Lesson 6: Post-Flop Play

Now that we have addressed pre-flop strategy, we will shift attention to post-flop play. However, before going forward I want to point out one thing... post-flop play is VERY situational. I am going to try to outline general rules that you can use to guide your post-flop play. But the key to successful post-flop play is combining these general rules with the player profiling and reading skills that I will cover in a later lesson. For now I will cover three areas in this lesson:
  1. Reading the board--evaluating the strength of your hand.
  2. Texture of the flop--putting your opponent on a potential draw.
  3. Determine your response--bet sizing in relation to your strength and your opponents possible holding.
Reading the Board
As discussed in the pre-flop lesson, the following are general guidelines to use during post-flop play. I will outline the situations that are right to deviate from the basic strategy in a future lesson. But for now, follow this strategy.
Since single table sit 'n go's are all about survival, the proper post-flop strategy is focused on the initial flop. You must quickly decide whether the flop is appropriate for you to continue with the hand. If it is, your attention shifts to determining bet sizes. If it isn't, the key is the get out of the hand without risking additional chips. I use a simple evaluation to determine the FIT of the flop. FIT is an acronym for the following and is used to evaluate the quality of your hand at the flop:
  • F = Fantastic--you flop a set or better.
  • I = Interesting--you flop top pair with good kicker, two pair, trips, or 4 cards to a straight or flush draw.
  • T = Titanic--you flop top pair with bad kicker, 2nd or 3rd pair, or 3 cards to a straight or flush draw.
Fantastic flops are flops that you should be aggressive with your betting. The goal is to build the pot as large as possible to earn value for your solid hand.
Interesting flops need to be approached with more caution. These are medium strength hands that are at risk of being beaten, but also have the potential to improve. This is really the make or break area of post flop play. It is really easy to make the right decisions when you flop the nut flush but when you flop 4 cards to a queen high flush, it gets more interesting. Generally speaking you want to keep the pot small until your hand improves to the "fantastic" level. Then, get aggressive and build that pot.
Titanic flops are flops that look good to many players but have the potential to sink you! Typically you should check and fold these hands if you experience any betting, especially with multiple players in the pot. Again, your goal is survival. You do not want to risk your chips on weak hands that can knock you out of the tournament.