Setting Up A Trap In Poker
Trapping a player successfully in poker generates one hell of a rush. In fact, the sensation is quite similar to what the hunter experiences when he makes his kill. Having done both, I just couldn’t tell you which is better if I had to pick. Well… a dead duck doesn’t earn me cold hard cash so I’d probably go with poker on this one! The purpose of this article is to teach you the how to successfully trap opponents in poker.
It’s funny that there is a parallel with duck hunting in terms of the reward you get after having trapped your pray in poker because there are in fact parallels to the whole process. You see, the duck hunter wakes up early in the morning, goes out to the pond, scans the area, sets up decoys and a hiding spot, calls the ducks and waits for the unsuspecting animals to land and take the lethal gun shot. Unfortunate perhaps, but in terms of the process, it’s identical to poker. All of you will agree there’s nothing unfortunate about making your kill and busting someone from a poker tournament with a great poker trap! There’s no pity for the weak in poker!
The first thing a poker player must do to successfully setup a trap, like the hunter, is to scan the environment. Some poker players are more susceptible to trapping than others. You need to study and identify you potential victims and what you want to learn is this: Who at this stable is an aggressive bluffer. The concept of a trap is simple: you want an opponent to attempt to steal the pot from you when you appear to be weak, but are in fact strong. Who’s likely to bet into you when you act weak? The tight passive conservative can’t even look at you without blushing guy, or the ego centric over the top aggressive guy?
The second thing our hunter friend did was to setup decoys, which would mislead his pray into a having a false sense of security in its choice to land and join the flock. Likewise, the poker trapper must also send out misdirecting signals. If you want your opponent that you are weak, you must act convincingly. There are generally three options, if they are available: Betting $0 by checking, calling a small bet, or making a weak “feeler” bet. In all cases, it appears as if you either have nothing, or are trying to get a sense of where you are in the hand. None of these messages indicate strength.
The last thing the hunter did before taking a shot was to call the ducks, which is in fact optional. Ducks flying over the decoy filled pond may choose to land simply from the sight, but some need an extra incentive and that’s where the duck call comes in. Likewise, our aggressive poker player may see the picture you painted very clearly and bet into you out of his own accord. But when you check and they check and things slow down, they need an incentive. Let their greed get the best of them by making the pot larger. Give them the incentive to bluff by making the potential rewards more attractive. There’s only one way to do this, and that’s by making a bet. There is a risk you’ll scare them away, but that’s OK. If they were just going to check back to you, it’s not like they were putting in more money in the pot anyway. By betting, you’re tempting them to go all in, which is what you want. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, just like the duck call. Happy hunting!
Trapping a player successfully in poker generates one hell of a rush. In fact, the sensation is quite similar to what the hunter experiences when he makes his kill. Having done both, I just couldn’t tell you which is better if I had to pick. Well… a dead duck doesn’t earn me cold hard cash so I’d probably go with poker on this one! The purpose of this article is to teach you the how to successfully trap opponents in poker.
It’s funny that there is a parallel with duck hunting in terms of the reward you get after having trapped your pray in poker because there are in fact parallels to the whole process. You see, the duck hunter wakes up early in the morning, goes out to the pond, scans the area, sets up decoys and a hiding spot, calls the ducks and waits for the unsuspecting animals to land and take the lethal gun shot. Unfortunate perhaps, but in terms of the process, it’s identical to poker. All of you will agree there’s nothing unfortunate about making your kill and busting someone from a poker tournament with a great poker trap! There’s no pity for the weak in poker!
The first thing a poker player must do to successfully setup a trap, like the hunter, is to scan the environment. Some poker players are more susceptible to trapping than others. You need to study and identify you potential victims and what you want to learn is this: Who at this stable is an aggressive bluffer. The concept of a trap is simple: you want an opponent to attempt to steal the pot from you when you appear to be weak, but are in fact strong. Who’s likely to bet into you when you act weak? The tight passive conservative can’t even look at you without blushing guy, or the ego centric over the top aggressive guy?
The second thing our hunter friend did was to setup decoys, which would mislead his pray into a having a false sense of security in its choice to land and join the flock. Likewise, the poker trapper must also send out misdirecting signals. If you want your opponent that you are weak, you must act convincingly. There are generally three options, if they are available: Betting $0 by checking, calling a small bet, or making a weak “feeler” bet. In all cases, it appears as if you either have nothing, or are trying to get a sense of where you are in the hand. None of these messages indicate strength.
The last thing the hunter did before taking a shot was to call the ducks, which is in fact optional. Ducks flying over the decoy filled pond may choose to land simply from the sight, but some need an extra incentive and that’s where the duck call comes in. Likewise, our aggressive poker player may see the picture you painted very clearly and bet into you out of his own accord. But when you check and they check and things slow down, they need an incentive. Let their greed get the best of them by making the pot larger. Give them the incentive to bluff by making the potential rewards more attractive. There’s only one way to do this, and that’s by making a bet. There is a risk you’ll scare them away, but that’s OK. If they were just going to check back to you, it’s not like they were putting in more money in the pot anyway. By betting, you’re tempting them to go all in, which is what you want. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, just like the duck call. Happy hunting!
jeezy said
am November 4 2009 @ 7:49 am
i used this strategy playing poker face on facebook and came out with a ipod touch. love that place.