The Continuation Bet in No Limit Hold 'em

Poker Helper, Jun 2007

When you’re playing in a full-handed game, in which many flops are seen with three or more players, you are pretty much stuck in hit-to-win mode because chances are good that at least one of your many opponents has hit the flop. Many full-handed games, especially at small stakes, can be beaten playing in the hit-to-win paradigm. Not only can they be beaten playing hit-to-win, but playing hit-to-win is the only way to beat them.

Let’s now shift to a shorthanded game or to a full-handed game in which most flops are contested shorthanded. Unless your opponents give up huge implied odds in post-flop play, playing hit-to-win poker will no longer be enough. When you’re heads-up against two opponents, neither you nor your opponent(s) will hit the flop a majority of the time, meaning that you need to have ways of winning besides playing hit-to-win poker. One of the biggest weapons that will enable you to take advantage of this is the continuation bet. A continuation bet is a bet that a pre-flop raiser makes on the flop when he misses the flop and no one else has bet. Against opponents who fold to your bet unless they’ve hit the flop, a continuation bet is a highly profitable play. Let’s take a look at the continuation bet in action.
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