Bet Sizing: Board Composition

In my last tip, I mentioned that while we don't want to give away the strength of our hand with our bet size, we can make bets based on the perceived strength of our opponents' hands. Similarly, it's a good idea to adjust the size of your bets based on the composition of the board.

The basic rule is to bet more on wet boards than on dry boards. There are two good reasons for adjusting your bets in this manner:

• On dry boards, your opponents are less likely to have a draw that is dangerous to your hand. You are better off trying to induce calls from weak hands than worrying about protecting your hand. 
• On wet boards, there are numerous draws that are possible. This both encourages you to protect your hand against draws, and makes your opponents more likely to call larger bets even when they shouldn't.

Again, these adjustments should have nothing to do with the strength of your hand! Of course, you'll use the strength of your hand to determine if you want to bet in the first place. But you've decided to make a bet, you'll use other factors to determine the size of that bet.