Sets and Trips
Sets
A set is three of a kind when you hold a pocket pair that matches one of the board
cards. The odds of flopping a set are 7.5 to 1. Trips are three of a kind when one of
your pocket cards matches a pair on the board. You will only flop trips about 1.4%
of the time. Sets generally win larger pots than trips. Any time there is a pair on the
board, especially when it is a high pair; it is difficult to get a lot of action since your
opponents generally will play cautiously.
Although sets are very strong hands, there still are dangers. Your first concern with
a set is the possibility of flushes and straights; therefore, three-suit-ed or threeconnected
flops are your biggest worry us it is possible that you are currently beat
and must draw to a full house to win. If the flop is two-suited, two-connected, or
contains two cards with one or two gaps, sets and trips are vulnerable to flush and
straight draws.
Although flushes and straights are your main concern, sometimes you can lose to
other hands. For example, you can lose to a higher set, or your trips can lose to an
opponent who also has trips but with a better kicker. Another possibility is that an
opponent holding two pair could hit a better full house if the board pairs on either
the turn or the river. These secondary concerns usually will not dictate your strategy
on the flop, although possibly on later rounds, since they are not very common;
however, the possibilities of flushes, straights, or strong draws have a big impact on
how you decide to play your hand.
Even with these potential dangers, you have at least a 33% chance of drawing out
to beat any flush or straight; therefore, at the very least you have a good drawing
hand. You are going to play your hand to the river. So you must determine the best
strategy to maximize its value. Sometimes you should play your hand strongly on
the flop, while other times you might slowplay until the more expensive betting
round on the turn. Let’s look first at dangerous and strong flops for sets and then
we’ll discuss strategies for trips.
Dangerous Flops
Three-suited and two-suited flops give your opponents flush opportunities. A threeconnected flop or a flop with all high cards gives them straight opportunities. Even two-connected cards that are high can give opponents straight opportunities. You want to charge your opponents for drawing and try not to give a free card, especially when the pot is large. Even when your opponents have flopped a straight or flush, you still have a strong draw to a full house. With these types of flops, you should usually bet out or raise every opportunity from all positions. Only try checkraising
when you are very confident that an opponent will bet. There are a few exceptions to when you might not play your hand strongly with these types of flops. For example, you can consider slowplaying in heads-up situations when the pot is small, especially with a two-suited flop. With small pots, you are not risking a large pot if you check and your opponent takes a free card. There is also one scenario where you might slowplay with a very large pot. As discussed in the "Deceptive Tactics" chapter, sometimes it is difficult to drive out opponents on the flop even by raising. For example, some opponents with gut-shot draws might call a raise on the flop for two small bets. They could even be correct in calling if the pot is very large. In this case, you might wait to raise the turn to have a better chance of driving out your opponents
Strong Flops
Rainbow flops of all rags or with just one high card are strong flops for a set. You
do not have to worry about flush or straight draws, unless someone has some type
of straight draw with all low cards. An ideal situation is when you flop a set. and one
or two of your opponents hold either an overpair or top pair. For example, a great
flop is J♣ 7♦ 5♥ when you hold 7♠ 7♥, especially if one of your opponents holds a
jack and another opponent an overpair.
When the pot is large, you should almost always play your hand strongly by either
betting out or raising. Your hand is very strong, but a free card could always give
your opponents a backdoor flush or straight draw, so you want to drive them out of
the pot. Check-raising is an option to drive out opponents of a large pot when you
are sure an opponent will bet out: however, be careful in check-raising if you hold
the highest set, since it is Jess likely that your opponents were helped by the flop
and they may not bet.
For example, if you hold J♥ J♠ with a flop of J♦ 7♥ 5♠. it is unlikely that your
opponents were helped with this flop. Note how slowplaying this seemingly very
strong hand can be dangerous against several opponents when the pot is large.
Any diamond, heart, spade, A, K, or Q could give your opponents a good drawing
hand. A T, 9, 8, 6, 4, or 3 could also give your opponents a good drawing hand or
possibly even a straight. Don’t take the risk of giving your opponents; a free card
and a chance to win a large pot.
If the pot is small, you can consider slowplaying your hand. Ideally you want a
couple players to play the flop to gain extra bets on the turn and river. Checking or
just calling a bet can give your opponents a chance to bluff or possibly improve to a
second-best hand on the turn. Slowplaying to the turn also allows you to raise on
the bigger betting round. However, be careful in checking the turn if you must act
first since your opponents may take a free card. Generally go ahead and raise once
two players have entered the pot.
Even with a small pot. sometimes you might raise the flop or even bet out against a
lone opponent as a deceptive strategy when you think he might also have a decent
hand. You could gain a lot of extra bets if your opponent doesn’t put you on such a
strong hand.
Trips
Trips is a strong hand, but it is often difficult to conceal the strength of your hand
making it difficult to win a large pot. For this reason, you should tend to play these
hands stronger on the flop than you would sets since it is more difficult for your
opponents to improve to a good second-best hand and your opponents will often
back off on the turn.
You need to be worried about possible draws when the flop is two-suited or the
third card is connected to the pair, especially if it is a high pair. Strategies in this
case are similar to a two-suited or two-connected flop when you hold a set. You
should almost always either bet out or raise, unless you decide to slowplay against
a lone opponent when the pot is small.
Let’s look at flops that are not too threatening. For example, you hold J♥ T♥ and the
flop is T♣ T♦ 5♠. As usual, if the pot is large, you should play your hand strongly.
Check-raising with these types of flops is risky since many opponents are reluctant
to bet with a high pair on the board; therefore, almost always bet out or raise when
the pot is large.
Slowplaying is an option when the pot is small. You can sometimes just call an
opponent’s bet to wait and raise the turn, especially if you feet your opponent
doesn’t have a very strong hand. However, it is more difficult to get a lot of action
with trips than sets, so sometimes it is better to just go ahead and raise to gain that
extra bet on the flop. The problem with just calling is that your opponent will be
worried that you have trips and will often just check the turn once you have called
the flop. This is an even bigger problem if your opponent acts behind you on the
turn and takes a free card.
If an opponent bets and there are several players left to act behind you. tend to
raise if they are strong opponents and just call if they are weak opponents. Strong
opponents generally are reluctant to be a third caller on this type of flop, so
generally it is better to go ahead and raise your lone opponent. However, if there
are weak opponents left to act, consider slowplaying since they tend to call with
many hands even with a scary board.
If you raised preflop and must act first, generally bet out your trips. Your trips are
somewhat concealed since your opponents expect you to bet out most of the time
anyway after raising preflop.
If you didn’t raise preflop and must act first, checking is usually the best option
when there is a good chance that your opponents will fold if you bet. If you do
decide to check and an opponent bets, I would almost always check-raise since
your opponents will usually back off on the turn as discussed above. Check-raising
the flop can also add a deceptive quality to your play since some opponents expect
you to slowplay such a strong hand to the turn.
One caution about playing trips when your kicker is not very good. If you start to
receive a lot of action, you might need to back off. Since these types of flops are
scary for your opponents, they will usually not play too aggressively unless they
hold trips or maybe even a full house. You will still play to the river, but you may
need to put on the brakes with your raises if the action is really strong.
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