Tournaments
Poker Strategy - Why Not to Call by Default
A lot of poker players call by default-meaning, it's not a strategic decision, but a gut reaction, an easy response, a habit. You see a spread, and unless some very big red flags force you to do otherwise, you call. Calling is a cautious reaction, the "happy medium" that lets you save money that might be lost on otherwise unreasonable raises, and win every once in a while.
Now that's not necessarily a bad thing. It can even be a good thing. What makes it an annoying habit, however, is when you do it unconsciously. Then poker is no longer strategic nor challenging, and you're wasting your money just because you're not taking full advantage of the game.
The point is that you should be selective. The player who gets involved in too many hands will, by the law of averages, get his share of pots and then some, but it also means you're going to go broke by riding on statistics (not strategy) to get your money back.
Stop fence sitting. You need to develop aggressive play. Why? First of all, when you have the best hand and are likely to win, it gets more money in the pot. It's like actively farming the soil versus sitting underneath an apple tree hoping the fruit will drop. Aggressive play increases your wins. And you do this by betting or raising, teasing your competitors and getting them to fork over those chips. Not by sitting there, gathering moss.
Aggressive play also helps you win by forcing your opponent to back off. It's a mind game. The passive player, the one who calls but seldom raises, has just one chance of winning: getting a good hand. That's pure luck. The aggressive player will play not just the cards but the opponents, improving on a subsequent betting round and in time seize the pot.
Your motto is "Be selective, but be aggressive". Memorize it and take it to heart! Then switch your brain from calling by default to actively choosing your next move. In most cases a better course of action might be to either fold or to raise- riskier, but smarter.
Folding is not backing out like a coward. Folding is actively surveying your situation and recognizing it as one where you can't play well. Maybe you are unsure about how your cards measure against an opponent. You see that you are likely to win the minimum if you have the best hand, but lose the maximum if your opponent has a better one.
The benefits of raising, however, is that you force your opponent to work for the win. You pose a question he will have to answer: Am I up against a better hand? Anytime you can force your opponent to make a decision, you gain an advantage. He can choose incorrectly. He can make a sloppy move. This allows a selective and aggressive player to win even when the other player folds what's technically a better hand, and win big if he actually holds the best one.
A lot of poker players call by default-meaning, it's not a strategic decision, but a gut reaction, an easy response, a habit. You see a spread, and unless some very big red flags force you to do otherwise, you call. Calling is a cautious reaction, the "happy medium" that lets you save money that might be lost on otherwise unreasonable raises, and win every once in a while.
Now that's not necessarily a bad thing. It can even be a good thing. What makes it an annoying habit, however, is when you do it unconsciously. Then poker is no longer strategic nor challenging, and you're wasting your money just because you're not taking full advantage of the game.
The point is that you should be selective. The player who gets involved in too many hands will, by the law of averages, get his share of pots and then some, but it also means you're going to go broke by riding on statistics (not strategy) to get your money back.
Stop fence sitting. You need to develop aggressive play. Why? First of all, when you have the best hand and are likely to win, it gets more money in the pot. It's like actively farming the soil versus sitting underneath an apple tree hoping the fruit will drop. Aggressive play increases your wins. And you do this by betting or raising, teasing your competitors and getting them to fork over those chips. Not by sitting there, gathering moss.
Aggressive play also helps you win by forcing your opponent to back off. It's a mind game. The passive player, the one who calls but seldom raises, has just one chance of winning: getting a good hand. That's pure luck. The aggressive player will play not just the cards but the opponents, improving on a subsequent betting round and in time seize the pot.
Your motto is "Be selective, but be aggressive". Memorize it and take it to heart! Then switch your brain from calling by default to actively choosing your next move. In most cases a better course of action might be to either fold or to raise- riskier, but smarter.
Folding is not backing out like a coward. Folding is actively surveying your situation and recognizing it as one where you can't play well. Maybe you are unsure about how your cards measure against an opponent. You see that you are likely to win the minimum if you have the best hand, but lose the maximum if your opponent has a better one.
The benefits of raising, however, is that you force your opponent to work for the win. You pose a question he will have to answer: Am I up against a better hand? Anytime you can force your opponent to make a decision, you gain an advantage. He can choose incorrectly. He can make a sloppy move. This allows a selective and aggressive player to win even when the other player folds what's technically a better hand, and win big if he actually holds the best one.
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