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he Guardian Poker Column |
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Victoria
Coren |
Friday January 20, 2006
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How to play poker (How to play has been running from issue 16) |
A sceptical reader from Glamorgan has emailed to ask: "How
can anybody with any sense bet real money in a card game where skill is minimal
and sheer luck is at a premium? It's not unusual for a player who starts with a
nothing hand to beat a player with a good hand, simply because the common cards
go his way."
This follows neatly from what I was explaining last week
about "fast structures" in televised poker tournaments. It is these structures
(small chip stacks and big blinds, encouraging players to go "all in" before
the flop) that have given poker a reputation as a game where "sheer luck is at
a premium". And not just on TV - the craze for tournament poker has seen small
competitions springing up around the country, which are conducted at fast
speeds because the organisers don't want people cluttering up their club or
casino (or home) for too many hours.
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When two players are all in before the flop,
with five communal cards to come, no single hand is a huge favourite over
another. In a cash game or slowly structured tournament, a professional would
rarely commit all his chips at this stage. When three or four communal cards
have come down, a good player is much better placed to consider the strength of
his hand, and how likely he is to win. He will also consider the history of the
betting, and what his opponent might therefore be holding. He will think about
what types of hands this opponent likes to play. He will work out whether he
can make somebody put the best hand down, or pay more money with the worst
hand. And he will bet an amount which is finely calculated to achieve one of
these objectives.
Luck is still a factor, of course. But, in a structure
that gives space for "hand narrative" to develop, there is skilful calculation.
If you want to play real and thoughtful poker, look for slow structures or cash
games. Conversely, if you find yourself playing against people who are better
than you, just stick it all in before the flop, and take their edge
away.
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