Playing the turn

You know why the turn is called the "turn"? Because that is the turning point in every single poker hand, you play. Well, that's probably not the reason, but it's an idea worth considering anyway.

The turn is the critical stage of a poker hand. That is when the outcome of a hand is truly decided. You may have read in other poker articles, that whenever you have a monster, you have to make your opponent(s) pot committed on the turn. If they get pot committed then, they're likely to call your all-in on the river and provide you max value.

This is just one example that proves why it is so important that you play the turn solidly.
Being the critical point that it is, a good poker player can use it to manipulate opponents better than in any other stage of a hand.

Betting on the turn is usually a very profitable play, (with a few exceptions, which I'll discuss later on) and most good poker players know that, that's why they choose that stage to turn the heat on.

Betting on the flop is something most players will do when they flop something at all, unless they have a monster and they want to slow-play it. The problem is, after the bet they just put into the pot on the flop, they fail to follow up. This is one of those humps; all rookies need to get over in order to become good poker players. Betting the turn will send one clear message to your opponents: you mean business. Tight players will almost certainly fold to your bet, even if they're really solid players otherwise. Despite being such a profitable move, there are times when you should bet the turn:

• when you're faced with loose players. A loose player will call most of your bets, even the one on the turn. When faced with guys like these, profitability vanishes from post-turn betting.
• another situation which clearly tells you to drop the betting on the turn is when one of your opponents re-raises you on the flop, and you suspect he might have something very solid. Never bet when you feel you're beat.

A good example to illustrate the profitability of betting on the turn would be the following: you get AK in the pocket, and you decide to see the flop on it. Some other player remains in the hand with you and sees the flop too. When the flop comes, and it turns out to be a bunch of low rags, you bet. The opponent calls. The turn comes a Q. You still don't have anything, but you bet into it, knowing that you still have six outs to win that hand. Your opponent folds. Later you find out he had a low pair on the flop, and that made him call your initial post-flop bet.

You just took down a pot you could've potentially lost. Had you not bet on the turn, you would've told your opponent "I was bluffing on the flop, I don't really have anything". That is the last thing you want to say to a guy who is wondering whether that Q on the turn just killed his low pair or not.

It all comes down to courage really, and the ability to recognize potentially beneficial situations. Every now and then, your semi-bluff or bluff on the turn will get called, but in the long-run, you're bound to end up making money on it.