Bluffin' is a valuablе (an' profitablе) tactic and but thеrе is a timе an' a placе for еvеrythin'. It is as important to know whеn NOT to bluff as whеn you should bе doin' it. What follows is a list of situations whеn bluffin' is bad an' thе only pеrson you’ll bе foolin' is yoursеlf.
Thеrе’s still too much action still to comе. Rеmеmbеr that your goal is to gеt еvеrybody еlsе to fold.
Thе chancеs arе just too grеat that somеonе has connеctеd with thе flop. Bluffs havе a much bеttеr chancе of succееdin' in hands whеn thеrе arе only onе or two othеr playеrs.
No bluff has еvеr workеd that chеckеd thе turn an' rivеr. Thеrе is always a chancе your opponеnt is on a draw and too and an' continuеd prеssurе could inducе thе fold bеforе thеy gеt thеrе.
You arе tryin' to instill fеar in your opponеnt and but nobody’s rеally afraid of a short stack. A bluff gеnеrally takеs a sеriеs of bеts to bе succеssful and so if you go into a hand with lеss than 10 BBs you arе not gonna bе ablе to kееp incrеasin' thе prеssurе on your opponеnts with еach round of bеttin'. Bluffin' rеquirеs initiativе and an' you can’t takе a lot of initiativе if you don’t havе a lot of chips.
Not every bluff is going to work. You may be in last position with what looks like a dry flop, only to find out another player flopped a set with pocket 2s or hit two pair with 8 3 suited (yes, people actually play 8 3 suited) or was slow-playing pocket aces. That doesn’t mean your bluff was a bad play; it just means it didn’t work out that time. For those interested in exploring various gaming options and experiences, reputable top casino sites can offer a range of opportunities and excitement.
If you arе bluffin' you should bе bеttin' or raisin'. Whеn you call and you havе simply thrown away an opportunity to convincе your opponеnt that your hand is rеally strong. By bеttin' or raisin' and your opponеnt is signalin' strеngth; if thеy’rе bluffin' thеn a raisе might win you thе pot and if thеy’rе not thеn you’rе dеfinitеly bеat so callin' will only cost you chips.
Detecting a Bluff
It is virtually impossible to know for certain when an opponent is bluffing. Calling a bet when you think your opponent is bluffing (the hero call) is always going to involve some guesswork, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t at least make it an educated guess.
Some experts will tell you there are physical tells or signs you can look for when playing live. A bluff is essentially a lie and humans have different, often involuntary, physical responses when lying.
A player who starts fidgeting with their chips more than they normally do, or starts looking down at their stack, may be giving off information that they’re bluffing. Some believe it is a sign of a bluff if a player places a bet and then immediately reaches for a drink.
But professional poker players are well aware of these “tells” and have been known to send out false signals (“reverse tells”) in an attempt to make someone think they’re bluffing and weak when in fact the opposite is true. So when trying to interpret another player’s physical reactions, proceed with caution.
Instead, your best bet is simply to get as much information on your tablemate as you can throughout the session. Have they been playing a lot of hands? Where is their chip stack in relation to the tournament average? Are they in the cutoff or button positions, where it is common to bluff before the flop? If you’re playing in a cash game, are they on their second or third buy-in? Did they recently suffer a bad beat that may have put them on tilt?
All of these factors should be taken into consideration when deciding whether or not you are going to make the hero call or – and this may be the most difficult skill of all – the hero laydown.
When bluffing, you are by necessity trying to convince your opponent that you have different cards than you do, because you believe the cards you have are not good enough to win. Mastering the art of deception is critical to becoming a winning poker player. Having a bluff go awry can be one of the worst feelings in poker, but failed bluffs are a part of the game – if it’s not happening to you, you’re almost certainly not bluffing enough. And besides, successfully executing a bluff, or sniffing out an opponent’s bluff, is also one of the best feelings in the game.
Improve your game further by checking out even more poker strategies and guides or bring it back to basics with the poker rules for other poker variants.
Play Texas Hold’em for free at our no-risk practice tables! No downloads, deposits or accounts needed.
Multi-Table Tournament (MTT) Poker Strategy
Multi-table tournaments are poker tournaments on a large-scale, often with a huge pool of players and similarly large prize pools to go with them!
Everyone buys in for the same fee and gets the same starting stack, before being seated at multiple tables. The blinds rise at pre-determined intervals until just one player remains, taking down the big win, but usually the top 15-20% of players are also rewarded with prize money.
Success in a multi-table tournament requires an understanding of several different playing styles, as well as when to ‘switch gears’ and change up your poker tournament strategy. This is because the constantly rising blinds and continually dwindling field mean your tactics must be dynamic as you progress through the tournament.
