Post by Randy C on Dec 29, 2006 3:08:56 GMT -4
One of the most overlooked poker tells is betting. So may poker players get caught up in physical tells such as facial expressions or the way a person sits, averts their eyes and other similar tells, that they lose sight of one of the most important tells; Betting!
You can literally pick up on so many clues about a players hand simply by paying CLOSE attention to their betting and honing in on some betting variation that stands out from all of the other bets that that player made in past hands.
Everytime a person makes a bet, I ask myself, what is this person trying to get me to do? Do they want me to call? Do they want me out of the hand? Are they testing the strength of my own hand? Are they trying to set me up for a check/raise? Are they making a desperate hail mary bet?...These are all the questions that go through my head each time a person bets at or into me, and most of the time, my gut instinct, that little voice we all have is usually correct. And, I listen to it closely. Like they say, "Listen to your FIRST instinct..."
Here's a few examples that might help you understand a little better:
a) You're in a hand and you're holding AQs. The field was narrowed down to you and a notoriously loose player at the table. The blinds are 75/150 and the loose player raises pre flop to 450. You simply call. Now, we can assume that the loose player probably has either AKs...maybe ppA's (but we doubt it) or a middle pair, right?
OK...The flop comes and it's a 2h, 7c and Qs...Well the flop hit us pretty good, but the loose player fires off $1000 in chips at you. Now, we know that he raised pre flop, that he is loose, and you are holding one of the 4 Q's, and their is one on the board, right...So, the chances of him having a set of Q's is very slim. Could he have a set of 7's...Possibility, but would he have raise such an amount pre flop with a lowly pair of 7's. My first instinct tells me that loosey is trying to buy this pot from me...and the easiest way to tell, if I can afford it, is to reraise him. If he is bluffing, more than likely he will fold, unless he thinks you're bluffing or trying to buy the pot yourself. My optimal play from this point would be an All In...Why? Because I really believe this guy is trying to buy the pot. If he has Aces, or K's, then so be it....but his bet is tellling me that he wants me to go away, and NOT trying to capitalize on the earnings.
b) You're holding QJs, and you are in a hand with 2 other players, both extremely tight. You are in the BB and the first bettor from EARLY position raises 2x the BB, and the button calls and so do I. The flop comes 9h, 9s and 10s. Well, you're looking at an open ended straight flush draw, and you open it up with a nice pot sized bet. Early position calls and the button folds. the next card comes, and it's a 9c. You fire off a pot sized bet and early tighty raises all in. Now, This guy probably does NOT have the other 9...Why? Because he didn't raise on the flop. So, what does this bet mean? My guess is that Mr. Tighty has a pocket pair. Because a) he raised from early pole only 2x the BB, so my guess is that it's a small to middle pair, so this bet is really a vlaue bet of sorts because he has a full boat...Dollars to donuts. At this point...It's a gamble. My thinking here is to fold....Those 9's scare me too much. His bet is an attempt to suck me in to his trap. His overbet, considering that he's a tight player, means that he is aggressively trying to double up through me...and I would definately fold.
The next time you are at a table, watch a few hands during the game that you are NOT involved in and try to figure out what each of the bets that the other players make mean. You'll be amazed at how accurate you will get after some time goes by. It's a great way to pick up on others betting tells.
All In,
Randy C~
You can literally pick up on so many clues about a players hand simply by paying CLOSE attention to their betting and honing in on some betting variation that stands out from all of the other bets that that player made in past hands.
Everytime a person makes a bet, I ask myself, what is this person trying to get me to do? Do they want me to call? Do they want me out of the hand? Are they testing the strength of my own hand? Are they trying to set me up for a check/raise? Are they making a desperate hail mary bet?...These are all the questions that go through my head each time a person bets at or into me, and most of the time, my gut instinct, that little voice we all have is usually correct. And, I listen to it closely. Like they say, "Listen to your FIRST instinct..."
Here's a few examples that might help you understand a little better:
a) You're in a hand and you're holding AQs. The field was narrowed down to you and a notoriously loose player at the table. The blinds are 75/150 and the loose player raises pre flop to 450. You simply call. Now, we can assume that the loose player probably has either AKs...maybe ppA's (but we doubt it) or a middle pair, right?
OK...The flop comes and it's a 2h, 7c and Qs...Well the flop hit us pretty good, but the loose player fires off $1000 in chips at you. Now, we know that he raised pre flop, that he is loose, and you are holding one of the 4 Q's, and their is one on the board, right...So, the chances of him having a set of Q's is very slim. Could he have a set of 7's...Possibility, but would he have raise such an amount pre flop with a lowly pair of 7's. My first instinct tells me that loosey is trying to buy this pot from me...and the easiest way to tell, if I can afford it, is to reraise him. If he is bluffing, more than likely he will fold, unless he thinks you're bluffing or trying to buy the pot yourself. My optimal play from this point would be an All In...Why? Because I really believe this guy is trying to buy the pot. If he has Aces, or K's, then so be it....but his bet is tellling me that he wants me to go away, and NOT trying to capitalize on the earnings.
b) You're holding QJs, and you are in a hand with 2 other players, both extremely tight. You are in the BB and the first bettor from EARLY position raises 2x the BB, and the button calls and so do I. The flop comes 9h, 9s and 10s. Well, you're looking at an open ended straight flush draw, and you open it up with a nice pot sized bet. Early position calls and the button folds. the next card comes, and it's a 9c. You fire off a pot sized bet and early tighty raises all in. Now, This guy probably does NOT have the other 9...Why? Because he didn't raise on the flop. So, what does this bet mean? My guess is that Mr. Tighty has a pocket pair. Because a) he raised from early pole only 2x the BB, so my guess is that it's a small to middle pair, so this bet is really a vlaue bet of sorts because he has a full boat...Dollars to donuts. At this point...It's a gamble. My thinking here is to fold....Those 9's scare me too much. His bet is an attempt to suck me in to his trap. His overbet, considering that he's a tight player, means that he is aggressively trying to double up through me...and I would definately fold.
The next time you are at a table, watch a few hands during the game that you are NOT involved in and try to figure out what each of the bets that the other players make mean. You'll be amazed at how accurate you will get after some time goes by. It's a great way to pick up on others betting tells.
All In,
Randy C~