Playing against an aggressive opponent in no limit Texas Holdem can sometimes be a frustrating process. An aggressive opponent is one who loves to bet out and generally try to take the lead of a pot. If played effectively, aggressive opponents can be very profitable. However, more often than not this aggressive behaviour can be exploited for profit.
When to check to an aggressive opponent on a flop
On the PokerStars.net flop, a great play to tackle an aggressive opponent is to check to him. More likely than not, this opponent will bet out as they do on most flops. At this point, the aggressive opponent feels that they are in control of the pot. Knowing that an opponent is very likely to bet out on the flop can be very profitable to a poker player who knows how to exploit it. If a poker player checks to an opponent while holding a good hand, he can be guaranteed value out of the hand as well as disguising his hand strength. If a poker player check-calls with a strong hand, he can allow his opponent to continue believing he has medium to weak holding – possibly inducing another bet on the turn. This allows the poker player to extract more value out of their hand instead of simply betting to make his opponent fold.
When to avoid checking to an aggressive opponent on a flop
Checking to an aggressive opponent when a pokerstars player has a bad set of cards can be a losing play. If the poker player knows it is likely that his opponent will bet with any two cards, he is almost giving up the hand if he resigns to check-folding the hand. A better idea is to lead out on some occasions or check-raise on certain boards. Boards that poker players might want to practice a check-raise with tend to be quite dry ones. Boards with very few draws and high cards might be a good one to check-raise on if we know our opponent is betting the flop with almost any two. If our opponent calls our check raise, we can then decide to give up our hand and check-fold unless it improves at all on the turn card or the turn card justifies firing another barrel.
It is important to keep in mind that poker is about mixing up play. Even though using these tactics can be very effective, a poker player must mix up the plays they make or they can be exploited. If a poker player checks every time they have a good hand, an opponent might realize this and adapt accordingly.