How To Stack A Fish

People often ask me questions like, “How much can I win per hour in a $2-$5 game?” There’s no good answer. It obviously depends on how good you are. But just as much it depends on how many fish are in the game and how much money they have.

I can estimate my win rate in a game by counting how much money at the table is controlled by the fish. After a few hands I usually have an idea who the real live ones are in a game. They play nearly every hand. They like to limp in and call raises. And they usually appear as if they came to Vegas for something besides sitting hours on end at the poker table.

I look at these players and then add up all the money controlled by them. My win rate in the game is roughly proportional to this amount of money. A game with four fish having $500 stacks and another game with two fish each holding $1,000 would therefore be roughly equally profitable (though the game with the four shorter-stacked fish is definitely a bit better because the money is divided among fewer “good” players), while either game would be roughly twice as profitable as one with only $1,000 in “fish money.”
It stands to reason, then, that if I want to maximize my wins, I need to stack the fish. With no further ado, here is my recipe for doing that.

Step 1. Build pots preflop and isolate the fish if possible.

When fish limp in preflop, you want to raise them. This is particularly true when you have position, and it’s even more true if raising will get you heads-up or three-handed to the flop with the fish. I would look to raise with most hands I would play. Hands like K-8 suited, J-9 suited, pocket sixes, and so forth. Rarely would I merely limp behind a fish.

Why am I building pots preflop before I have a hand? The goal is mostly to raise the stakes. In a $2-$5 game, if I limp the button behind a limper, I’m probably playing a $20 pot four-handed. If I raise to $25 preflop I’m playing a $57 pot heads-up or a $77 or $80 pot three-handed. The postflop bets are bigger in the bigger pot. Since I can expect the fish to make bad bets postflop, I want these bets to be bigger because the bigger they are, the more money I’ll make.

There are a few exceptions. If the fish is short-stacked (i.e., $200 or less in a $2-$5 game) then building a large pot preflop with marginal hands cuts your edge. After raising preflop you still want to have enough money behind to make comfortable bets on all three postflop streets. If you won’t, then raise only strong preflop hands.

Also if the fish is so unbelievably horrible that he’ll stack off frequently in a limped pot then raising preflop with marginal hands again might cut your edge.

But in spite of the exceptions, it usually pays to raise the fish. Build pots with position. It will help you get the money.

Step 2. Look for the overbet.

After you’ve build a pot preflop, the postflop overbet is the single most powerful tool you have to stack a fish. An overbet is a bet bigger than the pot.

Theoretically speaking, if your opponent overbets, you need to tighten up your calling range. But fish generally don’t do that. They don’t read hands well, and they often employ fuzzy thinking when they make their calling decisions.

If you make your flush on the river, go for it. Make a massive overbet. Good players will know not to call, but fish will call with straights, sets, two pair, even just top pair. If you have a set on an ace-high board, again make big bets. A fish with an ace may well come along for the ride.

You can be shameless about it. Maybe every decent player at the table will know what you have, but the fish won’t, and that’s what matters.

Step 3. Avoid coin flips with the fish.

It feels weird for me to advocate avoiding coin flips because most students of the game are too quick to fold rather than gamble in a decent spot. But you want to avoid gambling too much with the fish. Why?

Fish often don’t rebuy if they bust. If you bust a fish out, the game immediately becomes less profitable. Obviously the goal is to bust the fish, but you want to do it when you have an edge, not when you’re flipping.

Specifically what do I mean? Say you might normally raise and get it in with a flush draw in a certain situation. The play relies on fold equity to be profitable, because you expect to be an underdog if all the money goes in.

Be more inclined to play the draw slow against the fish. Why? First, the bluff will work less often against a fish than against a “normal” player. Second, you’ll get a chance to overbet if you make your hand. And finally, often your edge on such a play is small while you’ll frequently be playing for stacks. You’re better off not giving the fish a decent gamble and instead waiting for a spot to fleece him with an overbet.

Step 4. Be a nice, upbeat person.

You don’t have to be the life of the party at the table. But you should participate in table chat some and try to enjoy yourself. In general most fish know they’re probably going to leave the table broke. But they will try hard not to lose their last dollar to a jerk.

It’s easy. Don’t berate people. Don’t be a stickler for the rules just “on principle.” Don’t ignore people when they talk to you unless you’re in a hand. Don’t shoot angles. Don’t take exception with the dealer unless it’s really, truly necessary (for example, the dealer makes a series of egregious, negligent mistakes.)

You can even wear a hoodie and sunglasses and listen to your iPod if you like. Just take the headphones off once in a while and laugh at a joke. If you’re pleasant to your fellow players, the fish will like you better, and they’ll be more likely to pay off your big hands.

Final Thoughts

Fish are not stupid. They just play poker for different reasons than you do. They want to splash some money around and maybe catch a big score every once in a while. And they want friendly opponents.

Give fish respect. Then build pots preflop, control the pot postflop in marginal situations, and go for the big overbet when you know you have the edge. Follow this recipe, and you’ll give yourself the best shot at stacking the fish.

Ed’s brand new book, Reading Hands At No-Limit Hold’em, is available immediately for purchase at notedpokerauthority.com. Find him on Facebook at facebook.com/edmillerauthor and on Twitter @EdMillerPoker.