Do you pay attention to flop textures?

You probably find it easy to cbet the flop for value. TPTK? Easy cbet. Flop a set? Easy cbet or raise.

But, as you know, you frequently MISS hitting a pair or better, so you gotta bluff often. And that can be difficult for some to do.

In this article, I’m going to teach you how to find the best flop textures to bluff on with Flopzilla Pro, so you can win more pots.

Watch the video for this podcast:

Download this podcast episode #415 and follow along below as you listen.

Bluff on Dry and Hard-To-Hit Flop Textures

Let's break that down:

Dry Flop Textures

They offer few drawing possibilities and the winning hand is more likely already decided.

You hold AcJc on A92r – very likely to win.

Wet Flop Textures

They offer loads of drawing opportunities and the winning hand is likely NOT decided yet.

You hold AcJc on Js 9s 8h – this can be disastrous for your TPTK hand.

Hard-To-Hit Flop Textures

2 parts to this: (1) These are going to be dry flop textures. (2) You must play the player and consider their range. For the flop to be “hard-to-hit”, their range DOES NOT interact well with the flop.

Example situation: You opened and only the tight SB called. The flop comes K64r:

• 1. It's a dry flop texture with not many draws possible.
  2. The SB can't hold 2 pair as tight players don't call with K6, K4 or 64 in that position.
  3. He has some sets in his range (66 and 44), however, his TP hands are limited to KQ, KJs and KTs.
  4. The best draw he can hold is a gut shot straight draw with 87s (if you think he would call with that in the SB). He doesn't hold 75 nor 53 for an open-ended straight draw. Lastly, flush draws are not possible on rainbow boards.
  5. Conclusion: this is a great flop to bluff on!

Quiz: Which flop to bluff?

Open-raising Situation:

• You opened in the CO.
• BTN and SB folded.
• Loose BB called. You put 'em on this range:

Which flop will you bluff on?

1. A92r
2. Js 9s 8h
3. K64r

Here's my answer, and I'm burying it in this paragraph. I would bluff 100% of the time on the K64r flop. The 32.9% range hits TP+ and OESD+ 17.8%. All of his Ax, Qx and most pairs missed a strong hand on this flop texture. Also, 75s is the only OESD, 87s is the only GS, and there's no FD possible. Great board for bluffing!

Use Flopzilla Pro to Build Flop Textures Understanding

Use the “Group Mode” in Flopzilla Pro (the filter icon at the top of the window), enter a range and enter each of the 3 boards from the quiz above: K64r – A92r – Js9s8h.

The caller's range on the K64r flop hits TP+ and OESD only 17.8%:

Same range on the A92r, hits mid-pair+ and gutshot+ at 44.5%:

The range hits mid-pair+ and gutshot+ at 63.7% on the wet Js9s8h flop:

3 More Exercises

1. Use the Range & Flop Interaction Spreadsheet

Download the spreadsheet above, then take the time to fill out the pages for 10%, 20% and 50% calling ranges on the list of flop textures.

2. Use “Random” Flop Textures

Enter a range, then click the “Random” button below the board section.

3. Use Actual Flops You've Seen

This is a random screen shot of actual flops from my PokerTracker 4 database of hands.

Enter a calling range then go through these flops one at a time.

Before you enter in a flop, make an estimate of how well you think the range hits TP+ and OESD+.

The more work you do with range and flop interactions, the closer your estimates will get to the truth.

This will develop a great intuition which you will use in-game to bluff and win more flops.

Take Action!

Spend 3 sessions studying flop textures with Flopzilla Pro this weekend:

Friday: Complete the 10%, 20% and 50% spreadsheets in the Range & Flop Interaction Spreadsheet.

Saturday: Enter calling ranges, use actual flops you’ve seen.

Sunday: Enter calling ranges, use the “Random” flop button. Guess the hit % before you enter the flop.

Support the Show

These super poker peeps are on their way to improving their range and flop analysis skills with my Flopzilla Pro Course: Steve Bugo, Emma Napper, Karen Villeneuve, Daniel Sodja, David Cassidy, Ron Schank, Arthur Tiersky, Błażej Rudnicki, Alex Hawkins, Brendan Rojas, Edward Criss, George Milosevich, Timmy Waumans, James Tichenor and Robert Swinford. Thank you so much for getting the 3.75 hours of “do as you consume” video instruction and 19-page workbook with answer key.