Poker Preflop Definition

4/13/20224/13/2022

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Preflop Poker Definition
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What is a “donk bet in position,” or “float”?

“Donk bet in position” and “float” are two terms for the same statistic.

Pertaining to the bet or situation before the flop. Get the latest poker news, poker strategies, and special offers sent directly to your inbox. Below is a visual of what a pre-flop 3-bet looks like. In post-flop play, the 3-bet consists of an initial bet, a raise, and then a re-raise (perhaps by the initial bettor). Since the initial bet itself can be sizable, the post-flop 3-bet is proportionately larger in most instances than its pre-flop counterpart.

“Float” itself has two completely different definitions in poker, which can initially cause confusion. One definition is used when, after a player raises preflop and continuation bets the flop, the preflop caller calls the flop continuation bet with a weak hand with the intention of bluffing the turn or river to win the pot. This is called “floating the flop.”

The second definition, and the one on which this article is focused, is used when, after a player raises preflop and decides not to continuation bet, the preflop caller bets when checked to. This is called a “float bet.”

In Poker Copilot the statistic for float bets is filed under “donk bet in position.” For readability, we will use the terms “float” and “donk bet in position” interchangeably in this article. (Please do not confuse “donk bet in position” with the donk bet statistic. To learn more about donk betting, a common play made by weak players, please read our article on donk bets.)

What to do when facing a float bet

You’ve been in this situation many times. You raise preflop, and then check the flop. Then your opponent bets against your weakness. It can be so frustrating to feel like your opponent is stealing pots from you every time you check!

The first step is to look at your opponent’s “donk bet in position” statistic.

Usually, you need roughly 800 or more hands on your opponent before this statistic starts to become reliable. Some players, however, will have a donk bet in position that is either much too high or much too low, and with these opponents you require a sample size of only 200 or more hands to get a good picture of their strategy.

Whenever you look at a statistic with percentages, you need to understand the percentage based on how loose or tight your opponent is. Opponents with a low VPIP/PFR with a 50% donk bet in position are going to have a much stronger range of hands than players with a high VPIP/PFR when they choose to float bet. If you’re confused about VPIP/PFR, don’t worry; we have an entire article that explains these statistics and how to use them to identify player types in poker.

Now that you understand the donk bet in position statistic, how can you use it to help your gameplay?

This statistic works in conjunction with how your opponents react to check-raising and how aggressive they are on further streets. When you are deciding whether to continuation bet, you need to ask yourself: will I make more money by betting or by checking?

Let’s look at some different types of opponents.

High donk bet in position and high fold to continuation bet on flop

Against this opponent, you should be inclined to check and call with your strong hands. This is because your opponent is more likely to bet as a bluff than call with a weak hand. This is called “slow playing.”

Logically, you should also be checking and calling with your medium-strength hands. This is because when opponents have a low fold to continuation bet on flop, they will usually be calling your bets with hands that are better than your medium-strength hands. However, if they have a high donk bet in position, it is likely that they are float betting weak hands that you can beat.

Low fold to continuation bet on flop and a low donk bet in position

Preflop Poker Definition

Against these opponents, you should not slow play your strong hands. You make much more money by exploiting these players’ low fold to continuation bet on flop and can value bet a wider range of hands.

Deciding whether to check-raise, call, or fold

When your opponent “donk bets in position,” you have a choice to make. You can call, fold, or check-raise. With your weakest hands, you should fold. Your medium-strength hands are best used as a call.

With your strongest hands, you should either check-raise or simply call.

The more likely your opponents are to bluff on future streets, the more you want to continue calling and let them bluff away their money. The more passive they are on future streets, the more you want to get money in with your strong hands.

Please read our article on check-raising for an in-depth guide to the strategy.

Poker Preflop Definition Geometry

When should you make a float bet?

While donk-betting is a strategy with a poor image, betting when the preflop raiser checks is a basic postflop skill to master. (Many of the concepts discussed in our continuation betting article are relevant to deciding when to make a float bet.)

Generally, the higher your opponents’ continuation betting percentage, the more they will fold to a float bet.

This is because when your opponents are continuation betting wider, they start to bet their weaker and medium-strength hands. When they check, they usually have a very weak range of hands that cannot continue against aggression.

If your opponents have a low continuation bet percentage, they are checking some stronger hands and are more likely to slow play. Against these opponents, you should be less inclined to make a float bet with anything but a strong range of hands.

Keep track of how your opponents react to your float bets and the kind of board textures that they continuation bet on.

