We are all guilty, I believe, at some time or another doing stupid things at the poker table. Was thinking of a few this morning.
1. Chasing straights and flushes with insufficient odds.
2. Chasing flushes and straights on a paired board, particularly against big bets/insufficient odds. This is more true in omaha than hold em, but I think both apply.
3. Playing big/little cards because they are suited. Particularly if the highest one is a queen or worse.
4. Calling with all your chips too quickly. My new rule is counting to 20.
5. Shoving with small/medium pairs when there is no money in the pot and you have 20+ blinds. Example, blinds at 2nd level, you are under the gun with 4/4.
6. Making "crying calls" when you are obviously beat.
7. Overcalling called shoves with hands that are "obviously" behind, prime example my 6/6 of last week, and even worse, KJ overcalling that.
8. Trying to bluff calling stations.
9. Betting amounts that price players in. Examples: Min-bet semi-scary board with top pair (say 2 of a suit or 2 to a straight on the board), Min-raising from blinds after several players have limped in.
10. Folding too often to a frequent button raiser.
11. Failing to recognize when you are pot committed.
12. Failing to recognize when you are not pot committed.
13. Calling or raising small rather than shoving when you are in the red zone.
14. Trying to trap multiple limpers with premium hands (failing to raise).
15. Playing this stupid game.
2 comments:
I would like to address #13 and #15.
#13 - Calling or raising small when in the red/danger zone. Last Sunday at the 10am tournament I got beat by Donna slow playing her aces (I hate her) and was down to 3,500 chips with blinds of 200-400, so I had just under 10 big blinds.
I'm in the small blind and nobody raises so I limp (bad girl) with my 3-5 of clubs. The flop is 6-7-4 with the 4 and 6 being clubs. I flopped a 7 high straight and an open-ended straight flush draw. I'm never folding. I check. The guy to my immediate left goes all-in over the top. Rut-row. Lonnie (to his immediate left goes all-in. Double rut-row. Folded around to Tony on my right. He goes all-in. OMG. I just don't care and I put my chips in the middle. Lonnie has everyone covered so we all turn up our cards.
Guy to my left has AK with only the ace of clubs. Don't know what he was thinking. Lonnie has 6-7 off-suit for 2 pair. He does NOT have my 7 of clubs. Tony flopped an 8 high straight which is the nuts. I'm not feeling good about this.
A meaningless card on the turn. A 6 on the river and Lonnie kills off 3 players with his full house. Ouch. Where was my 7 or 2 of clubs. Does 7-2 hate me? Lord, I would have been healthy if I won that pot.
#15 - Why do we play this stupid game? See above. It's the excitement. The ups and downs. The hope of what might be. It's a love-hate relationship. Gotta love it.
P.S. I was just thinking that if I'd had the nerve to go all-in with 3-5 clubs that none of the players above would have called me except perhaps the AK and I would have at least doubled up. Ah, poker.
Post a Comment