Poker News

James McKenna, Ph.D.

I’ve noticed that a lot of players will mix up bluffs with tells. While all bluffs may have their own tell, all tells are not a bluff. While it’s easier to bluff a tight player, there are ways to insure that players will not attempt to bluff you other than being too loose to bluff. Early commitment is one of these ways. Position, as most players know, is another weapon to consider when distinguishing a bluff from a tell. However, until recently, I never thought of using the position of the “Big Blind” as a place to ward off bluffs. For example, I have a friend who routinely plays his big blind in the dark. He even announces it to let people know he hasn’t looked at his hole cards. If a player in late position raises the bet, he still will call without looking. He generally wants to see the flop before he will look at his hole cards. I asked him how he did with this strategy and why he did it. He said that he did fairly well and, “It usually keeps players from needlessly attacking my blind. They know that I will call. So, it cuts down on bluffs.” Well, does it really? I asked, “What if there is a re-raise?” He said, “Then I’d look before I’d call.” It’s an interesting move. So, I experimented with it to see how it felt. I wouldn’t recommend this in high limit games. However, in low limit games, it might have some merit. So, when I was the big blind, I played it in the dark. There was a raise and that cost me $6 to see the flop in a $3–$6 game. I thought that this is not like me and it was scary being that loose.

Then the flop came:

Everyone checked, so I did too-still not knowing what my hole cards were. Then, on the turn came a Queen of spades and a comfortable rainbow flop. When someone bet the Queen, I then looked at my hole cards. The board looked like this and everyone folded to me:

I could hardly believe my eyes. I had pocket Kings and I was head to head with at least a pair of Queens. Needless to say, I held my breath thinking my opponent might have two pair. And, I was relieved that I could stay. Anything else and I would have folded in a heart beat. When a “hold’em card” (a card that didn’t help anyone) came, I won the hand. Now I know what loose players feel when they out run good hands. I felt no shame. However, as I told my friend, I probably would have played my blind differently if I had looked at my hole cards. Since everyone checked, if I bet my pocket Kings, everyone would have probably folded and I would have ended up with the blinds.

So, not knowing what my hand was turned out better for me. If I would have set a trap and checked, the Queen would have bet on the turn and I would have raised it to twobets. Probably, I wouldn’t have won any more. The big advantage that I found in playing my big blind in the dark was that it notified people that I would defend my blinds without even looking.

Players generally bluff the opposite of what they want you to think. For instance, if a player has a strong hand, he or she may bluff by “showing weakness.” A check if often that sign of weakness. Or, if a player is on a stone-cold bluff, he or she may bet strong on garbage.

Let me know if you have ways that work to prevent people from bluffing you other than being so loose that players are afraid to attempt a bluff. By showing commitment, I don’t mean always calling a barking dog off the porch.

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