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Once a new account is open, spread betting is only a call or mouse click away. Mathematically, optimal bluffing strategy is to bluff in such a way that the chances against your bluffing are identical to the pot odds your opponent is getting. Thus, if, as in the example just given, an opponent is getting 6-to-1 from the pot, the chances against your bluffing should be 6-to-1.

 

Then that opponent would break even on the last bet by calling every time and also by folding every time. If he called, he would lose $20 six times and win $120 once; if he folded, he would win nothing and lose nothing. Regardless of what your opponent does, you average winning an extra $100 every seven hands.

 

However, mathematically optimal bluffing strategy isn’t necessarily the best strategy. It is much better if you are able to judge when to try a bluff and when not to in order to show a bigger overall profit. To make sure we agree on what is meant by a bluff, we will define it as a bet or a raise with a hand which you do not think is the best hand. Bluffing can be separated into a couple of different categories.