Find The Floater

Floating is common place in poker these days.  Anyone that plays a lot of poker and has a good grasp on the game will do this at times.  Floating is calling a bet with nothing in hopes of taking the pot on later streets.  Generally people will float in position so they can bet after you check. 

It is so important to observe the players around you and their tendencies when playing any form of poker.  Figuring out which people are floating is something you should take notice of.  It is not always easy to figure this out since you are going to need to call some bets or raise to get the information you need. 

If a player seems to be calling your preflop raises quite often and is contesting every pot you can be sure he isn’t holding a hand every time.  There are a few different methods of attack on this player.

1.  Bet, Bet, Bet…  A lot of times a flop floater will fold when you continue and fire at the turn.  Occasionally they can be persistent and your going to need to represent on the river as well.

2.  When you are holding a real hand that you are confident is best rather than betting into them again on the turn, check.  When they fire their steal bet go ahead and pop them with a big raise.

3.  Regardless of your holding make the same play as #2, a good time to do this might be with a big draw.  At Least then if your judgement was off and they have a real hand you will have outs to make the best hand.  You need to be willing to do this with nothing though if you feel that you are getting run over.

These plays are not plays that you should make against a tight player.  Floaters generally play a lot of hands in position and if you see them winning more than their fair share you have to realize they are earning those pots through something other than their holding.  You simply have to take a stand at times and have the cojones to do so.