At a glance
- On the HUD
- Flop BvX·Turn BvX·River BvX
- Formula
bets / times the players before them checked and they could bet- Typical range
30–60% on every street
- Where it shows
- Panel on your turn: under “If you check”, for players after you.
- Read hint
- Above: Bets when checked to: check-raise or check-call more. Below: Checks back a lot: bet for value yourself.
- Trust it after
- 12 chances. Below that the number is faded; reads need 12 chances and a number at least one standard error outside the typical range.
What it measures
BvX looks at one moment: the players before them have checked, nobody has bet, and they can check behind or bet. It counts how often they bet. First-to-act decisions are left out, and that’s the whole difference from bet unopened, which adds the streets where they acted first and so mixes leading with betting behind a check.
BvX overlaps with several named stats. An in-position c-bet after the defender checks is a BvX chance. So is a stab after the player with the lead checks, and, in a multiway pot, a donk bet from a player who was checked to but still acts before the aggressor. A bet from the first player to act never counts.
When a narrower stat names the spot, it’s the sharper read: c-bet for the player with the lead, stab when you hold the lead and check. BvX covers everything else: limped pots, pots where a raise took the lead away, and every “should I check to this player?” decision when nobody has a clear lead. It’s also the stat behind your check-raise and check-call plans, because you can only check-raise a bet that comes.
How it’s calculated
- Chance: their first action on the street comes with no bet in front, and at least one player acted before them on that street. With no bet yet, those players all checked.
- Counts if: they bet, at any size.
- Not a chance: streets where they were first to act, streets where someone bet before them, and streets where fewer than two players could still bet because the rest are all-in.
Formula: bets ÷ times the players before them checked and they could bet. There’s at most one chance per street, and each street is kept heads-up and multiway.
Example: Priya was checked to on 60 flops and bet 33, so her flop BvX is 33 / 60 = 55%. Forty of those flops were heads-up and she bet 26 (65%); 20 were multiway and she bet 7 (35%). In a three-way pot the HUD shows her multiway number, not the 55% blend, once that version has 12 chances behind it.
Heads-up, the player in position can only get an unopened chance after a check, so on those streets BvX and bet unopened count exactly the same spots. The two stats drift apart for players who are often out of position or early in multiway pots, because bet unopened also counts their leads.
Why it matters
Every check you make is a bet on what the players behind you will do, and BvX is that number. If you plan to check-raise or check-call, you want a player who bets. If you check hoping for a free card or a cheap showdown, you want one who checks back.
With more than one player behind you, chain them. The first bets at their BvX; if they check, the next player is now checked to. With two players behind you at 50% and 40%, the chance at least one bets after your check is 1 − (0.5 × 0.6) = 70%: a good spot to check a strong hand. If both sit at 20%, it falls to 1 − (0.8 × 0.8) = 36%, and you should bet your value yourself.
BvX also tells you what their check-back means. A player above 60% who checks behind usually has a weak hand or something they want to show down cheaply. A player at 25% checks back strong hands too, so their later bets and calls carry more weight.
Too low, about right, too high
Too low: under 30%
What it says
They check back most of the time. The HUD’s read says “Checks back a lot: bet for value yourself.” These players take free cards with draws, check medium hands to reach showdown, and bet mostly when they have something strong. Passive types such as Stations and Rocks live here, and so do cautious players in multiway pots, so compare the heads-up number before drawing conclusions.
How to exploit it
- Bet your value hands instead of checking to them. A check-raise plan fails when the bet never comes, and a check that gets checked back loses a whole street of value.
- Check your draws and weak pairs to them for free cards; they’ll usually give you one.
- When they do bet after your check, give it credit. Fold one-pair hands more on the turn and river.
- After they check back, their range still holds medium pairs, so value-bet the next street a little thinner.
About right: 30–60%
What it says
They bet a fair share when checked to and check back the rest, so their check-backs are neither all weak nor all traps. Most regular players sit here. On its own the number won’t hand you an exploit, but the split usually will: plenty of players bet often heads-up and rarely multiway, or bet flops when checked to and stop on later streets.
How to exploit it
Use the heads-up or multiway version that matches your pot, and compare streets. Then look at what happens after they bet: their fold to check-raise tells you whether a check-raise bluff works, and their bet size tells you how much a check-call costs. A balanced BvX with a high fold to check-raise is still a check-raise target; a balanced BvX with a low one means you check-raise for value only. Finally, read the river on its own: a player in this range on the flop can still check back almost every river, and that’s where betting your own value pays most.
Too high: over 60%
What it says
They bet most of the times they’re checked to, treating a check as weakness. The HUD’s read says “Bets when checked to: check-raise or check-call more.” Their betting range behind a check is wide and full of air and thin value, and when they do check back, they’re usually weak. LAGs, Maniacs and aggressive regulars land here. A high multiway number says even more, since betting into two or more checked hands with air is a bigger risk than betting into one.
How to exploit it
- Check your strong hands and check-raise; they’ll put money in for you.
