Young and Full of Play

Thirty years ago, when I was a punk kid, poker was an older man’s game. At 15, 17, and 21, I played against opponents who were 35-70, mostly. There were few books, and most of them weren’t very good. And, there was no Internet poker — and no computer learning programs! The game was illegal in most states, and games were hard to find. Good information and experience was hard to come by. Things sure have changed!

Nowadays, with online multitabling, you can play more hands in a month than the old-timers used to play in a decade. And the available information is fantastic. Great minds have studied the game and categorized the information in books and computer programs. It has created a lot of good young players with skill sets beyond their years. I’ve turned into a wily veteran, and I can’t help but be impressed by how much the kids in their 20s know.

It’s World Series of Poker time, and I’m in a $30-$60 limit hold’em game. Tom, a good young player from Arizona, sat behind a towering stack of chips immediately to my right; he was playing aggressively and running well. Several very loose players called preflop, and Tom tossed in a chip from the small blind. I peeked down to see the K K in the big blind, and raised. Everyone called, and we took the flop off six-handed.

The flop was a promising 9 6 4; no ace and no flush draws. Tom checked, and I bet; several players called, and Tom check-raised me. Being an aggressive player, Tom’s range of hands was wide: top pair, any straight draw and two-pair hands (I felt he would play all suited hands under these circumstances), and a set of sixes or fours. I also felt that he would have raised with wired nines preflop. I three-bet, knowing that I could be beat, hoping to fold the callers behind me. I didn’t want to give the callers a cheap card if my hand was good, as it was highly vulnerable. One player did fold, but the other two, both loose players, called, as did Tom.

The turn card was the 2. Tom checked, and I fired $60. Both loose players called, and Tom check-raised me. From the several hours that I had played with Tom, I knew certain things about him. He played fast in spots, but read hands well and adjusted well to the tendencies of his opponents. He knew that I was a solid player, and that I would play this particular situation — early position with loose callers — aggressively only if I held a hand. He had no reason to think I would fold; furthermore, I believed he knew that at least one of the loose players was going to call him. He read hands too well not to know that. Those facts indicated to me that he had a real hand, one that could beat the hand that I was representing, and actually holding. Tom wasn’t trying to buy the pot here, as he knew that it wasn’t for sale. He was trying to get more money in.

So, what now? The pot was laying me $990-$60, more than 16-1, and it was only going to get bigger. I was 22-1 to catch a king, but even then, I could still lose if he held 5-3 and that hand suited was in his range. That said, he also might have two pair, and I might be able to catch a card to beat that range if I’m not blocked by any of the other players. Blending all of the scenarios, I thought a call was close but favorable, considering the size of the pot. I called, as did both of the loose players.

The river brought the Q. I missed. Tom bet, and I tossed my hand into the muck. In large pots, you have to be very careful about folding substantial hands. You don’t have to be correct very often to make the call correct, and I don’t make a habit of making big laydowns in big pots. But in this case, the fact that I knew that Tom knew he would be called made a bluff virtually impossible. In these situations, you save a bet, and those saved bets can add up to a fine amount of money at the end of the year.

One of the loose players called, and Tom turned over the 5 3, having made the nut straight on the turn. I had been drawing dead. Some people might automatically think I made a mistake by calling the turn, but they are wrong. Yes, I was drawing dead, and had I known that, I obviously would have folded. But Tom was at the top of his range and happened to hold the only hand to which I was drawing dead. To the rest of his range, I would have been drawing live, and to most of his range, I would have had an overlay from the pot to draw.

As for Tom, I liked how he played. He read well, changed gears well, and possessed knowledge of many plays. I also very much liked the demeanor that he showed at the table. He played with class, showed humility and respect to his opponents, and made an effort to make the game pleasant. It’s a winning formula, both personally and professionally. That said, I’ve played only one session with him, and it was one in which he ran well. I have yet to see him faced with adversity — the true test of which young kids are going to make it in the poker world. But I get the impression that when the deck beats up on him, as it inevitably will, he will keep his head up and muscle through it.

Longtime poker pro and author Roy Cooke’s Card Player column has appeared since 1992. A successful Las Vegas real estate broker since 1990, his website is www.roycooke.com. Should you wish to inquire regarding real-estate matters — including purchase, sale, or mortgage — his phone number is (702) 396-6575. Roy’s longtime collaborator John Bond’s website is www.johnbondwriting.com. Find John and Roy on Facebook.