In Doyle Brunson's famous poker tome, Super/System, he condemns the post-oak bluff, "Well that's a gutless bet and I'll call it... the tight player who made that weak bet on the flop is asking me to take his money. And, in most cases that's exactly what I'm going to do when the next card falls -- regardless of what it is."

Things have changed a lot since Doyle.s day, and even he will agree that he has had to deviate a lot from his Super/System strategy in order to stay competitive in today's texas holdem games.

Today, there may be some times when a post oak bluff is appropriate, let.s have a look at them.

What is a Post Oak Bluff?

A post oak bluff is a small bet into a big pot. For example, four people see a flop with $300 in the pot. The flop comes 8s 9s 2s and it is checked around to the fourth player, who bets $20. This may be a post oak bluff. It is called a post oak bluff after the post oak tree, which is an extremely small oak tree whose wood is used for making fence posts.

What is Wrong with a Post Oak Bluff?

There are a number of problems with the post oak bluff. One is that small bets often signal weakness. If you make a small bet, you are effectively telling the other players that you have a marginal hand (this may or may not be true, but this is what you are signaling). This may encourage another player to try to blow you out of the hand with a large raise.

Another problem with the post oak bluff is that if any of your opponents have a good drawing hand, they are probably getting correct odds to call to try to hit it. It's a bit like applying limit poker strategy to a no-limit game.

What is the Beauty of a Post Oak Bluff?

When a board is particularly scary, a post oak bluff can be effective. In the above example with three spades on the board, the possibility of a flush is looming. Players know that someone who flopped the flush will not want to lose any customers and is likely to check hoping to trap. If someone makes a very small bet, there is a good possibility that opponents will suspect him of trying to build a pot with a made flush. They may therefore fold.

The beauty of this is that since it is a very small bet, the bluffer has a chance of winning a significant pot with low risk. If he is raised, he can fold his hand with very little invested.

If you're among the lucky ones who'll play in the World Series of Poker 2008, we'd really like to see you pull off a post oak bluff at the final table!


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