A straddle is a bet where the player bets on both hands of a pair, or all three hands of a three-card poker hand. The payoff for a successful straddle is the same as for any other type of bet: the player gets paid if either of the hands they bet on wins, and pays nothing if both hands lose.
The basic strategy for playing a straddle is to choose which hand to bet on based on the probabilities of the various outcomes. If you think the probabilities are in your favor, then you should bet on the hand that you think has the higher probability of winning.
If you are betting on all three hands, then you should bet on the two hands that you think have the highest probability of winning. .
There are two main reasons why straddles can be profitable bets in poker. First, because they are a type of two-bet combination, players who make a straddle can often get more money from their opponents than they would if they only made one of the two bets.
Second, because the payoff for a successful straddle is usually higher than for any other type of bet, players who make a straddle are often able to make more money overall than if they just played one regular bet.
In general, though, it is important to understand that straddles are not always profitable bets in poker. In particular, if you have only very weak hands or if your opponents have very strong hands, then it may not be worth risking your entire stack (or even part of it) on a straddle.
