Poker News

Tom ‘Time’ Leonard

As we continue down our road of discovery by examining various elements of our game to determine if our own inflated view of just how great we really are is indeed accurate, today let’s delve into the subject of slow playing a strong hand. Slow playing can be defined as checking and/or just calling an opponent’s bet when holding a strong hand with the intention of winning more money in the later rounds of betting. Why do players slow play a hand? Well, according to the definition, it would be to make more money than if they played the hand more aggressively and less deceptively. That is the only reason to slow play a hand. Unfortunately for some player’s bankrolls, that is not the only reason they slow play certain hands. Some players may well believe they are being strategically astute when, in fact, they seem to have trouble keeping their egos in check and play in this manner just for the thrill of trapping opponents and trying to impress the rest of the table with their poker prowess. Of course, when they slow play a vulnerable hand and wind up getting beaten, they moan and groan and blame everything from the Spiteful Poker Gods to the incredible luck of their opponent for this loss. They blame everybody and everything but the real culprit……….themselves. They shouldn’t have slow played a hand that could be run down!

Slow playing a hand is overrated in my opinion and should only be done on rare occasions Remember this…..it is always better to win a small pot than to lose a large one. Not just sometimes, always! For that reason, slow playing a hand that is not an outright monster and can be caught and beaten is usually a mistake Aside from the infrequent total monsters such as flopping quads or a straight flush, the most frequent hands that players will slow play are a set and top two pair. The only time it would be correct to slow play a set is if you have top set with a totally uncoordinated board without any straight or flush possibilities The flip side of this coin is if you flop bottom set with a board that is two suited or otherwise coordinated, it is a real mistake to slow play. You need to bet or raise to eliminate opponents so as to protect your hand as it is now very vulnerable.

Many times, even with the monsters that can’t be caught, you’re better off betting them to make more money. As in most of poker, it depends on the texture of the game. So, here we are again stressing the importance of understanding your opponents and their image of you. Certainly if you’re at a table of “rocks” that will fold at the first sign of danger, then slow playing may well be your best alternative. However, I can’t remember the last time I was sitting in a “rock garden”. Most middle limit Hold’em games are fairly aggressive these days. That being the case, as I stated earlier, slow playing is overrated. Our goal for today, is once again, not to play formula poker. Assess the texture of the game before making rote decisions that will not serve you as well as informed decisions. If you’re slow playing a hand in a game where ramming and jamming is the norm,you’re losing money, not making it. See you next “TIME”.

Filed under: Poker News