Poker and the Art of Bluffing
"If a poker players lips are moving, he or she is probably lying!" That’s a poker saying that lives on. That’s because the nature of poker is to hide and not let your opponents know either how bad or how good your hands are. Thus, the saying, "Bet ‘em like you got ‘em!” also lives on. This lesson will focus on who, what, and when to get the most out of bluffing. However, there’s a time and place to succeed in bluffing, and as a beginner to poker you should tread very carefully – otherwise you might get burnt!
The Verb of Bluffing
If you are not bluffing and not make moves on other players, you are not playing people. Poker is more of a people game. Bluffing is what I call the "pro-active" part of the game. In basketball there are moves like faking out opponents. A basketball player may jog to the left and then suddenly dribble around a guard to lay up a shot. Then, there’s a boxer who will fake a left jab to land a right cross. All sports have this feature. It’s part of the action of misleading to gain an advantage. Only difference is that it’s called bluffing in poker. Watch any baseball game and before you know it the coach is calling for the batter to fake a bunt. This may get players to move in while the batter squares off and takes a full swing.
All Bluffing is Pretending
The common denominator of all bluffing in poker is pretending. By pretending to be a better player, or have a better hand, the bluffer is acting. These acts are only good pretends, if the bluffer is congruent. Very much like a person who is frowning, looking sad and saying, "I feel good". Or, a person who says something positive, like, "I like you", while shaking her head "no". These are incongruent acts that contradict the pretending to feel good or to like someone. The same is true in poker – the bluffing must be congruent to be successful. For example, a player pretends to be strong, raises your bet, yet stares at the pot and then at you. On the one hand, he is pretending to have a good hand – but, he’s acting like he’s scared you might call. Sometimes, with veteran players, these incongruent acts are part of their bluff. So, beware of "old soldiers" who pretend.
Bluffing Fundamentals
Aside from stone cold bluffs, let’s look at some of the main types of bluffs you will encounter when playing poker, starting with semi bluffing:
Semi Bluffing
There’s a saying I use that goes, "Good bluffers are hard to find". That’s mostly because their bluffs are what I call, "semi-bluffs". They have a good hand that could improve and they are acting like they already have the nuts. That’s because a bluff is only as successful as to how much your opponent is surprised when you show your hand. Of course, you are not likely to show it when you succeed in getting the better hand if you got an opponent to lay down their hand – unless, you are setting the table up for the next time you are not bluffing.
Reverse Bluffing
Betting with the best hand is seldom a bluff and, for that matter, there’s little need to bluff. However, a player will often bet rather than slow play the best hand as a "reverse-bluff". Betting pre-flop with hole cards like a pair of Aces or a "Big Slick" (Ace/ King) is not necessarily a reverse-bluff – it’s just buying some insurance. If you get a call you probably are still out front. Little pairs might fold. Another example of reverse-bluffing is betting with a strong hand rather than checking and then raising. A check/raise will give you away as soon as you raise. Instead, if you go ahead and bet, for example, trip Kings, people with a pair of Aces or two pair might put you on a bluff, never suspecting trip Kings, and therefore call, or even raise.
Trapping
Trapping is a special brand of bluffing. Setting a trap is designed to get players to call when the "trapper" has a better hand. It’s pretending to have a weak hand to induce a bet or a raise. For example, a player with trips starts to bet, stops and starts to check, then seems to reluctantly bet. Pretending, "Well, I’ve got a middle pair, but what the heck, I’ll bet it anyhow". This act is a bluff to get the top pair to bet. So, when the top pair bets, the bluff becomes a trap. Beware of such moves.
You Can’t Bluff a Fool
By "fool" I mean someone who plays so loose that he or she would call a barking dog off a porch. It’s not possible to bluff these people, so, save your bluffs for when they have a chance to work. This is wisdom that is handed down among poker players. Yet you will see many players trying to bluff someone who is certain to call. So, why even try?
It’s best to bluff very sparingly, particularly in low limit poker games and with beginners. Why? First of all, the cost of calling is not that much and secondly, new players don’t know enough about the game to know they might lose. If you are continually bluffing, your opponents will start calling your bluffs. You will also find more people willing to chase bad odds in low-limit games but not so in the higher-limit games. When the stakes are higher, players become more conservative and you won’t find as many fools. Although you might find someone acting like a fool – that’s usually a bluff. A bluff has much more a chance to work on conservative poker personality types.
I’ve often said in jest, "When I first started playing hold ‘em I did a lot better when I didn’t know how to play". I was hard to bluff. I stayed with garbage and called raises that would take miracles to win. Some of my early opponents can sadly remember those miracles that did come and how I would suck-out on the river. As a matter of fact, I was bluffing when I bet and didn’t know it. There were times when I’d bet on cards with poor odds of improving and more experienced players would fold, thinking I had more than I actually had. I might do that today. The difference would be that I know that I am bluffing and might do it when I am in a good position and I’m against a tight player who thinks I am being conservative. Sometimes part of a good bluff is acting like one doesn’t know better. It was easier doing that when I really didn’t know any better.
Don’t Bluff Too Much!
Earlier in this lesson it was said that if you are not bluffing and not make moves on other players, you are not playing people, and hence not playing poker. While this is true, you should remember that poker is not all about bluffing, and novice players often fall into the trap of bluffing far too much. Later on in the course we will fine tune the concept of bluffing and until you’re familiar with the other basic concepts of poker, and have some playing experience under your belt, you should avoid the temptations to bluff.
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