Well, here we are again with some more poker tips and theories. A few newcomers have already emailed with fresh advice that they need for an ever changing poker field. They want to know about double barrel poker, so we figured that we would oblige them.
This is easily classified as preflop strategy — the flop came down, now what to you honestly do? Some players know that they really need to work on their postflop game, but they’re just not sure how.
The double barrel is where you continue a bluff or a semi-bluff after the flop. If the flop failed you and the continuation bet failed you, you might throw out one more bet, sure that your opponent will go ahead and fold.
It’s all about image here when you start thinking about whether or not folding is a good option for you. If you’re playing a very passive and not aggressive player, then this might not be a bad idea at all. On the other hand, if you know that you’re playing against someone that will see through the bluff and even push you hard, you might want to skip this technique and fold accordingly. You’ll just end up wasting money and throwing off the wrong signs. You don’t want to become somebody else’s piñata.
You also want to think about what type of poker you’re honestly playing. $1/2 stakes is one thing, but does the barrel theory apply when the stakes jump to 10/20, or even 50/100? You have to make sure that you’re adjusting your excitations based on the field you’re working with. Tournament vs. cash games come into mind here as well. Since you’re playing the same 9 people to the “death”, you want to study their images carefully before you try to double or triple barrel it up.
This is not a technique that you’ll want to pull out over and over again. If you are a new player, you honestly want to avoid bluffing for as long as you can. Why? The truth is that the more you bluff, the more likely it is that someone will call you out. Bluffers when they are obvious tend to attract a lot of negative attention. Focus more on giving the best poker game you can. It’ll all even out in the long run.