There's a number of poker tactics that should be a part of every player's arsenal. You must be familiar with these plays, both so that you know when to use them and when your opponents might be using them.
Several months ago, my girlfriend and I made plans for a trip to Paris, where I would play in the
World Poker Tour tournament at the Aviation Club, and then we would continue on along the Dalmatian Coast in the former Yugoslavia. At the last minute, the
WPT pulled out of the picture due to some legal wrangle. I had mixed emotions about this. It meant no chance for a TV appearance, but it also meant a smaller field without a lot of the good players. I also knew that if I cancelled the trip, I risked making the news: "Poker Player Victim of Axe Murder by Girlfriend."
I was very pleased with my table at the Aviation Club. The only strong player was my good friend Jason Lester. All of the others kept showing hands that seemed significantly weaker than what their betting had suggested. I was basically card-dead for the first few levels. Then, shortly after the dinner break, I picked up two black queens in the cutoff position. Everyone folded to me, and I made a slightly bigger raise than normal, about one-and-a-half times the size of the pot, hoping that someone would think I was stealing and reraise me. The button, who was obviously not too experienced, called, and everyone else folded. The flop was 5
4
3
. This wasn't necessarily bad. I would have to be a little unlucky to run into an opponent who had cold-called with a hand that matched up with these cards. I led out for about 75 percent of the pot. My opponent rechecked his holecards in such a way that I was convinced he had a pair, and that he was unsure if one was a spade or not. Then, he called. This seemed good for me. If he had a pair and a spade draw, he didn't have a flush or a set, and his flush draw was worse than mine. The most dangerous hand was 6-6, giving him a straight draw.
The turn was the K
. I thought he would have reraised preflop with A-K and folded lesser hands containing a king. Anyway, I was pretty confident of my read, and knew this card couldn't help him. I bet about two-thirds of my chips, and he moved all in. I still strongly believed that he had started with a pair and checked to see if one was a spade. I called with some confidence, expecting to see 6-6 or 7-7 with one spade. He turned over the K
K
.
In a way, I was right; he had a pair and checked to see if one of his cards was a spade. It never dawned on me that he would just call with a pair bigger than queens. I still had a flush draw, but the river was a blank, and I was out.
Flat-calling with a high pair is a fairly common tactic. There are three common variations of this play. First, it is most frequently used when a player with aces or kings limps in from early position. In this case, he is hoping for a raise so that he can reraise. The second case is rarer, but it is another situation in which it can be a very effective play. It occurs when you raise with aces and are reraised. Now, instead of making a big reraise or moving in, you just call. Then, you check the flop. Your opponent almost certainly will bet, and now you can move in. The third variation, the one used by my Parisian opponent with his kings, is not seen too often. This deception has the most to lose, and may not gain anything. We all know how dangerous it is to give one free card. In this case, he was giving me three free cards. If an ace comes, either he is beaten or we will both be so afraid of the ace that there won't be much action. My advice would be to use this third variation sparingly, because of the dangers involved, but on occasion it is an excellent tactic, especially when you trap an unsuspecting player like me. This is especially true if you employ it against a regular opponent. Once he has lost to this play, he will be afraid of your overcalls forever, or at least until he forgets about it.
Steve "Zee" Zolotow, aka The Bald Eagle, is a successful games player. He currently devotes most of his time to poker. He can be found at many major tournaments and playing on Full Tilt, as one of its pros. When escaping from poker, he spends Thursday afternoons and Friday nights at his bar, Doc Holliday's, on Avenue A and 9th Street in New York City, where the lovely Joanna will pour drinks and talk poker, if it is not too busy.
