According to the Fundamental Theorem of Online Poker Games,
you gain when your opponents play a hand differently from
the way they would if they knew what you had. Any time you
raise, for whatever specific tactical reason, you are doing
so to avoid making a mistake yourself, according to the Fundamental
Theorem, and to cause your opponents to make mistakes. There
are numerous reasons for raising. Many have been discussed
in various contexts in earlier pages. In this page we will
review all these reasons and explain several of them in more
detail. We will also explain how raising is an extension of
the Fundamental Theorem of Online Poker Games.
We reduce the principal reasons for raising to seven:
1. To get more money in the pot when you have the best hand.
2. To drive out opponents when you have the best hand.
3. To bluff or semi-bluff.
4. To get a free card.
5. To gain information.
6. To drive out worse hands when your own hand may be second
best.
7. To drive out better hands when a come hand bets.
Now let's look at each of these reasons individually.
