Make a Note ...

Hi. Come on in. I stopped at the Swedish deli and got some meatballs and Swedish rye – a different kind of meatball sandwich.

Make a note … Never try to bluff a man wearing a bow tie. I'll explain why at a later time.

Make a note … (No, I really mean it – make a note.) Most of your profit in poker comes from your opponents' mistakes. And most of your opponents' profits comes from your mistakes.

If you don't make any mistakes (unlikely) and your opponent doesn't make any mistakes (also unlikely), the fall of the cards, "luck," will determine the winner. But it's best not to rely on luck. It's better to cut down on or eliminate as many mistakes as possible.

As I stress to my poker students, remove from your mind the idea that the consistent winners in low- and medium-limit poker games are players with smooth moves and sophisticated strategies. "It ain't necessarily so." Solid poker is what gets the money at these limits – and the consistent winners are the players who make the fewest mistakes.

Make another note: It doesn't matter how well you can play; what matters is how well you do play.

Play solid poker as mistake-free as possible, and you will be a consistent winner.

Make a note … When you hear a poker player say, "I used to keep records of my wins and losses, but it became too much of a bother," this player is, at best, a break-even player. Writing down wins is a pleasure. Writing down losses is a drag. After a few losses, with even fewer wins, it becomes painful. So, they stop writing them down. How's your record-keeping?

Make a note … There is profit to be made in shorthanded play if you have a shorthanded strategy. A major point to consider when playing shorthanded (three or four total players) is that pairs go up in value, while drawing hands go down. That's because in a shorthanded game, you almost always have fewer opponents in each pot than in a full game, so you probably won't be getting the proper pot odds to draw to straights or flushes. Your knowledgeable opponents will adjust their play more heavily in favor of pairs, just as you should. Don't expect them to be playing drawing hands. Less astute players won't take the shorthandedness of the game into consideration and will play the same way they do in a full game.

Poker players disagree as to whether you should ante steal more often in shorthanded games. Those who say you should know that the much quicker pace of the game will eat up antes at a faster rate. Those who say you shouldn't point out that there is less money to steal because there are fewer antes. You are therefore risking the same size raise as when the game is full, but for a smaller return.

Under either condition, I want my ante steal to have a high probability of success. So, how often I attempt to steal depends on my opponents – specifically, their poker knowledge and their aggressiveness.

Knowledgeable players realize that most opponents will do more ante stealing in a shorthanded game, so they give less credence to a third-street raise as indicating strength. They are more likely to call, or even play back at you with a reraise.

Aggressive players become even more aggressive and will almost certainly play back at you. I have observed that the dynamics and the psychology of the game change when it's shorthanded. That's because shorthanded games almost always have fewer or no tight/conservative players in them. The tight players usually pick up their chips and leave when they see the game about to become shorthanded. They realize that the game is about to become much faster and much more aggressive. They don't like having to ante at a much faster rate, and they don't like calling all those third-street raises that are about to come. So, they go. If you stay, be ready for a much faster and more aggressive game.

Now, it's time for you to go, as I require a nap. Put some meatballs in your pocket and kill the light on your way out.

Editor's note: Roy West, author of the best-seller 7 Card Stud, the Complete Course in Winning (available from Card Player), is in his 18th year of giving his successful poker lessons to both tourists and locals. Ladies are welcome. Call 1-800-548-6177 Ext. 03.