Quote Originally Posted by bigslikk
Quote Originally Posted by LawDude
Without getting into all sorts of specifics, it important... to bet to protect your made hands.
Your post was absolutely spot on, but I'd just like to mention I hate describing betting with a made hand as "protecting" it. As if you WANT them to fold.

I've seen a lot of guys at live games overbet a drawy flop with a made hand and then breathe a sigh of relief when their opponent folds. It's not a good mindset. You WANT them to call a bet that lays bad odds. It offers them a move that is negative Expected Value (Folding = 0). You should be begging them to call a large bet with a draw.

You're not "protecting" a hand, hoping against hope that they fold and spare you a scary turn card. You're laying a bear trap and hoping the idiot takes a step in.
I do know what your saying, but it's probably a semantic issue more than substance. The bet "protects" your hand because it forces opponents to take bad odds if they want to try and draw out on it. Some of those opponents will call anyway (and you are right-- that's what we want them to do). Some will fold (and while that's not as good a result as calling, it's not a terrible result either-- we still collect the pot!). What we are "protecting" against is a Villain obtaining a free or cheap card to draw out on us. We make the Villain pay dearly for that card-- so that we collect, on average, most of those payments because of the odds against the Villain sucking out, as well as collecting all of the additional pots where the Villain decides the price is too high and correctly folds his hand.