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Maryann Guberman has been a writer and editor with many gaming publications, including Sports Form, Card Player, Poker World, Player's Panorama and Systems and Methods. She also has written and edited numerous books on gambling.

Sep 02, 2006

Little Things Mean a Lot

Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. --Aldous Huxley

Sometimes life happens and we're so busy with some other part of it that we miss certain important aspects. I'm not talking about stopping to smell any roses when we are rushing around doing what has to be done to get to that part of our day that pleases us. However, the concept is similar. By taking a break from the frenetic, we can sometimes compose ourselves and begin to see important things we probably would have missed.

Take posting the big blind when you sit down to play poker and you're out of position. Sure, you want to get into action; that's why you came to the table. The rules require you to pay for jumping into a game where others have already posted blinds. It's a simple rule and it keeps you from getting any free rides.

Unfortunately, I haven't read all the newest poker books on the market so I don't know who covered this topic but I'm sure somebody did because every time I have posted the big blind instead of waiting for it to come around to me, somebody has raised! Not once! Not sometimes! Every time!

It took me six sessions before I realized this so I started keeping a log. Damned if it wasn't true. My out-of-position big blind always got raised. It makes sense, though, doesn't it? With two big blinds and a small blind already in the pot, why not raise it and go for the steal?

To test my theory that this was part of somebody's suggestion, I began reraising with decent but not great hands. Now the action began to get serious. Often I'd get plenty of callers but even more often, I'd get that raiser to fold! Overall, I managed to eke out a small profit by re-raising. Once I established this as part of my potential playing pattern, I decided to see what would happen if I just called those raises. Forget about it! No profit there. In fact the loss was huge compared to the investment.

I can't say I sampled enough hands with this test so I'm not suggesting it's something you put into play. When time allows and if the muse hits, I'll plug it into some software and test it out. Who knows? After a few thousand trials (which is enough for me), the results might turn me off to this option completely.

What I'm trying to stress is the observation. So much goes on at the table and so many people miss a lot of it, and missing it affects the bottom line.

Here's another example. That garbage talk - the stuff you see on TV and the stuff that's misspelled on the poker chat option (purposely, of course, to keep others from reporting you for your foulness), has its effect. Sometimes simply typing laughter (ha ha ha) after winning a pot will cause the loser to go on tilt. This action might be an obvious thing to witness but I've noticed some chatter get so heated that both players end up losing chips because they are too busy trying to get the best of each other via the keyboard. In live action, with community cards that look threatening, say ace, king, ten of hearts and ace of spaces, if someone simply asks, "You don't have pocket rockets, do you?" and then says no more, it's a clue that you better reevaluate your next move. They could be holding those lethal weapons. If, on the other hand, they keep chattering, trying to get a reaction from you, it's almost a sure sign they don't have the aces and now they're trying to get you to subconsciously reveal hints about your hand. They might have one ace though. The example is oversimplified but it cuts to the chase.

Of course, if you're playing your cards and not your people, you can ignore all this advice. In fact, you could just read a book, between hands, or if you're online, you could play one or more tables so you have to bounce back and forth (a method often used by regulars who think they can keep track of more than one game at a time). That's something I've never tried but if you have, let me know how it works. Maybe these guys who say poker, especially hold'em, is a game of people and not a game of cards might be full of hot air.

Just kidding.