Poker News

Ashley Adams

The balk in baseball is an illegal move by the pitcher, potentially causing runners to move prematurely, thinking the pitcher is actually throwing the ball to home. Runners are awarded a base and the motion is declared “no pitch.” There are balks in poker as well. The good poker player needs to protect himself from them. It is also possible to take advantage of your opponents’ poker balks.

Here are three examples of balks in poker. A player who has yet to act, reaches for his chips, grabs some, and holds his handful of chips out over his cards. A player taps the table, indicating that he is checking, but before it is his turn to do so. A player enthusiastically pushes out a bet on fifth street though his opponent is high on board.

In baseball, it doesn’t matter why the pitcher is balking. It is illegal no matter what his intentions, and the remedy is the same. But in poker, you must first decide why the player is balking. You must decide whether he is acting and then you must act accordingly. Here are some methods of determining whether your opponent is deliberately or unintentionally balking-and what you can do about it.

The chip grab is often a ploy. The player wants to inhibit your bet by making you think he is so strong that he is ready to bet. It’s a simpleton’s ploy, to be sure. Few experienced players are swayed by it. But if you spot a player who does this, you can take advantage of it by betting into his apparent weakness-expecting him to fold or maybe offer a weak call. You can then bet the next street and, if he hasn’t visibly improved, expect him to fold. Betting outof turn is a tough one to figure out. Actors and straightforward players both do this from time to time. I have, however, noticed some patterns that help me decide whether or not my opponent is acting.

I’ve noticed that my opponents are more likely to be acting when they check out of turn. This is usually done to encourage opponents to check as well. It’s also sometimes a more drastic angle, when done in late position, trying to get the dealer to incorrectly assume that everyone has checked-thus dealing the next card without a bet being made. The good player needs to be alert for this-and assert himself quickly, lest the next round be dealt prematurely, depriving him of the opportunity to make a bet. He can also exploit this ploy by his opponent-betting into his out-of-turn check-since his checking opponent is likely to be on a thin drawing hand and may fold to a bet.

On the other hand, I’ve noticed many inexperienced or otherwise inattentive players bet out of turn. Poor players are often so wrapped up in their own hands that they fail to recognize that they are not high on board-as they enthusiastically push their money into the pot. You can take advantage of this as well if you are loaded. Though the check-raise shouldn’t normally be tried against a poor player because his action is not predicable,in a situation like this you can check, with the intention of check-raising a very powerful hand into an opponent who balks by betting out of turn, since you’re assured that your opponent will initiate the betting.

Even excellent pitches balk from time to time. You, the good poker player, can minimize your balks simply by getting into the habit of pausing for a couple of seconds before you act. This brief hesitation will not only cut down on your balks, by giving you a moment to inhibit a mistaken bet or check out of turn, it may well induce your poor opponents to balk themselves.

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