only works once though...

Wrong! It works many times! It's just too confusing. Betting like a donk is always a good trap.

Please show how this is more +EV than value betting.

+ev due to repping bluff & reaping extremely marginal calls.

think of your own thought decision process, as a decent player (as most of us posting here would like to think of ourselves as)--what are you more likely to call @ the river w/ something relatively marginal like tp tk or two middle pair: pot-sized bet in continuation to pot/2-third pot-sized bet on the river or a large, 3-4xpot overbet @ the very end after tepid action on flop/turn?

Its been mentioned that its usually a bluff when they bet weak out of position trying to steal before you can cbet...

I find more often than not if someone makes a small bet out of position that doesnt make any sense, after youve already showed strength, its a trap. They bet small because they WANT you to re-raise them.

Thats what seems to happen to me more often than them just not having anything and trying to steal it. Maybe its because I play at $10 NL tables and people just check if they dont have a hand.

Depends on how good your opponents are.

Delayed bluffs are hard to defend against I've found if used sparingly (I've tried them myself at times.) For example, calling preflop raise against my LAG friend, flop has 2 hearts and a spade, call his cbet, turn has a spade, another bet, I call, river is the third heart, he bets I RAISE with queen high...

fold...