Heads Up: Greg Mueller

Greg "FBT" Mueller crossed the million-dollar mark in lifetime tournament earnings this past summer. The Canadian pro, who learned to play poker en route to away games when he played hockey professionally, routinely plays in big buy-in tournaments and cash games. One of the most popular plays in the games he frequents is the squeeze play. When one player raises, another calls, and a third reraises, the third player is squeezing. Basically, the reraiser is looking to take down the pot uncontested before the flop, because he thinks the initial raiser and the caller have hands that they will lay down. Mueller recently explained the best way to use the squeeze play and its derivative, the reverse squeeze play.

The best way to pull off a squeeze play is to know your opponents. If a player is opening a lot with marginal hands, the other players will start calling behind him because they are frustrated with his raises. The other players are probably calling without very good hands because they want to play. Most players like that are not capable of smooth-calling with a monster hand. If you recognize this, and make a move when you are in the blinds, the other players in the hand will probably think for about three seconds each before they release their hands. The reverse squeeze play is the medicine to be used against the squeeze play, and more and more players are using it. It means calling a raise with a big hand, hoping that a player behind you will squeeze so that you can then reraise them. To pull a reverse squeeze play, you have to be willing not to get squeezed. This is a risk, because if you don't get squeezed, you will probably have to face multiple opponents after the flop. A lot of people are not able to pull off a reverse squeeze because they get scared when they have A-A and they want to get all of their chips in the middle, so everyone folds. Well, I like to get a little action when I have pocket aces. If I think that a player behind me is capable of squeezing, I will just call a raise with a really big hand, hoping that he will come over the top because he thinks I have a hand like A-10. You don't want to try the reverse squeeze against a player who is timid, though, because you don't want him to see a free flop with the 8 5. However, if the player in the blind is aggressive, he will see your limp as a chance to pick up some dead money and you can get him.

To view the entire interview with Mueller, and other strategy videos with top pros, please visit www.CardPlayerTV.com and select the Strategy channel.