Flop Texture in Poker
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When it comes to poker, interpreting the flop texture is one of the easiest ways to assign a possible range of hand to your opponent. Now, for those of you who are wondering what does flop texture in poker mean, here’s a quick guide where we have detailed the meaning of the term flop texture as well as two key types of board texture in poker.
Flop texture – Meaning
Flop texture is a common term that is often used in reference to the type of cards that come out on the flop. Now, what is a flop? Well, the flop is that round in a game of Texas Hold'em where 3 cards are dealt face-up. Vital to this, the term flop texture often denotes the relationship between visible cards i.e. community cards in any game of Omaha or Texas Hold'em. For instance – a flop that consists of 3 cards – king, 6 and 4 all of different suits is commonly described as having a dry texture (more on this later) because the cards have absolutely no connection.
The flop texture generally comes handy when assigning a possible hand range to an opponent. This is because by carefully studying the flop texture in conjunction with reading your opponent you can get a fair idea of what cards your opponent is likely holding.
Types of flop texture in poker
When it comes to flop textures, boards are generally segregated into two basic types – dry boards and wet boards. While both these types are further segregated into several different categories, the first thing you must determine is whether a board is dry or wet. Now in this section, let us take a brief look at what does a dry board or wet board mean in poker.
Dry boards
A board that contains few drawing possibilities is often referred to as a dry board. In other words, a dry board generally consists of 3 lower ranked cards or 2 small cards along with a big one. Such board textures hardly support any flushes or straights and are less likely to connect with an opponent’s hole cards.
For instance – Let’s assume you are playing a game of Texas Hold'em wherein you have been dealt Aces of spades and Queen of hearts. The flop round comes and 3 cards – 8 of hearts, Queen of clubs and 3 of spades are dealt face up. Here, if you look closely from the current board all you have got is a Queen. On the contrary, no matter how strong your opponent’s starting hand was with such a flop texture, there is a high chance he has not been able to get anything substantial as well. Since the hand range supported by such a board is quite low this is thus known as a dry board.
Wet boards
The wet boards simply offer a lot of drawing possibilities and are usually rife with heavy cards that are pretty well coordinated. For example, in a game of Texas Hold'em, let’s assume the flop reveals 3 cards – Queen of hearts, King of hearts and 10 of spades. Not only does this flop consist of two big cards but all the cards can collectively complete a lot of straight draws and flush draws. Such boards with well-coordinated and high cards are generally known as wet boards in poker. Now, if in a poker game you have been dealt such a flop texture then play cautiously because you never know your opponent might have completed a flush, straight or some other higher ranked hand.
The way you go about playing your starting hands depends in a big way on the flop texture. Since flop textures generally vary from game to game, it is close to impossible to devise a standard strategy to win at poker. The least you can do is practise with different flop textures by playing a variety of poker games and tournaments. To do the same, just register on the GetMega Poker app and start playing poker today.
