Poker Guru

There are a number of ways on how to win in Poker and its many variations like Omaha and 5 card stud. One way is thru deception thru slow playing. Slow playing is also called in the circuit as sandbagging or trapping. This is a deceptive play in the card game that can be viewed as the opposite of bluffing. In bluffing, the player tends to bet aggressively even though the cards at hand are weak. But in this kind of bluffing, the player is betting weakly or passively but the player has strong cards in his hands.

An example of this play is called the flat call. And why do players opt for this kind of strategy in Poker Games? Well the objective of this kind of play on tables is to effectively lure the opponents into the pot who might want to fold or to raise. A play like this will also push the opposing players to bet more strongly that they would if the player have played or moved aggressively on the table.

In order for the slow play to be truly efficient on poker rooms, the play has to meet certain conditions. One condition that was noted by David Sklansky is that for a slow play to fast-track a win on the table, the player must have a very strong hand. Also the free card or the cheap card that the players allow to be used by the opposing player should have good possibilities of making the second best-hand. And remember as well that the very same card made available to the opposing player should give the opposing player less chance of having a better hand.

Also in order for slow playing to be effective, the player must also believe that he will drive out opponents by showing aggression and can win the bigger pot if the opponents stay in the pot. And one more important note to remember is this; the pot must not yet be very large. The slow playing kind of deception simply means that you allow your opponent to think that you have a weak hand, but the truth of the matter is what you hold in your hand is a powerhouse. Say for example that you have flopped a full house. Now there is no longer the need to scare the other players in the Poker Room. It is suggested that you wait for the turn or even the river to jam the pot with bets and then raises.

Now you should slow play if these two conditions are met again. Now if you hold the whopper, then there is almost no chance of someone drawing on you and you will only get the action if some of the cards on the table come out so as to improve the opponent’s hands but not so much that they can automatically beat the value of the card that you are holding. The important thing is to make use of the right strategy when you compete on regular online poker rooms, or when you compete on high stakes Poker Tournaments.