'Heart' in Poker

"He's got heart" is a phrase we hear all the time in poker. Having "heart" means that a player is fearless; he's not afraid to bluff or gamble in a pot in which he thinks he might be able to pick it up – regardless of whether or not he has the best hand. In high-stakes and tournament poker, having heart is a key attribute to becoming a top player.

In golf, you are taught to trust your swing. In poker, you need to trust your instincts. If you believe your opponent is vulnerable, you should be thinking about ways to take the pot away from him even when you probably don't have the best hand. This is how players "earn" their pots (they win them when they don't have the best hand). It's what separates the men from the boys – and it takes a lot of heart.

Many old-time players say, "Without bluffing, there would be no poker." Bluffing and a player's heart really come into play when playing big-bet poker (pot-limit and no-limit). This is because the element of the bluff is far more prevalent in big-bet poker than in limit poker. Bluffing correctly is a key to success in big-bet poker, and it's an art form. A great bluff is a thing of beauty, and when you pull one off, there is no better feeling in poker.

A player feels much better about pots he "earns" than those in which he has great cards that play themselves. The chips may stack the same when you win a pot with a good hand, but it doesn't feel the same as when you bluff and "earn" the pot. A successful bluff makes you feel good about your game and confident of your instincts.

How many times have you wanted to bluff at a pot because you believed you would win by doing so, but just couldn't pull the trigger? To most who play tournament poker, this happens all the time. The difference between you and the expert is that he not only pulls the trigger, but knows when to pull the trigger. (Here's one quick tip about bluffing: Bluff at good players, not bad ones, because good players will lay down a hand.)

Week in and week out we see the top players on the World Poker Tour bluffing their way to victory. You are probably mesmerized when you watch WPT champions like Gus Hansen, Howard Lederer, Layne Flack, David "Devilfish" Ulliott, and Alan Goehring, because they are not afraid to pull the trigger. Jeopardizing your stack on a bluff takes a lot of heart and complete trust in your instincts. If you're wrong, it's farewell, bye-bye. Believe me, it's not as easy as it looks.

Three-time World Champion Stu Ungar (the guy with perhaps the greatest heart in poker history) once said to me, "Sexton, lots of guys can fire one shell, but not too many will fire two." This means that lots of guys will bluff at a pot once, but if they get called, they won't bluff at it a second time.

We recently saw a perfect example of someone firing two shells on the World Poker Tour. (Watching the WPT will make you a better poker player.) The event was the Jack Binion World Poker Open in Tunica, Mississippi. They were down to three players. Poker sensation Phil Ivey was playing a pot against another poker great, David "Devilfish" Ulliott. The antes were $2,000 and the blinds were $5,000-$10,000. Ivey raised the pot to $30,000 with the 10 8, and Devilfish called. The flop was A-K-3 rainbow. Ivey now bluffed at the pot with a $30,000 bet, and Devilfish called. The turn brought a deuce and Ivey didn't slow down. He fired the second shell and bet $60,000! The Devilfish folded. Plays like this demonstrate why Phil Ivey is a superstar and made more final tables on the WPT than any other player.

To become a poker champion, you've got to have heart, "miles and miles and miles of heart."

Take care.

Mike Sexton is the host of PartyPoker.com and a commentator on the World Poker Tour, which can be seen every Wednesday on the Travel Channel.