Some opponents, for example, will always bet any pair on a board that has a flush draw possible. Against these opponents, you can make a float bet with a wider range on boards that have a flush draw when faced with a check. In these cases, your opponents are telling you that they do not have a strong hand; if they did, they would have bet out of fear of the flush draw.

The Three Bet

One of the common definitions you will hear as you play poker is “3-bet”, or “three-bet”. A 3-bet as most players use the term means the act of putting in the third bet, technically the second “raise”, the “3-bet” during any given round of action. It’s only in recent years that the term has become popular, indicative of its use during online play.

For flop games, such as hold’em and Omaha, the pre-flop 3-bet is technically different than the post-flop 3-bet. In these poker games blinds are used, and the act of posting the small and big blinds is considered the first “bet”. Subsequent players, beginning with the “under the gun” (UTG) player to the big blind’s immediate left, have the option of calling that first bet (the amount of the big blind), or folding or raising. In a typical game, the first pre-flop raise is technically a “two-bet”, but you’ll never hear it called that. Instead, it’s when another play makes a second raise, going over the top of the first raiser, that the “three-bet” term is used. Below is a visual of what a pre-flop 3-bet looks like.

In post-flop play, the 3-bet consists of an initial bet, a raise, and then a re-raise (perhaps by the initial bettor). Since the initial bet itself can be sizable, the post-flop 3-bet is proportionately larger in most instances than its pre-flop counterpart. In cash games and in the late stages of tourneys, 3-bets often involve all-in moves by one or more players, though you’re just as likely to hear the words “pushing” or “jamming” (moving one’s entire stack into the middle) in those instances.

What Does a 3-Bet Mean?

A 3-bet, which is always a form of a re-raise is designed to be an indicator of a true premium hand. The 3-bet is a shot over the bow of the initial raiser, designed to capture that pot right there. The intent of the 3-bet is to say to the initial bettor, “Yeah, you may have a good hand, but I’ve got a better one.” One common variation involves the initial raise coming from a late position, the button player or the cut-off (to the button’s immediate right), and the 3-bet is made by the small or big blind, who may assume the button or cutoff is attempting to steal the blinds. Overall, the 3-bet is traditionally one of the strongest moves a player can make, trailing perhaps only the all-in push and the check-raise in its ability to change a hand. It’s supposed to mean that the player making the move has a very strong hand, though this being poker, that is not always the case.

Making Your Own 3-Bets

The use of 3-bets is best done selectively, at opportune moments. Many hyper-aggressive players 3-bet with a wide range of hands, including many garbage hands, in the nature of bluffs. Most 3-bets, however, are done with big hands.

When to 3-bet a hand and when to just call (called a “smooth call” or “smoothing”) is one of the trickiest lessons players must learn. Knowing your opponents’ tendencies is vital to success, because the best poker players play their opponents as much as their own hands. A 3-bet works best against fairly loose players, some of whom are described as “calling stations”, who simply cannot fold marginal holdings when prompted. Another successful type of 3-bet can be done against a player who might over-value the long-term prospects of the game or tourney in deference to what might happen in that specific hand. He might be surrendering a bit too much of his chance to win in hopes of getting a better opportunity in a later hand.

Then there are bluffs. The bluff type of 3-bet is called a “re-steal”, and properly executed, it can be one of the most profitable moves in a player’s arsenal. However, like any good play, using it too much is one of the quickest ways to go broke. Other players will eventually react to a player that is putting in too many 3-bets, and sooner or later, the player putting in those over-the-top bets will be “looked up” (called) by his opponent. However, if you’re a steady, conservative player, 3-betting an aggressive foe will work more often than you might believe. Those players are trying to steadily make small gains against your perceived, relative passivity, and when you fight back they’ll often go try another door.

Defending Against the 3-Bet

Defending against the 3-bet boils down to understanding both your opponents and the circumstances of the game. Against a tight opponent who plays few hands, a 3-bet invariably means a monster and you can ditch all but the largest hands against this opponent. Even if he’s on a rare bluff, his natural tendencies against bluffing should serve as a warning.

Aggressive, late-position players will often three-bet with holdings such as middle pairs, AK or AQ, and depending on your own hand, it’s often correct to play or even to put the 4-bet in and take your chances. Be aware that with position and with correct “pot odds” – referring to the relationship between the amount of money already in the pot and the total amount a player stands to win – a late-position player may be “priced in” to making his own call with more inferior hands than you might hope.