Playing the Player
Poker is such a subtle game sometimes. Most times situations aren’t as black and white as we’d like them to be especially in poker. Poker is a game of incomplete information and we’re forced to make critical decisions based on that incomplete information.
One thing that we can rely on in poker though is human nature. Being humans, we are creatures of comfort and habit. We like consistency in our work and in our home life. As a poker player we can use this human need for consistency to our advantage at the tables. The key is to be observant. If you’re watching and listening to what your opponents are doing during hands, you can most likely see those tendencies again later on in a game.
For example if a player likes to check raise his flops when he hits a big hand then you should be aware of this. Another example is if you run into a player who is deathly scared of flush draws and will bet big to protect their hands, most likely they’ll do this over and over again. You can take advantage of this by floating his bet and then betting big when that 3rd heart hits the board. There are numerous ways we can take advantage of the tendencies and compulsions of poker players. Here are some that I have come across:
I know a player that always relies on math to play poker. I take advantage of this by overbetting if I think he is on a draw. I know for a fact that if he doesn’t have the odds to call, he’ll fold. You can use this to bluff out this type of player.
Never bluff out a passive player. If you’re in position against an extreme passive player. Only bet when you have a powerful hand. Don’t bluff on your draws or middle pair for example. These types of players don’t know the value of their hand in relation to another player’s. They will call you down on hands that good players will raise with. It’s easy to take down these types of players. You just have to be patient and resist the urge to bluff these players.
Tight passive players are another story. They are very fearful. They don’t want to gamble, they’ll fold winning hands often and they’ll sometimes just call or check when they have a monster. You have to play this type of player very carefully as they’ll never raise unless they have the goods. I play with this type of player in my live games. I don’t limp into a hand when they’ve limped in also. I’ll raise. If they call then I know they have a strong hand. I’m not going to semi-bluff them because a lot of times they’ll just check it anway and give me a free card. You won’t win much from them (both cash and tournaments) and they won’t pay you off ever. They rarely bet their hands also and if they do it’s usually a very small amount because they don’t want to miss out when they finally get a strong hand to play. This tight passive player, won’t re-raise into a raised pot even with A/K. They’re only interested in a sure thing. So you must play this player accordingly. They’re very patient and they think they play well but in actuality they just rely on good cards to win. They rarely will make moves. Don’t underestimate this type of player though, as they’re more interested in trapping and being sneaky as opposed to being aggressive.
Super tight players are easy to play against. They won’t play a hand unless they’re super strong. They’re rocks. You can bluff and steal a lot of blinds against this type of player. You can also stack these players often I’ve noticed. They will go down in flames with top pair top kicker for example. They can’t lay down strong pocket pairs because they think that AA shouldn’t be cracked and if they do it’s a bad beat. The difference is that these players will bet when they have a strong hand. I’d beware of minimum bets with these guys.
Loose agressive players are tricky. They can have the goods or they can have air. You must not be afraid to play back against these players. You must fight fire with fire. If you play back against these players they’ll slow down against you. They’re mostly interested in being the bully. And no bully likes to be bullied. You have to be careful though as these players use their aggression to force players to make mistakes against them. They know that sooner or later they’ll get paid off on their monster hands by someone who isn’t smart or savvy enough to realize this. I’d only play the top 20% of starting hands against this fellow and then I’d raise it up big against him if he enters the pot.
Loose passive players are the worst in my book. They’re not the worst type of player for a player who considers him/herself to be solid. They don’t bet their hands, they call with almost any two cards. It’s hard to get a read on this type of player as he/she won’t give out any information. It’s just call, call, call. They prefer that other players bet for them. I think you find this more online than live. You have to be careful as they might be holding a monster and won’t bet it until the very end at least. I’d just play ABC poker against these guys. Don’t bet unless you a have a very strong hand. Make good value bets against these players because they’ll call you down. Do not try and bluff this player or make any complex moves against these guys, they just won’t get it.
Super maniacs. They love to bet. They’ll bet with any two cards. They’re similar to the loose aggressive players but they’re much more aggressive. Their whole strategy is based on pressure and aggression. While this is a valid strategy it’s very risky as well. They live for the suckout. They get some sort of perverse pleasure in cracking big hands. They just don’t care. They need to control the table. They’re ruthless also so to tangle with these guys is tricky. I’d play only top hands against this guy and try and trap him. They’ll do the betting for you if you let them. There are only a handful of maniacs that play this style optimally and for profit. Truly skilled maniacs are very very tough, the rest are not. Just don’t be afraid to call his bets with good hands and if they suck out against you, so be it, just know that you’ll get the best of them in time. I’d stay out of the way of these players until they show some sort of pattern to their betting. They might go all-in only when they have the goods. They might go all-in only on bluffs or draws. They might bet smaller than usual when they have a monster. These are the patterns or tendencies to look for.
This is a simple overview of the types of players you’ll run into. Of course every situation is different in holdem and it’s up to you to figure out which situation you’re in and act accordingly. But one thing that you can take to the bank, if you’re observant, is that most players will have tendencies and exploiting those tendencies is crucial in winning poker. Only the real good players understand that changing gears is important to keep observant players off guard. So next time you play poker, make sure to watch and learn the tendencies of the other players…you just might “see” your bankroll go up as a result.
Related posts:
- Playing Aggressively at Micro Stakes Tables Against Passive/Weak Players
- Slow Playing Aces
- Biggest Mistakes in Micro Stakes Poker
- Preflop 3-Betting in Micro Stakes Cash Games
- Switching Gears
Categories: General Poker Articles
