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 he Guardian G2 Poker Column |
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| Victoria
Coren |
| Monday July 9,
2007 |
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There is a lot of talk, in these days of mass recreational poker,
about the difficulty of playing against "donkeys". That complaint is loud here
at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, where serious players whinge that
hopeful newcomers are impossible to beat "because they don't know how to pass".
I may have said something similar myself, when I was knocked out of the
$5,000 six-handed Holdem tournament in 64th place by a man who (when the blinds
were big, the play intense and we were already in the money) limped under the
gun with a weak K9 that he refused to fold on a rag flop. |
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But the truth is, a serious player should
always adjust his or her game to the field. Phil Hellmuth, who has won his
record-breaking 11th bracelet at this series, is brilliant at playing "idiots".
His strategy is to keep the pots small, with a series of little probing bets,
and make sure that his opponent commits to the pot first. Of course, when this
happens, it helps that Hellmuth is a great reader of people.
Another
tactic impressed me in one of the $1,500 Holdem events. A strong European
player found himself in a pot holding seven high, against an opponent on an
obvious flush draw. Standard practice would be to move in on the turn, taking
the opponent off the draw. But our man feared that his opponent did not
understand "pot odds", might well call an all-in on the turn and end up winning
with ace high. So the European flat-called the turn bet with no hand at all,
and (when the flush failed to hit) moved in on the river instead. His opponent
passed in disgust, and I wished I had played my $5,000 Holdem hand the same
way.
Your can read more byAnthony Holden at his website
www.biggerdeal.com |
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