Building Pots

Building pots is the art of extracting the most money possible from your strongest hands. The art of pot building can apply to all hands that you suspect are better than your opponent’s but it really shines when used to build the biggest pots possible with the very best of your made hands.

With hands like top pair, you can build the pot but there’s usually some safe limit that you don’t want to pass due to the risk of having a second-best hand. Hands like three of a kind and better, on the other hand, are prime candidates for doing anything it takes to make the pot as large as possible.

There are two basic approaches to pot building: slow playing and fast playing. There are countless betting patterns one can take when building pots but they generally fall under one of those two categories.

Slow Playing

Slow playing is what most players default to when they catch a strong hand. Instead of betting right off the bat, a player with a strong hand checks and calls for a street or two. The purpose of slow playing is to give the other players a chance to catch a decent hand and therefore be willing to put more money in the pot.

Whether your slow play for a single street or two streets depends on the situation at the table. If nobody else initiates the betting on the turn, it’s advisable that you at least put out a small bet on the turn. That way you’ll have a chance to put out a slightly larger bet on the river.

One major weakness to slow playing is that it limits the size of the pot. By not betting in earlier streets, the pot will be smaller on the river. In that case, the size of your bet on the river will be limited. You have to pray that one of your opponents catches a strong hand and decides to play a big pot.

Slow playing is best reserved for the times when you have the dock locked and the chances of someone else beating it are tiny. If you catch a hand like a full house or flush on the flop, it’s usually difficult to convince anyone else to put any meaningful money in the pot with you.

Another good time to slow play is when there are few people in the pot with you. If you’re only up against a single opponent, it’s less likely that he has a strong hand. By slowplaying, you give that opponent the best chance possible to improve to a stronger hand. 

Fast Playing

Fast playing takes the opposite approach. Instead of feigning weakness early in the hand, you come right out betting and hope that you get action from people who either believe you are bluffing, who underestimate you or who also have strong hands.

One of the key advantages to fast playing is that in today’s poker games, it often represents weakness more than it does strength. Many poker players have read basic strategy and the games have gotten more aggressive in recent years. Most players know that just because you come out betting on the flop, it doesn’t mean you have a true powerhouse.

The second advantage to fast playing is that it builds the pot earlier in the hand, which prepares you for large bets on the river. By getting money in the pot early in the hand, you’ll have a bigger pot and can then make a bigger bet at the end. Your opponents are much more likely to call big bets when the pot is also big.

A third advantage to fast playing is that it charges your opponents to draw to stronger hands. Whether you have a set, flush or straight, there’s always a chance that someone is waiting with a draw to an even bigger hand. When you start the betting early, you charge your opponents to draw. If you wait to bet, you won’t collect any money from the players who were on draws but missed them.

Finally, fast playing blends in with other bets you make early in the hand. Continuation bets, for example, look the same as fast playing. If your opponents catch you fast playing with a strong hand, they’ll be less likely to call other bets you make on the flop that you don’t want called.

Fast playing is best when used by hands such as top pair, two-pair, three of a kind and some straights. These hands don’t require frightening boards (such as flush boards and paired boards) so your opponents will be more likely to call those bets. These hands are also susceptible to draws so it’s good to start the betting early.

The more people there are in the hand, the more you should lean towards fast playing your hand. There is a greater chance at least one of those players has a some sort of made hand or draw. By betting early, you take advantage of both possibilities.

Proactive Measures

There are also proactive measures you can take before you even catch a strong hand. The more aggressive you play with your normal hands, the more likely it is that you get action when you have strong hands. You have to be careful, though, that you don’t play so aggressively with weak hands that you lose more money with weak hands than you make with strong hands.

If you are an extra tight player, you will have less luck building large pots but you will also lose less money in between strong hands. This style works well for many players so don’t discount it just because it doesn’t sound as exciting. As a tight player, you still get action with your strong hands when your opponents catch second-best hands.