ALL THE Aces

FILTHY HABITS

This weekend’s ‘PokerStars MegaStack London’ at the Hippodrome Casino is no place for sloppy play. Automatic, habitual (i.e. non-conscious) poker strategy behaviours can cost you money. For example, many Hold’em players reflexively put out a continuation bet on the flop, regardless of whether they hit or miss the flop. Fair enough, Cbetting is often profitable... but it’s not always the most profitable way to attack the pot. Press your inner pause button just long enough to think through why you are firing off a Cbet on this particular hand against this particular opponent. Make sure YOU are the one ‘driving the bus’ on all your decision making (not your habits) and decide what the most profitable action really is….

WAKEY WAKEY

…You might decide that this time it would be better to mix things up and make a delayed continuation bet on the turn, after checking or check-calling the flop out of position against a loose opportunist. Or you might find the balls to call all the way to the river against a player who will bet air at any pot where you show passivity, and then bet big to try to scare him off the pot. Or maybe you will recognise the scent of a fellow crafty fox in your opponent and decide that this time it will be more profitable to sidestep his trapping moves and check-fold out of it and look for a better spot elsewhere. The important thing is to be in conscious control, and not automatic or predictable!