Poker is such a vast game and with so many possibilities for players that everyone can choose the style of poker game that suits them best, without copying that of others. A style that can for example be conservative, never risking a lot of chips or only participating in hands in which our chances of winning are very high. But you can also opt for a much more aggressive style, where you will flirt with the limits of chance and chance and where you will make the hearts of the other players around the table beat a thousand miles an hour. But whatever his favorite way to play, there is always a strategy adapted to this one.
It is obvious that there are concepts in poker that are much more useful to master for a certain form of the game than for another, and in this article it is the most aggressive form possible that will interest us. Because the concept we would like to talk about is that of backdoor, which could be translated into French as “the back door”. This term can seem a little confusing, so it is good to clarify it. A backdoor in poker is actually a two card draw, i.e. a game where you will need to hit two specific cards in order to win. Typically, a backdoor situation occurs right after the flop, which means you’ll need to hit the two necessary cards on the turn and the river.
For some players this is a very dangerous tactic and not worth putting their chips into. For others, it’s a real tradition to try it to save your game and rebuild your stack. But everyone agrees that the backdoor is a very lucrative, unexpected hand that can change the face of an entire tournament when it works.
A simple example of a backdoor would be a flop with a 7 on the board, while there is a 9 and a 10 in hand. An 8 then appears on the tower before a Jack or a 6 appears on the river, giving us a straight. A similar situation can occur when one is looking for a flush, and in the end these two hands (straight and flush) are the ones that will be most commonly sought in the backdoor. So the best will be to analyze them in detail.
Let’s start with the idea of hitting two cards for a straight. Certainly going to a straight draw with only three useful cards after the flop is one of the most stressful situations in the game. in the last two rounds, to get a straight will be too uncertain, and they will prefer to fold. Anything else could be considered by many to be one of the most basic mistakes in poker. What is certain is that you must always keep the probability of victory in a corner of your head, knowing thata fifth can touch in several ways: from above or from below, or even from the middle.
So there is actually a possibility that the outcome of a poker backdoor strategy is favorable, especially since it’s a tactic virtually impossible for other players to detect. It is indeed difficult for your opponents to believe that you were lucky enough to hit the exact two cards you need to snatch a straight. Players are often focused on their own probabilities, and they are not always able to consider all possible victory scenarios. So that’s a good reason to take advantage of it and attack.
Additionally, look for a backdoor straight can be done with aggressive bets as well to put pressure on opponents only with a much wiser style by simply following the low bets of others. But if you are able to go for a very high straight, you will have to put very hard, which will greatly disturb your opponents who will then be afraid of the bad beat. Moreover, these types of poker hands are perfect examples of situations where moments of tilt or great despair can occur for the losers.
The plan to get a flush with the rook and the river offers a few specificities that are a little different from that of the straight. First of all becauseit is more common to meet her, which will make it more predictable for other players. While we could count on probabilities of victory in the order of 5% or 10% for a backdoor straight, these can go up to 15% for a flush. And the greater the chances of it appearing, the weaker the surprise effect. This is why you have to be even more careful with this strategy.
It must be understood that it will be almost impossible to hide his search for a color, because there will be at least three cards of the same color in the flop, which will be extremely visible. The other players will therefore be on the spot, and could even be on an identical strategy while having a card of the same color higher than yours. This therefore greatly complicates the situation, and will force you to be very attentive to the movements of other players. If you show up under too much pressure, it will be a good idea to discard your cards as soon as possible.
You shouldn’t be completely scared off by a color in the backdoor either, because that’s still a good way to quietly follow bets or try a nice bluff. In any case, it should not be checked too quickly, as you might with a more traditional hand, because it would be like getting rid of a problem without taking the time to see if there is a way to take advantage of it. It is better to remain calm and analyze the game well before making a decision.