David Grey
March 20, 2006
I play in some of the biggest cash games in the
world. Usually, these games are loaded with pros - folks
who know the intricacies and advanced strategies of
pretty much every poker game. We normally play a mix of
games that can include Hold ‘em, 7-Stud, Omaha, and one
or more of the Hi/Lo variations. Most of the time, we
play with a fixed-limit betting structure.
In a recent session, I had a stretch where I was
pretty card dead, so I spent most of my time folding. To
my knowledgeable opponents, it must have appeared that I
was playing especially tight. Then in a game of 7-Stud,
I was dealt an Ace as my up-card. The bring-in bet had
been raised and I re-raised.
Then, two top-rate pros with no more than their antes
in the pot called my re-raise. There are only a couple
of hands that might justify their calls. However, as the
hand proceeded with me as the aggressor, it became clear
that the callers of my third-street re-raise didn't have
much at all. One held three unconnected hearts, the
other had a middle pair with no kicker.
What were these guys thinking? It's hard to know, but
my guess is that one of them let his desire to gamble
get the better of him. Though that can pay
dividends in well-chosen spots, this wasn't one of them.
The other might have thought he could outplay me later
in the hand.
In the end, neither of their strategies makes much
sense. I made it expensive enough that it was a lousy
spot to gamble, and given that I've declared that I have
a pair of aces, there's little chance that I'm going to
get bluffed out of the pot.
I think this hand highlights a couple of the mental
traps that sometimes snag advanced players. As players
improve, they inevitably see more opportunities for
profit, and thus, see potential in a greater number of
hands. But it's a slippery slope, and a player can
easily lose the long view and convince himself that he
can make any starting hand work out.
This just isn't the case - especially when playing
fixed-limit games. Even at the highest levels,
profitability in limit poker is largely determined by a
player's ability to choose the right starting hands. If
you fail in this regard or somehow lose your discipline,
it's nearly impossible to recover. Fancy plays and good
decisions on later streets cannot overcome early-hand
mistakes. If you're throwing money into a pot when you
shouldn't, you're going to lose money. There's no way
around it.
If you find yourself in a stretch where things aren't
going especially well, take a step back and make sure
your hand selection is all it ought to be. Review the
previous tips from the other Full Tilt Poker pros.
Jennifer Harman has written on hand selection in Stud-8,
Omaha-8, Razz,and Perry Friedman has written about third
street decisions in 7-Stud.
Always remember that in limit poker, hand selection
is the foundation for your entire game. You can't build
a solid game on a weak foundation.
|
David Grey
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