Stop and Think

This might sound like simple advice. But, I've often found myself in sticky situations that I could have avoided if I'd just taken a little more time before acting. Playing multiple games online can train you to think and act extremely fast. But when that big hand or tough decision comes up, it's important to slow down, even for just for a few extra seconds. I've seen countless players flush their entire stack after spending hours in a tournament, because one time they acted too quickly, without really thinking.

Recently I was in a tournament in which two big hands went my way. In the first one, I benefited from a pause to think things through, and in the second, I should have taken more time to think, but it worked out, partly because my opponent wasn't thinking at all.

It was a $162 online tournament that started with about 1,000 entrants. We all started with 3,000 in chips, and after a strong start, I had my stack up to a little more than 13,000. With the blinds at 75-150, a player two off the button made it 450 to go, the small blind called, and I decided to take a flop from the big blind with the A 6. The flop came down Q 10 6, giving me bottom pair and a backdoor-flush draw. We checked to the preflop raiser, who instantly went all in for 5,300!

Despite his drastic overbet, my initial reaction was just to dump my hand and move on. But the small blind took almost 30 seconds to act on his hand, and that gave me the time to do what I should have done anyway - stop and think. I tried to decide exactly what my all-in opponent might have. It just didn't make any sense for him to move all in if he had something decent. If the board was suited or connected, while it would still be excessive to move all in for four times the size of the pot to protect a medium-strength hand, that play would at least have some logic to it.



The more I thought about it, the more it felt like A-K to me. If I blew off 40 percent of my stack calling with bottom pair and found myself up against A-Q or A-10, I'd feel like a real dunce, but part of good poker is making a read and trusting it. I spent a little more time convincing myself that it had to be A-K, and after the small blind folded, I made the call.

My opponent turned over A-J, essentially the same as A-K for my purposes. The turn brought a small diamond, which killed one of my opponent's outs, the river was an ace, and I dragged a really nice pot with my two pair. Thanks to the small blind's pause, I was able to regroup my thoughts and make the right play.

Later in the tournament, I picked up some more chips when a player clearly acted without thinking. I'd built my stack up to about 25,000 when I got dealt A-K in middle position. The blinds were up to 300-600, and the second player to act made it 1,800 to go. When the action got to me, I briefly considered just calling. My opponent had just over 23,000 in chips, which meant I could be facing a decision for almost all of my chips on this hand if I built the pot early by reraising. Furthermore, a smooth-call might entice someone else at the table to move all in with a marginal hand, since there was already a fair amount of money in the pot.

In the end, the benefit of potentially picking up the pot before the flop made me choose the more standard play. I reraised to 5,400, and after everyone else folded, my opponent called. The flop came down Q-8-3 rainbow. After a quick check from my opponent, I made a 9,000 continuation-bet into the 11,700 pot. Instantly, my opponent went all in for 18,000!

At this point, I let my emotions get the best of me. I was frustrated that I'd been in good shape in regard to chips when the hand started, and now 60 percent of my stack was in the pot when I didn't have anything. I should have taken a moment to stop, think, and evaluate the situation.

Since there weren't any draws out there, it couldn't be a semibluff. My opponent raised before the flop from early position and called a reraise, so he probably had a good or great hand. A pure bluff wouldn't make much sense here, since there was almost 40,000 in the pot and I needed to call only 9,000 more to continue. I would be almost dead against the most likely hands for him to have, such as A-Q, 8-8, or K-K. If I folded, even though I'd be much worse off than when the hand started, I'd still have 15 big blinds left. That would be more than enough to continue on and do some damage.

Instead of thinking about all of these things, I just acted. I snap-called the all-in bet and my eyes bugged out of my head when I saw that my opponent had 6-3. 6-3? What!? I've been surprised to see certain hands be turned over against me more times than I can count, but this one was a real shocker. Luckily, there was still the turn and the river to come, and I had outs. The turn was an 8, but happily, a king came on the river and I breathed a great sigh of relief. Even though I got the chips, and it worked out for me, I was disappointed with how I'd played the hand.

Of course, my poor play doesn't hold a candle to the lack of thought my opponent exhibited. We all get impatient from time to time, and after several rounds of bad cards, it can be tempting to get in there with anything and plow your way through no matter what. But if my opponent had stopped at any point for just five seconds and thought, "Do I really want to do this?" he probably would have folded. Consequently, he would have saved his tournament life.

It's easy to react without thinking, especially when multitabling. We all do it from time to time. That's why it's important to remind yourself - every time you sit down to play - that when the big hands and tough decisions come along, you must make sure to stop and think. It can be the key ingredient that separates you from your unthinking opponents, and it's what will often separate them from their money.

Matt Lessinger is the author of The Book of Bluffs: How to Bluff and Win at Poker, available everywhere. You can find other articles of his at www.CardPlayer.com.