Editing Isolation (poker)

{{refimprove|date=July 2011}}
In [[poker]], an '''isolation''' play is usually a [[Betting (poker)#Raise|raise]] designed to encourage one or more players to [[Betting (poker)#Fold|fold]], specifically for the purpose of making the hand a one-on-one contest with a specific opponent. For example, if an opponent raises and a player suspects they are holding a weak, but playable hand, they may reraise to pressure other opponents to fold, with the aim of getting [[Glossary of poker terms#H|heads up]] with the opening raiser.

Isolation plays are most common against overly-[[Aggression (poker)|aggressive]] players ("maniacs") who frequently play inferior hands, or with players who may have a [[Draw (poker)|drawing]] hand. Isolation plays are also common in [[Poker tournament|tournaments]] to isolate a player who is "short stacked", that is, one who is in imminent danger of elimination, and so is likely to be playing aggressively out of desperation. However, when a player is extremely short stacked compared to the rest of the field in a tournament, making him bust will sometimes be more profitable than winning his chips, so inducing [[Glossary of poker terms#overcall|overcall]]s from other players trumps isolation play.<ref name="caro-implcoll">[http://www.caro.com/mcu/pokerdictionary/mculib_dictionary_i.asp#pgfId-225] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120208060803/http://www.caro.com/mcu/pokerdictionary/mculib_dictionary_i.asp#pgfId-225|date=February 8, 2012}}</ref>

Isolating is encouraged when holding a hand that fares better heads up than in a [[Poker jargon#multi-way pot|multi-way pot]]. For instance, when a player has a small pocket pair they may raise a large amount simply to knock out other players because typically a small pocket pair is about 50–60% likely to win an all-in pot in a heads up situation, but less likely when facing multiple opponents.

==See also==
*[[Protection (poker)]]
*[[Poker jargon]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Poker footer}}
[[Category:Poker terminology]]
[[Category:Poker strategy]]

{{poker-stub}}