Mind Over Poker

I often am asked by friends after they suffer a bad fate at the poker table if they played the hand correctly or if they just got unlucky. Rather than offer a trite answer, I really like to have the player who's asking the question examine his thought process throughout the hand and see if he can determine where his mistake occurred, if at all. I recently was asked about a situation that was perfect for such self-examination.

Let's set up the scenario. My friend Mr. A is playing in a small daily tournament at a casino in Switzerland. There are 35 players and starting chip stacks are 3,500. With 22 players remaining, the blinds are 300-600. My friend is in the big blind with 7,000 in chips, which is slightly above average. He has Q-10 offsuit. Everyone folds to the button, who has approximately 9,000. The button limps, the small blind calls, and Mr. A checks his option. So far, so good.

The flop comes Q-4-2 rainbow. The small blind checks and my friend bets 1,600. The button contemplates for about 30 seconds, then calls. The small blind folds. The turn is a 7. My friend bets 1,800, and after a fair amount of hesitation, the button calls again. The river brings an 8. Mr. A now checks, in obvious hope of seeing the button check, as well. The button moves all in and my friend calls. The button turns over pocket eights. He hit a set on the river to win the hand and eliminate Mr. A.

After e-mailing me this scenario, Mr. A wants to know my thoughts on the hand, so that he can learn and improve. This was my response:

Looking at the betting, you could have bet a bit less on the flop and a bit more on the turn. You made almost a pot-sized bet on the flop (1,600 into a 1,800 pot) and a much smaller-percentage bet on the turn (1,800 into a 5,000 pot). I'll ask you this question, though. You left yourself 3,000 after your turn bet. Why? If it was to get away from the hand if need be, you should have folded on the river. If you were committed to the hand no matter what - which certainly seems like the case here - you should have pushed all in on the turn, which would have been a 4,800 bet into a 5,000 pot. Hindsight is 20/20, and you most likely would have won the hand if you had pushed on the turn. You should ask yourself what your thought process was during this hand - what you were thinking and how you were thinking ahead. If you're committing yourself to the hand, use your chips to be the aggressor. It gives you two ways to win. You could chase the other guy out or have the best hand. If you call off all of your chips, the only way you win is if you have the best hand.

Mr. A appreciated the advice and commented that it really helped him reflect on his thought process and reinforced the notion that he needs to think ahead regarding all of the consequences of his actions. I was glad I could help, but it also got me thinking. I never am asked about a hand when a player wins, and I know there is plenty to be learned in winning hands, as well. Don't let winning a hand mask sloppy play. Be brutally honest and reflective about your play, win or lose.

David Apostolico is the author of several poker books, including Tournament Poker and The Art of War and Machiavellian Poker Strategy. You can contact him at [email protected].