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Whether or not it is good strategy to play a drawing hand depends upon the nature of the game being played, the size of the pot, the betting structure, and many other factors. However, the most basic principle is the ratio of Pot Odds to the odds of making your hand: if the pot odds are greater, then the draw is likely worth pursuing if you are not drawing dead. STRAIGHT DRAWS
An uncommon variation of the inside straight draw, only possible in games with more than five cards in play such as Seven Card Stud or Texas Hold 'em , is the ''double belly buster''. This is a sequence of cards with two inside straight draws, for example, A-3-4-5-7. In this case, either a two or a six will complete a straight. This makes the odds of hitting the hand the same as hitting a normal straight draw. FLUSH DRAWS It sounds strange, but Flush draws are easier to hit than straight draws, even though a straight is more probable than a flush. For example, in Texas Hold 'em , a flush draw with four cards has nine outs, but an open-ended straight draw has only eight outs, so a flush draw will usually be a favorite over a straight draw. In Texas Hold 'em and Omaha Hold 'em , if a player has only three of a suit on the Flop , the player will need the Turn ''and'' the River to be the right suit to hit the flush. This is called a ''runner-runner flush draw'' (''runner-runner'' for short), or a ''backdoor flush''. The probability of completing the flush is roughly 4%, therefore drawing to a runner-runner is similar to drawing to an inside straight on the river, and the same advice applies: it's not likely to be justified, but it can be if the pot is big enough. It is also easy to draw dead with a runner-runner, because if there are four of a suit on the board, then a player needs to be holding only one card of that suit. A player who holds the ace of that suit will have the nut (best possible) flush. Therefore, in chasing a runner-runner where such a board will be necessary, it is often not a good idea if the flush would not be the nut flush. OTHER DRAWS Sometimes a Made Hand needs to draw to a better hand. For instance, you may have Three Of A Kind kings, but may lose to a Flush . Therefore, you will want to have a nut flush draw (in order to beat or tie the other flush). Failing that, you have a Full House draw and a Four Of A Kind draw. Suppose the game is Texas Hold 'em , you hold K-K, and the board is '''9-K-2-6''', and the first three cards are spades, making it easy for a flush to have been made on the flop. This also means that you have no flush draw, because you hold kings and one of them would need to be the king of spades, which is already on the board. You will, however, win if the next card is a nine, six, or two, because these will give a full house. Each of those gives three outs each, for a total of nine outs. There is also one king left, which will yield four of a kind, for a total of ten outs. The percent chance of making your hand in the next card is roughly twice the number of outs, giving a 20% chance, or 1 in 5. If it will cost less than 20% of the pot size to call, then calling will still be the right move. |
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