Defensive Betting
Sometimes in a online poker hand you might be fairly certain that you could have the best hand, but still not be confident in it against supreme aggression. Often a hand like top pair or even second hand mid kicker, once all of the cards have come out, will pale in comparison to a hefty bet from the right kind of player. And many players, when checked to, will fire equally with the nuts and with nothing, leaving you with a big decision to make.
As a result, and to avoid such scenario, sometimes a defensive bet on the river can be a great way to avoid getting put to the test. If you are relatively certain your poker online opponent is not likely to reraise you without a monster, then betting out into a pot even when you aren’t sure you will win can act as a foil to keep him from betting you out of the pot.
Though some players will pick up on a defensive bet and use it as a reraise opportunity to bluff you out, more likely poker online players with a middling or losing hand will be much less likely to try to steal even against the smaller sized bet.