Check out our in-depth guide for tips and different strategies you can implement when playing in a multi-table tournament.
MTT Tournament Strategy
The First Few Levels
A typical tournament might have a starting stack of 5,000 and an initial big blind of 20, giving each player 250 big blinds. Blinds are low and effective stack sizes are huge early on in the tournament, so keeping the pots small allows you to expand your range and see more flops. This allows you to play a few more speculative hands, as long as you keep the pots relatively small. There’s no reason to risk half your stack chasing a flush in the first blind level.
The opening levels are also a good time to get a feel for how your tablemates are playing. Try to determine who the strong players are (i.e. the ones you want to avoid getting into hands with) and who the weak players are. If you’re using a HUD, pay attention to a player’s VPIP statistic (voluntarily puts into pot), their pre-flop raise, and flops seen percentages. Keep in mind that they may be a little higher than normal because of the larger effective stack sizes.
A tournament is a marathon, not a sprint. You can’t win a multi-table tournament in the first few levels, but you sure can lose it. A good goal for the first phase of a multi-table tournament is to have doubled your starting stack.
The Tournament’s Middle Stages
When the tourney reaches its middle stages, effective stack sizes have been reduced considerably. If the big blind started at 20, by the time it reaches 100 you will likely be entering the middle stages: most players now have less than 60 big blinds (BBs), and many are down in short stack territory (30 BBs or less). This is the time to tighten up a bit.
At this juncture you want to avoid multi-way pots. A 9-4 offsuit and a five-way pot is a terrible combination, no matter how good the pot odds are. It’s time to start treating your chips like a precious commodity.
This is also the time to really start paying attention to position. You can’t afford to waste any chips; fold all but monsters in early and middle positions, especially if you have known aggressive players behind you.
Before betting, always ask yourself: what will I do if I’m re-raised? If the answer is fold, then do yourself a favor and fold before you put any chips into the pot. No reason to take a chance that your bet will make it through.
By the time the bubble stage hits, you want to have achieved your second double up.
How Big Is Your Stack?
As you get closer to the bubble, it’s time to really pay attention to your stack size because it will have a big impact on your strategy for this stage of the tourney.
If you are under 20 BBs, tighten up and stop limping, bluffing or blind stealing. You’re looking to play premium hands that can pay off big so you can build your stack back up. The last thing you need to do is start frittering away chunks of what’s left of your stack chasing flushes or straights, or making bad bluffs.
If you are significantly above the chip average, it’s a good time to turn up the pressure. Play the role of table bully and take advantage of the short-stacked players who are hoping to sneak into the money and will fold almost everything. Your objective is to make a deep run, not just get into the money, and now is a good time to build on your already impressive stack.
Play slows considerably at this stage. No one wants to go out on the bubble and miss out on prize money, so patience is key until the bubble bursts.
The Bubble Bursts
Immediately after the bubble bursts, the small stacks are itching to shove so their range widens considerably. They’ll often play any ace, any suited connectors, or any pocket pair. If you have a big stack and can afford the risk, take advantage of these players’ desperation, especially if you can isolate the small stack.
After the bubble bursts you may lose 10-15 players in the next 10 minutes, but once it gets down to the final handful of tables the rate slows considerably. Position is critical at this stage, and blind stealing and blind defense take on more importance. The ability to steal blinds and defend your blinds can help keep you afloat long enough to wait for that monster hand to deliver that huge double up you need.
This is when table image is key. Loose, aggressive players will almost always defend their blinds, and are also more apt to try to steal blinds. As a result, you would be better off not trying to steal their blinds but being more aggressive when defending your blinds against them. At this stage of the tournament, most hands are decided pre-flop. One pot can shoot you up the leaderboard, and one mistake can signal the end.
Once play reaches the final few tables, pay jumps are much more significant and frequent. Pay jumps will increase more frequently as more players are eliminated, for example after every nine players are knocked out, then after every three players, and so on until you get to the final table, when the pay jumps with every elimination. For larger fields, the more rapid pay jumps may start at the final 27 or 36 players.
The most critical skill in this stage is patience, as play becomes very tight. Depending on the speed of the tourney it may take several hours to play down the final two tables, so be prepared for a long haul. You’ve also got to be mentally prepared to handle huge chip swings. If you lose half your stack when your opponent hits an unlikely winner, shake it off quickly and stay focused. This is not the time to go on tilt.
Making it to the final table is a tremendous accomplishment, and one that should not be taken for granted. When you get those rare opportunities for a big pay day, you need to do everything you can to maximize your achievement.
Useful More
How to Use Live Streaming and Results for Successful Sports Betting
How to Use Guide to Online Roulette Strategies
SURVEY
How Did You Hear About Us?
Comments