Let's Go to the Videotape

When I was in my 20s and living in New York, I could not get enough sports on television. This was very early in the life of cable television and ESPN. Many places didn't have cable available, and SportsCenter in those days was a microcosm of what it is today. So, I got my sports from radio talk shows and the 11 o'clock news. I loved watching the highlights, and CBS at the time had a sports reporter by the name of Warner Wolf who always cried, "Let's go to the videotape."

That saying always stayed with me, and like everything else I do, I apply it to poker.

When I first started playing poker, I did what most novices do: I played my hand with no regard for what the other players might have. If I had a hand I liked, I was usually in to the end, forgetting the fact that even if I made my best hand, it might not win.

Luckily, I've learned not to do that anymore, and try to figure out what my opponent(s) might have. This is critical in a tournament, where you can be sent to the rail if you're wrong.

In watching other pros, I often see them get to a certain point in a hand and stop and ask for time. I used to think that all they were thinking was: Can I beat his hand with my hand? Is my top pair good? Do I have a higher flush? When the board paired, did it help him more than it did me?

Then, I learned what they are really doing: They are going to the videotape!

First, they think about what they've learned from playing with an opponent, either that day or in the past, and go over certain situations in their head. Is the opponent loose? Does he bluff a lot? Does he bet only the nuts?

Next, they run the tape from before the flop. What is my position? What is his? Was there a raise? If not, is he prone to limping with a big hand? How about suited connectors? If there was a raise, who made it? What does the raiser usually raise with? What did I call with, and what was I thinking when I did?

Then, the flop came.

OK, how did the betting go? Who checked, and who bet? Did someone raise? If so, where did it come from? Was there a straight draw or a flush draw on the flop? Did the original raiser bet? What did I do? What was I thinking when I did it?

Here comes the turn card.

I was watching their reactions (looking for tells). Did I see something that might help? What did the turn card bring to the board? Did it make that straight or flush? Is it a card that might make two pair for the original bettor or the other callers? How did the betting go? Was the original bettor still leading the action? Has someone taken over the betting? What do they think I have? What hand do I put them on? Why did I call or raise?

Now, here's the river.

They ask many of the same questions that they asked after the turn. Was the straight or flush made? Is it a two-pair card? How is the betting going in this round? Who dropped out and what could they have had? If the board paired, did the bettor or I get counterfeited? Can the bettor be bluffed? Am I being bluffed?

A hand's beginning and middle stages are at least as important as its final stage when it comes to making a decision as to whether to call, raise, or fold. When a pro asks for time, he is not only thinking about whether his hand can win, but why it can win. All of the above information is invaluable to him as he plays a hand, and in the long run, it increases his expected win rate.

How can you increase your win rate? Don't play just your own hand, and after the river card has come and it's time for you to act, go to the videotape!