A scare card comes that increases the number of superior hands that the player may be perceived to have.

The bluff provides less favorable pot odds to opponents for a call.

Fewer opponents who must fold to the bluff.Several game circumstances may decrease the probability of being called (and increase the profitability of the bluff): Bluffs have a higher expectation when the probability of being called decreases. If his bluff fails and he is called, he still might be dealt a spade on the final card and win the showdown (or he might be dealt another non-spade and try his bluff again, in which case it is a pure bluff on the final round rather than a semi-bluff).īluffing may be more effective in some circumstances than others. In this case his bet is not classified as a semi-bluff even though his bet may force opponents to fold hands with better current strength.įor example, a player in a stud poker game with four spade-suited cards showing (but none among their downcards) on the penultimate round might raise, hoping that his opponents believe he already has a flush. In some cases a player may be on a draw but with odds strong enough that he is favored to win the hand. A player making a semi-bluff can win the pot two different ways: by all opponents folding immediately or by catching a card to improve the player's hand. In games with multiple betting rounds, to bluff on one round with an inferior or drawing hand that might improve in a later round is called a semi-bluff. The opponent will have a positive expectation for calling the bluff if the opponent believes the probability the player is bluffing is at least 33%. In this example, the opponent will be facing 2-to-1 pot odds for the call. Note, however, that the opponent may also consider the pot odds when deciding whether to call. If the player bets the size of the pot on a pure bluff, the bluff will have a positive expectation if the probability of being called is less than 50%. A pure bluff has a positive expectation (will be profitable in the long run) when the probability of being called by an opponent is lower than the pot odds for the bluff.įor example, suppose that after all the cards are out, a player holding a busted drawing hand decides that the only way to win the pot is to make a pure bluff. The pot odds for a bluff are the ratio of the size of the bluff to the pot. A player making a pure bluff believes he can win the pot only if all opponents fold. A pure bluff, or stone-cold bluff, is a bet or raise with an inferior hand that has little or no chance of improving.

Poker calling a bluff