SLOW PLAYING
I think most players slow play too much in Holdem. There are at least three problems with slow plays.
One is that your hand is often not as strong as you think.
For example, people will often slow play hands like the bottom two pair and the bottom set, even when the board is two-suited.
These plays are clearly almost always wrong against typical players.
When I first started playing poker in cardrooms, an old man in a Reno Stud game gave me some advice.
After one hand I played, he said, “The problem with slow playing the nuts is that there might be somebody else slow playing a hand they only think is the nuts.”
He was right. Most players slow play too much, and it can cost them dearly at times.
A slow play is just a deceptive play where you play a strong hand weakly.
The idea is to allow someone else to get a cheap draw to a second-best hand, but there are many ways a slow play can go wrong.
One way is the case the old man in Reno was talking about. That’s when you don’t need to let someone draw cheaply to get a second-best hand.
It’s when they already have one, but they don’t know it’s second best and are slow playing themselves.
This situation can cost you a lot of missed bets.
Another way slow play can cost you money is when your hand isn’t really as good as you think and the free card you give can give someone a better hand, not a second-best hand.
This is, of course, the worst possible outcome from a slow play, costing you both extra bets and the entire pot.
There are times when slow play is the right thing, but not as many as most players seem to think.
If you’ve got any doubt whether slow play is the right move-you should probably just bet.
The other reason to avoid slow play is that it’s not as deceptive as you might think.
OVERAGGRESSION
Raising to Get Information
A lot of players will raise with mediocre hands to “define the hand,” which is an attempt to get information about the strength of your hand.
The cost of doing this is almost always greater than the value of any information you might get.
Raising to Intimidate
Many players will try to bully their way into winning a pot.
They raise because they think you’re weak and can be intimidated into folding.
CALLING TOO MUCH
Many beginning poker players seem intent on losing their chips just one bet at a time.
These kind of leaks can add up quickly.
If you don’t have any reason to think you have the best hand and you don’t have a good draw, then give it up. Fold and move on to the next hand.
Entering a Public Cardroom / The Play of the Game / The First Betting Round
