Using Your Chips as Weapons

How often have you walked away from a poker tournament wondering when the cards will break even and you will finally win? We all know that, over the long run, we’ll all end up with the exact same number of good hands and bad hands. So what is it that allows the same players to consistently amass more chips, run deeper, and win tournaments more often?

The answer is that these players are able to find spots to win pots with their chips, not their cards. They use their chips as weapons against their opponents. How many times have you found yourself in a battle against that opponent who is always betting and forcing you into tough decisions? Do you find that you have to fold a lot of hands to this opponent, even hands that have value? Do you think they always have a hand? The problem is that you know they sometimes have a hand in these spots and if you continue, you very well may have to put in all your chips to raise them or have to call another big bet from them on the next street if you make the call on this street.

I used to think that people folded too much because humans are inherently risk adverse. But the reality is that there are many spots in poker where it is proper to fold. When you are in the blinds preflop, you have to fold a lot. When you do see a flop from out of position and you miss, you have to fold a lot. The same is also true of your opponents when they are in the blinds or out of position after the flop.

As a result, when your opponents are playing reasonably, it can suddenly become correct to bet in a lot of spots without considering what cards you have. If you are in a position where you think you will only get called half the time by your opponents, why not bet half the pot? When you are betting half the pot, you are getting 2 to 1 on your money. So if you win 1 time in 3, you break even, if you win half the time, you show a tidy profit.

If you can win half of these pots just because your opponent folds, it does a lot of things for you. You show an immediate profit just from your opponent folding, plus:

You get to continue in the pot, with position, when your opponent just calls you. This means even when you have nothing; you can still improve and win the pot later at no cost. Maybe you hit your one over card and win with top pair. Maybe you turn a draw, check, and make a straight or flush on the river.

Sometimes you actually have a hand that you would have bet anyway. By betting at a higher rate, you will now get more action with your strong hands. This will add a significant amount to your overall profit.

Now, these bets are not going to work every time, and sometimes you are going to get raised. This will be a bad feeling. The good thing is, you can just fold and know that the bets are profitable because of all the times your opponents have to fold, not all the times they get to continue. All the money you bet, plus some, comes back to you from the pot when your opponent folds. So these really are extra benefits.

There are several factors that help you identify spots where you can use your chips as weapons. A good starting place is this: When you think about hands, try to think about how often it is natural for you to have to fold. When you are in the blinds and the button raises, do you fold a lot? When you defend the blinds and the preflop raiser makes a continuation bet, do you fold a lot?

You can expect to find detailed analysis of these types of situations on a regular basis in this column. I will explore how you can estimate how likely opponents are to fold in given situations and how you can use that to your advantage. Remember, poker isn’t just about the cards you have, it is also about the cards your opponents have. Those players who are able to win the pots where no one makes a good hand are the same players who amass more chips, run deeper, and win tournaments more often. ♠

Rep Porter, two-time WSOP bracelet winner, is a lead instructor at ThePokerAcademy.com