Free Poker Guide – How to Read Set Hands

Regardless of if you just play free poker online or play for the highest stakes imaginable a Set is one of the most unreadable hands in Texas Hold'em.

A Set is made up of a pocket pair plus one of the Community cards that has the same rank as your pocket pair.

For example, if you have 4-4 and the Community cards are 5-4-10-J-K, you have a Set of Fours.

Sets are unreadable because most players are accustomed to reading (a) two different hole cards, (b) high cards or overpairs, (c) draws that complete the Board, or (d) cards anyway related to the Board cards.

Our hand reading habits generally a mix of limiting possible hands to the given characteristics of the board/community. How would you put someone on 5-5 or 4-4 when it is much easier to put him on A-K (for top pair, best kicker), A-Q (for a made Straight), or K-10 or 5-4 (for Two-Pair), or even A-A (a high pair)?

Sometimes you may even put him on one Five, say, 6-5. But on two Fives or two Fours? This is why Sets are very potent in Boards which have no Straight or Flush potential.

However, suppose in a Flop of Q-7-2 with no Straight or Flush possibilities, you have 2-2. You check (hoping to trap him), the other player bets. You raise all in then he immediately calls and reveals Q-Q. You thought your opponent had A-Q or K-Q. How is this possible? It's possible. Even in this spot you are more susceptible.

Because there are no Straight or Flush potentials your opponent will fold cards that didn't fit into the Board cards. If you read hands according to the criteria above, you might put your opponent on A-Q, K-Q, or even Q-7 (can you go as far as 7-2?!).

Here because you are the one who moved all-in, the outcome of the hand is not fully on your control; it's up to whether your opponent calls or not.

But suppose the situation is reversed. The player with the Q-Q checks, you bet, then the response is a raise all-in. How would you act?

When you find yourself slammed in a situation like this (which usually occurs on the Flop) on a cash game, take it as it is. Pay him off. Some other time you will have the Q-Q, some other player will have the 2-2, and you will be paid off.

But in a tournament, you have many givens to consider (and you might want to consider these even in an ordinary cash game). Compare your stack sizes relative to each other. If the difference is great, expect one of you to put his chips in the middle.

A Set may be the best hand both of you can have to get a double-up. If you possess the smaller Set get eliminated, attribute it to bad luck. However, assuming both of you have stacks above chip average, and you are put to a choice costing you all or virtually all your chips. You have 2-2. You're not likely to be blinded out in a few hands.

You may want to reason out:

• I have a Set.
• He raised me enough to put me all-in, or almost.
• He may do it with Q-7.
• And whether your opponent had Q-7 or not will depend on what happened preflop.
• If no raise occurred it may be with Q-7, and you can safely call.
• Whether your opponent had 7-7 or not can also come under similar scrutiny
• Or if there is a raise, it may be with A-Q.

Now, top pair, top kicker is a weak hand to risk an above-average stack.

And there's no Straight and Flush incoming, so the all-in could be made only with an especially strong hand. It might also be with A-A or with K-K (most probably it is) but it might also be just with Q-Q.

If I put him on those three hands, there is a 2/3 chance I'm right, but a 1/3 chance of wrong, and when I'm wrong I will be busted. So I'll fold.

If you possess the middle Set (Set of Sevens), the same analysis may also apply.

But you will be much safer because there is only one Set to kill you instead of the two possible Sets a while ago. If you possess the Set of Queens, enjoy!

The above analysis is agonizing and painstaking, especially when it all amounts to giving up one of the most valued hands in Hold'Em.

Reading Sets In summary

It takes some time to learn how to read hands, it's not something the unthinking donk "chip flingers" seen on many free poker tables even consider.

Most players it seems can't or won't put the time in, they claim to play just for fun which misses out on the key fact that winning lots of money is a lot more fun!

I think it's crazy that so many people play with so little skill and almost revel in the fact! But this is also very good news for you as one of the few who is learning to play well.

That's because once you learn to play poker with above average skill and are able to combat the "all-in-all the time" donk maniacs then you can take them apart in coldly calculated massacres anytime you like.

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Source by Nick Moseley