- Lesson: 7
Keep Your Toolbox Well Stocked
Chris Ferguson
May 2, 2005
I often get asked about my playing style. Rather than answer the
question myself, I'm more interested in what my opponents say. And I've
heard it all: "You're too tight." "You're too loose." "You're tight aggressive."
"You're too passive."
- Actually, I never hear that last one, but I've heard all the others, which
makes me believe I must be doing something right. Loose, tight,
aggressive - my style is that I'm all of the above, depending upon the
circumstances.
- One essential element of playing winning poker is forcing your
opponents to make difficult decisions. That's why raising is almost always
better than calling - because it forces an extra decision on your opponents.
To take this a step further - you'll win more money by forcing your
opponents to make decisions when they are out of their comfort zones.
Here are some examples:
Your opponent is on your left, playing too tight before the flop. You want to
punish him for this. The best way to do that is to raise more often, and be
more aggressive. Either you end up stealing a lot of blinds, or he adjusts
his play.
If you get the blinds? Great! If he adjusts? Better! It's the best outcome
you can hope for. If he starts playing more hands pre-flop, you now have a
real edge. Anytime your opponent changes his pre-flop playing style, he's
going to run into trouble later in the hand. A guy who usually plays nothing
but very strong hands isn't going to know what to do with weaker holdings
on the turn and river.
If a tight opponent raises in front of you, wait for a stronger hand to call.
By playing tight when you are acting behind your opponent, you avoid
losing money to his stronger hands. Again, if your opponent catches on,
you're forcing him to play more hands up front, and you can outplay him
after the flop.
What about the guy who plays too many hands? If you're acting first, you
want better starting hands than normal. Most of the value of a marginal
hand comes from the chance that your opponent will fold immediately. If
your opponent has never seen suited cards he doesn't like, the value of
your marginal hand decreases because it's unlikely he's going to lay his
hand down. He may win more pots preflop, but this is more than offset by
the extra money you're going to make when you do see a flop with your
stronger hands.
If a loose opponent raises you, you can call -- or even raise -- with
weaker hands, and raise with hands you'd ordinarily just call with. By taking
control of the hand, you can pick up more pots later. Again, you are daring
him to change his style. If he doesn't, you're getting the best of it. If he does,
he's a fish out of water, prone to making mistakes later in the hand.
It's important to have a lot of tools in your arsenal. First, it's helpful in
being able to adjust to your opponents and force them out of their comfort
zones. Additionally, it will enable you to take advantage of your own table
image when you have already been labeled as a tight or loose player, and
to adjust accordingly.
For example, Gus Hansen and Phil Ivey are known as extremely
aggressive players. The only way they have been able to survive with that
image is by being able to adjust to different opponents and to slow down
occasionally, when appropriate. I have seen this happen sometimes just
before an opponent starts reacting to their aggression. They are somehow
able to sense what is happening, and change their games accordingly.
Other times, they won't adjust much, and force their opponents to try and
beat them at an unfamiliar game.
To best take advantage of this, pay attention! To everything. All the time.
Not just when you're in the hand, but especially when you're not in the
hand. Every hand your opponent plays gives you valuable information
about how he thinks, and how he's likely to play hands in the future.
If there's an expert at your table, watch how he plays. See what hands he
expects to work, think about how he plays them, then try incorporating it
yourself. See how he pushes weaker players out of their comfort zone.
Paying attention is one of the best ways to learn, and a great way to move
up the poker food chain.
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