Sunday, September 10, 2006
My favorite poker article
Here's my favorite post in the 2+2 forums. It's by Gigabet and he's had a few other posts on the forum that's highly +EV.
"Bad beats are no longer bad beats, they are just the cards coming out randomly, evening themselves out over time. What is really important is learning the thousands of languages that different people speak through their actions at the table. Believe me, it isn't some spiritual science, it is listening and learning without prejudice." - Gigabet
I think this is the most valuable piece of poker advice that I've ever read. At its very core, poker is a game of information. In the long run, the biggest winners in poker are those that not only are able to ignore the noise and collect useful information, but more importantly, correctly use the information to guide their decision making. The poker table is a treasure trove of information. Every time a person bets, every time he hesitates, every time he folds, he is telling us something. The trick then is to not only pay attention, but also try to make sense of what they are "saying" to us. It is undoubtedly a huge burden on our limited cognitive resources to "listen" to the other players and consequently, many poker players fall back on stereotypes. Very often, these stereotypes are sufficient to allow a poker player to be a winning one but to become a better player, one has to abandon these stereotypes and start "listening". It is tough work, but it will pay off.
The weekend after I read Gigabet's post, I went for my usual weekend session at the casino. Previously, I understood the language of detecting weakness in your opponent as "weak means strong and strong means weak". After all, that's what the poker books and pros tell us, so we should do fine by following this stereotype. For that session however, I decided to start from scratch. I observed every single player as they bet, folded, checked and raised. It was a tiring affair having to do this and at the same time, pay attention to how you play your cards.
After a few hours, I was able to verify for myself that most of the time, weak does mean strong and vice-versa. However, I realized that a better way of interpreting other players is to seek out deviations from the norm. After about 3-4 rounds, I was able to learn how players placed their chips when they were strong, weak or drawing. A lot of times, when a person is bluffing, they are not acting strong, but rather, acting in a way that is different from when they are NOT bluffing. To a person who relies on stereotypes, both actions look similarly strong or weak and thus, he does not understand what his opponent is "saying" to him. Once you are able to learn your opponents language, poker is then easy. Since that session, I've been able to learn the languages of many of my opponents and on numerous occasions, the cards that I hold are irrelevant. I'm no longer playing the game per se, but rather, the situation.
"Bad beats are no longer bad beats, they are just the cards coming out randomly, evening themselves out over time. What is really important is learning the thousands of languages that different people speak through their actions at the table. Believe me, it isn't some spiritual science, it is listening and learning without prejudice." - Gigabet
I think this is the most valuable piece of poker advice that I've ever read. At its very core, poker is a game of information. In the long run, the biggest winners in poker are those that not only are able to ignore the noise and collect useful information, but more importantly, correctly use the information to guide their decision making. The poker table is a treasure trove of information. Every time a person bets, every time he hesitates, every time he folds, he is telling us something. The trick then is to not only pay attention, but also try to make sense of what they are "saying" to us. It is undoubtedly a huge burden on our limited cognitive resources to "listen" to the other players and consequently, many poker players fall back on stereotypes. Very often, these stereotypes are sufficient to allow a poker player to be a winning one but to become a better player, one has to abandon these stereotypes and start "listening". It is tough work, but it will pay off.
The weekend after I read Gigabet's post, I went for my usual weekend session at the casino. Previously, I understood the language of detecting weakness in your opponent as "weak means strong and strong means weak". After all, that's what the poker books and pros tell us, so we should do fine by following this stereotype. For that session however, I decided to start from scratch. I observed every single player as they bet, folded, checked and raised. It was a tiring affair having to do this and at the same time, pay attention to how you play your cards.
After a few hours, I was able to verify for myself that most of the time, weak does mean strong and vice-versa. However, I realized that a better way of interpreting other players is to seek out deviations from the norm. After about 3-4 rounds, I was able to learn how players placed their chips when they were strong, weak or drawing. A lot of times, when a person is bluffing, they are not acting strong, but rather, acting in a way that is different from when they are NOT bluffing. To a person who relies on stereotypes, both actions look similarly strong or weak and thus, he does not understand what his opponent is "saying" to him. Once you are able to learn your opponents language, poker is then easy. Since that session, I've been able to learn the languages of many of my opponents and on numerous occasions, the cards that I hold are irrelevant. I'm no longer playing the game per se, but rather, the situation.
# posted by SmuCox @ 10:14 PM 
