Blocking bets

[JAP]

Are they really useful, do they keep players from bluffing or do blocking bets induce raises? How much do you usually bet 1/4 of the pot? When is it useful?
I usually dont block bet because i reason if i check i might pick up at small/medium bet that i never would've gotten a call with so instead of betting and only getting a call or raise with a better hand i check and try to pick up something.
And i dont really see a bet blocking anything if a player wants to raise they raise. and sometimes on a pure bluff because they think you are blocking.

Ok opinions please.

[beavens]

theyre very useful.. people will fold/call with hand you beat, and raise with ones you don't - letting you fold with confidence.

[aszmel]

I found them very useful too - but think they're more usefull when one have
more aggressive style, if you have rather tight image they can take it as a weakness,
so when you're tight a blocking bet must be a little bigger then if you
play more aggressively imo

Its way more risky to bluff when lead into then when checked too.

Senario #1 Your in position, your on the draw but the river comes a brick. Its bet to you, too bad you fold. You could raise, but it looks like hes making a value bet and is trying to get every penny he can for what hes holding, he could just have top pair but as far as you know he has the nuts.

Senario #2 Your in position, your on the draw but the river comes a brick. Its checked to you, he either missed his draw or hes worried about what you have. A bluff might take this down after all.

Senario #3 Your in position, your on the draw and make it on the river. Its bet to you, perfect. You consider what your opponent is holding and try to make a nice value raise that hes likely to call.

Senario #4 I went all the way to the river with 22 trying to spike a 2. Its bet to me but Im a donkey and try to win every single pot. Im not even going to consider what hes holding, All-in

[JAP]

ty.

Is the best time to block bet is when you put your opponent on a draw?

[beavens]

generally on the turn/river when you want a cheap showdown.

if your opponent is on a draw you want to price them out - make them not have the proper odds to make the call.

[UOPokerPlayer]

[ QUOTE ]
ty.

So the best time to block bet is when you put your opponent on a draw?

[/ QUOTE ]

I want them to bluff at me when i put them on a draw. Snapping off bluffs is one of my biggest moneymakers. Blocking bets are best with a marginal hand (top pair, overpair on scary board). As someone said earlier, you give villians a good price to call with a worse hand, and save yourself money when they raise with a better hand. If they raise you can't talk yourself into a call though.

[GAL]

Blocking bets are something I have only just started to use as it's only recently I have begun to understand them.
This is when I use them and why. OOP with good made hand (maybe trips or made straight with 2 flush flop) if the flush card hits the river I bet between 1/2 to 3/4 pot, I do this because villans holding is either a made hand or he was drawing to a flush which just got there so he can't have nothing. If I go for a check call, (which is the play I always used to make), he will check behind me with his made hand and make a bet, which I will call, with his flush. Therefore I make nothing when i'm ahead and lose money when behind. So it's more of a value bet than blocking bet.
When I hold a weaker hand when the flush card hits, say AK for TPTK or top 2 on the flop which are no longer top 2 by the river I make a smaller river bet because the rank of hand that I can beat is now smaller and my bet is now a blocking bet rather than value bet. Both of these senarios are for when the flush card hits and I will fold to a push in both cases but probably call some sort of reraise with the trips/straight hands.
The other situation is where I have these hands and the flush card doesn't hit on the river. With the stronger hands I prefer to "sell" my hand for whatever I think Villan will call and if he wants to bluff fine. The only time I check here is when the villian is very LAG or on tilt, I don't know if it's because I've become more aggressive or because I'm running well at the moment but it seems people just don't bluff me anymore when they miss in this situation. When I have the weaker hands it gets a bit trickier and it really depends on my reads because if I check/call I need villan to have a 1 pair hand and if I'm going to call a $X from him I would prefer to bet $X myself and have some fold equity however small it may be.
My understanding and use of all this may be totally wrong because as I say it's something I've just started experimenting with, so any comment's or corrections would be appreciated.

[Leptyne]

A "blocking bet" is ~20% of the pot. It is designed to "block" a bet by your opponent. If you're not familiar with this play you will wonder if the guy is looking for a raise? Showing weakness? What's going on here? Sows confusion.

You use this whenever you'd like to see a cheap showdown. A very advantageous play against those that aren't familiar with this move and/or don't know how to defend against it.