Readin’ ‘Em, Holdin’ ‘Em, and Foldin’ ‘Em!

“You’ve got to know when to hold’em, know when to fold’em,” as Kenny Rogers sang in “The Gambler.” But how do you know when to hold’em, and when to fold’em?

Want to massacre poker? You’ll need to learn how to read hands well and effectively adjust your strategies based on those reads. To do that, you need to focus on how your opponents are playing, and then design strategies to counter their tendencies, exploiting any weaknesses you can unearth.

Poker’s correct strategy changes drastically according to your opponents’ ranges of hands and tendencies. You play tight players differently than loose ones. Passive players require different strategies than aggressive players. Players who constantly check-raise should be played differently than players who seldom check-raise. Players who seldom bluff require different tactics than those who continuously bluff. Poker scenario variations are complex and nearly infinite. Possessing the skills to accurately read your opponents’ hand ranges will make your decisions appreciably better.

Many players mistakenly “put” an opponent(s) on a specific hand. For example, if an opponent raises preflop, they “put” him on A-K and base their strategy as if he could only hold A-K. Some read hands in that manner to justify playing their hand. Psychologically, they want to play, and they design a logical thought to rationalize it. Others just think it is the right way to read hands.

But would their opponent raise with other hands? Obviously so, and the hand-reader that “puts” his opponents on a specific hand rather than putting them on a hand range will likely misplay his hand when his opponents hold alternate hands that are included in their raising range.

A number of players read hands by assuming their opponents think like they do — but they don’t. The range of thinking in poker is also infinite, and no two people think exactly alike. Developing into a good hand-reader requires that you acquire the knowledge of how your opponents think and react emotionally to events.

Paying attention to your opponents (whether you are in or out of the pot), and running both their thinking and emotions through your mind after every pot will develop increased awareness and data to base your poker decisions on. It’s very important to keep in mind the emotions of your opponents and how those emotions affect their thinking. People change their mindsets based on their emotions — sometimes radically — and emotions can run wild at the poker table. Additionally, it is important not to be fooled by acts people put on. Base your thinking on what is real, their unfeigned actions, not what opponents want you to believe they have. Are they acting loose and playing tight? Did they make a few wild plays and then change gears? It’s important to note the quality of the hands played, not just the quantity. Cards can make any player’s image appear different than it is.

When reading hands, assign your opponents a range of hands that they would make the current play with, adjusting for their tendencies. Some players have wide ranges, some have tight ones. Unemotional players with consistent strategies and narrow ranges are much easier to read than loose-aggressive cannons who play emotionally. It’s important to consider whether the opponent you are reading makes his decisions based on logic, superstition, or emotion — or some combination of those factors.

Another very important factor is to determine if they will play you differently than other opponents, and if so, why? How do they perceive you? Do they think you’re a donkey and look to involve themselves in hands with you, or are they scared of you? Do they think you bluff a lot? Do they think you’re a nit and only bet the nuts? What plays achieve a higher expectation based on your opponents’ thinking?

Base your assessment of each opponent’s ranges on a logical deduction about whether this opponent is playing abnormally for any reason. Does he read the situation as one in which a non-standard play might be effective? Are emotions controlling his thinking? For example, some players play the next hand looser after winning one, while some play the next looser after losing. Some play it tighter. Learn each opponent’s idiosyncrasies.

Also, think about how that opponent would interpret the information available to him. To do so, you need to identify how he thinks. For example, does he like attacking tight blinds? Is he likely to think a bluff might work in the current situation? Does he frequently utilize deception plays? How might he play the current situation abnormally? You need to assess all of the possibilities and probabilities into your current analysis.

If more than one action has taken place, which hands are consistent with all his actions? Analyze your opponent’s action going both forwards and backwards. By that I mean start from the current point of decision, determine a range and work backwards to see if any of the hands from your previous assessment of his range are consistent with what he just did. Also, run it from the start of the hand to the current point of decision. Which hands provide the best fit? Sometimes you can narrow your opponent’s range into one specific hand. Sometimes when I analyze an opponent’s range of actions, I find no hand congruent with all of his actions. Such situations raise my suspicions, and I’m more likely to pay off those spots.

Understand that reading hands is not an exact science, and don’t beat yourself up if you misread a situation. As long as you can attach logical reasoning to your thoughts and you made a good effort to analyze the situation, just move on and play the next hand well. Losing confidence in your reads can turn a bad run into a compounding nightmare.

Furthermore, don’t outthink yourself, and don’t think in absolutes. Put your opponents on ranges and analyze what the best play is based on all of those ranges and the odds of each individual portion of those ranges. Learn how hands play against each other, blend the expectation of all plausible scenarios, and determine what your best play is. Don’t make it too complex, and don’t expect to be perfect. Best-guess estimates are the norm. Your estimate will become more accurate as you continually calculate these equations.

If you want to play poker well, you need to become an expert at reading hands, because when the dealin’ is done and you’re countin’ your money, you’re going to have a lot less of it if you don’t! ♠

Roy Cooke played poker professionally for 16 years prior to becoming a successful Las Vegas Real Estate broker/salesman in 1989. Should you wish to obtain any information about Real Estate matters — including purchase, sale, or mortgage — his office number is 702-396-6575, and his e-mail address is [email protected]. His website is www.roycooke.com. You can also find him on Facebook!