Call or Raise?
Is calling a bet always weak play in a poker game? Is the best response to a bet to either fold or raise? It’s a debate that poker online players continually make with no real one-size fits all solution.
Poker games situational and your betting action should always be based on what hands you think the other players might be holding and what you have observed of their previous play. There are a few general guidelines to keep in mind when it comes to calling or raising.
When you are playing to win and to make the most profit, you should be folding more hands than you call or raise. Playing more than 15 percent of your starter hands means you are probably playing too broad a range of hands (unless of course you are very lucky and keep getting monster starting hands - highly improbable.)
When you do play a hand, you should be raising more than calling in aggressive pursuit of winning the pot. There are times when calling is the best option - to see another card on the turn or river when you are on a draw with good pot odd and outs. When you are calling more than raising, then your play is passive and you are going to suffer some bad beats.
Establish yourself as a strong contender for any pot you play by raising more than calling.
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