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How to play on the flop combo draws in Texas hold'em

• 30.06.2025 8:05 pm
• Helen
• 0 Comments

A combo draw refers to a draw that has over a dozen outs. Draws are so strong that it is important to pay them hard and fast in close to al flops.

It is really hard to have more pot equity from drawing hands than from a made hand in the Texas hold'em poker game. However, combo draws have so much more power and this is why it could possibly be a favorite as compared to a made hand.

Combo draws examples include:

• An open ended straight draw of an overpair against 13 outs, and a pair
• A flush draw of 14 outs and a pair
• A gut shot straight flush draw of 12 outs
• A flush draw of 15 outs and a straight draw
• The ever indefinable open end straight flush draw of 15 outs

In the above examples, with a quarter deck, and over can earn you a winning hand when aligned with an overpair. The worst combo draw a player can have is the gut shot straight flush draw of 12 outs as it is even money vs. overpair.

All these means that, you are a small playing hand in the presence of big hands. If you are put against an average hand, you could be a favorite.

You really need to push these hands to the limit as they are a way to earn big cash for any good poker player.

The reasons for playing them hard

It is obvious that any poker player is always in search of ways to get poker money with favorable odds.

Following a pre flop raise, bet, and maybe a raise on the flop, you will end up with a whole lot than the normal even break odds on the strong draw you have.

In order to win the pot, half of the time you play, you need break even odds of 1:1 in order to get it all in on the flop. In the real sense, you will have better odds; this means that you ought to be confident enough to play your combo draws.

In case you miss it on the flop and you are faced with a scare card on the turn or river, it is possible that your opponent will be afraid to cash in and this will make it hard for you to receive payment on the hand. In order to increase the chances of your opponents calling, you need to in it on the flop.

The fold equity

Fold equity will always be of benefit to you every time you bet or raise. Fold equity is the equity you obtain every time the opponent's chances of laying the hand down and therefore leaving the pot for you as calling has 0 fold equity.

By fast playing combos, you will get great pot equity and you also benefit from fold equity on your draw. Always make use of the fold equity.

For instance, assume that you have an open ended straight flush draw flop, you place a bet on the flop and the opponent raises. This gives you more than the necessary calling odds; this means that you are a favorable winner as compared to a one paired hand, but you decide to shove instead.

It is possible for you to win the pot by either hitting one of your many outs or by forcing your opponent to fold. Since getting one pair flop is not a good idea for you, you can lay fast draws on tight players putting the in a lose – lose dilemma.  Should they call, they become favorites, should they fold, and they forego their pot equity.

In such a scenario, you need to ensure that opponent calling or folding is unfavorable to them. Take this example for instance:

A $1/$2 No limit six max online poker with valuable stacks of $200

You bump it to eight dollars after it has been folded to you, there is a fold from the small blind as the third big blind bets and it goes to $22 and you call. There is a flop of and the opponent places a bet of $35, you make a raise on the pot to $110.

Incase the opponent is 3- betting with overcards of any kind followed by a bet of continuation on the flop, the opponent will be forced to fold.

If the opponent is 3- betting with a 99-JJ hand, the opponent will again have to call. If he decides to shove with a QQ- AA, he ends up with 45:55 odds.

In the above case, you managed to put your opponent in a place where all the relevant moves they can make are against them.

With such a combo draws as the one above, you have monster hands. This is how your hand looks like during slow playing pocket pairs that are big AA- QQ, with 77, 22, or even 88 sets, as well as w/5 -6s, J-9s and T-9s combo draws. In order for your opponent to make this hand profitable with a call, they would require to have monsters as well. With combo draws, you already have monsters.

There is a likely hood that your opponent does not have a monster and they would have to fold or in it. In this case, you comfortably call and you run the odds of a coin flip.

As in the examples above, it is very important to add fast playing combo to your poker game weapons. These combos are monsters and you can always count on fold equity to top it all. It is important that you learn how to fast play good draws and made hands.

In case you always end up with on the flop monsters, you end up being exceedingly predictable and you will hardly get any action. In case it is possible for you to use draws and monster to make good plays, you run more chances of getting paid off.

For all the above reasons, you need to start playing the combos like you own them and stand to gain in every way.