- Check-call medium hands such as top pair with a weak kicker instead of leading. Their bluffs pay you, and the pot stays smaller when they’re strong.
- Check-raise good draws as semi-bluffs, especially if their fold to check-raise is high.
- When they check back, bet the next street with a wide range: their check-back range is capped.
- Lead less with weak hands. A bet from you lets their air fold for free; a check lets them bluff it into you.
On the flop, turn and river
Flop: bet when checked to
Flop BvX includes in-position c-bets, so a player who opens a lot from late position collects many easy checked-to chances as the preflop raiser and can show a high number just from that. A preflop caller’s flop BvX is the cleaner read on how often they take a stab at a checked pot.
In limped pots, which are common on PokerNow, nobody has the lead, so every checked-to flop counts as a plain BvX spot. A player who bets most limped flops when checked to is a good check-raise target, because their range is wide and the pot is small enough that a raise doesn’t risk much.
Flop exploit: against a player above 60% heads-up, check your sets, two pair and strong draws and check-raise; check-call top pair. On wet boards the check-raise also charges the draws they bet with.
Turn: bet when checked to
Turn checked-to spots come after a flop bet was called (the caller checks to the bettor), after a checked flop, or after a flop raise. Pots are bigger, so a player who keeps betting when checked to on the turn is putting real money in with a wide range, and a player who stops is often holding a medium hand they’re happy to show down.
Set the turn figure next to the flop figure. If both are high, check-calling twice with a strong one-pair hand is a fine plan against them. If the flop number is high and the turn number low, their flop bets were often one-and-done: check-call the flop, and when the turn goes check-check, value-bet the river thinner, since they still hold the medium hands they didn’t bet.
Turn exploit: against a high turn BvX, check-raise the turn with strong hands rather than the flop. The pot is bigger, their bet range is still wide, and a turn check-raise sets up a large river bet.
River: bet when checked to
On the river nothing is left to draw, so a bet after a check is value or a bluff, and a check-back is a showdown decision. River BvX measures how often a player chooses to bet rather than take the free showdown you offered.
This is where the low read matters most. Against a player under 30% on the river, a check with a value hand usually gets checked back, and you’ve given up the last bet. Bet your value yourself, including thinner hands than usual, and don’t expect bluffs after you check: they check back their missed draws.
Against a player above 60%, checking bluff-catchers is profitable: you let them bluff with hands that would fold to your bet. River exploit: check-call your one-pair hands, and keep check-raises for very strong hands, since a river bet from them is still value some of the time and a raise only gets called by better.
When it’s your own number
If your BvX runs high, the read on your own badge tells others to “check to you, then check-raise or check-call more.” Observant players will stop leading into you and wait for your bet. If it runs low, they’ll “bet for value instead of checking to you,” and they’ll take free cards when they check, because you rarely charge them.
A healthy pattern is a higher number heads-up than multiway and a lower number on the river than on the flop. Two leaks to look for: betting every time you’re checked to on the flop in position, which makes you easy to check-raise, and checking back almost every river, which leaves value on the table against players who call too much.
Using it on the HUD
BvX doesn’t sit on the table badges; it lives in the panel on your turn. When you can bet and nobody has bet yet, the panel’s “If you check” line lists the players who act after you and how often each one bets. The player with the lead shows their c-bet, and when you hold the lead the players behind show their stab; everyone else shows BvX, in the heads-up or multiway version that fits the pot. Under 12 chances, the HUD steps back to the all-pots number, and the tooltip says which version you’re seeing.
Gold means above 60%, blue below 30%, and thin numbers show faded. Reads appear only after 12 chances and when the number is outside the range by at least one standard error. Sample still matters: 50% over 30 chances is ±9 points, over 100 chances ±5. Pair it with check-raise and check-call to plan the hand.
Questions
What does BvX mean on a poker HUD?
BvX means bet when checked to: how often a player bets after every player before them on the street has checked. It leaves out the times they were first to act. On PokerNow HUD Advanced it appears on your turn, under “If you check”, for each player who acts after you, so you know whether your check is likely to get a bet.
What is a good bet when checked to percentage?
Between 30% and 60% on each street is normal, which is the HUD’s typical range. A good player usually sits higher heads-up than multiway, higher on dry boards where checks look weak, and lower on the river, where checking back a medium hand for a free showdown is often correct. Above 60%, check-raise them; below 30%, bet your own value.
Bet when checked to vs stab: what’s the difference?
A stab is a narrower case: the player is in position and the player who holds the lead checked to them. BvX counts every checked-to spot, including stabs, in-position c-bets and bets in limped pots where nobody has the lead. When you hold the lead and check, the panel shows the stab; otherwise it shows BvX.
Should I check-raise a player who bets a lot when checked to?
Yes, with strong hands and good draws, as long as their BvX is high with enough sample, say 30 or more chances. Their bet range behind a check is wide, so a check-raise wins the pot often and builds a big one when you have it. Check their fold to check-raise first: if it’s low, check-raise for value and check-call more.