To slow play or NOT to slow play...
That IS the question. And what then, is the answer.
My uncle who plays professionaly told me early of NL, "this is a trapping game". He also told me later, "I slow play all my winning hands, which is more risky but far more profitable".
To the point, my question is. Sometimes its just glaringly obvious you should slow play a hand like when you hit the nut flush on the flop, or when you hit a full house on the flop, and so on. But there are so many more hands where it is just a giant grey area for me. I tend to be a VERY cautious player, and I often find myself check raising LARGE on the flop. Like I intend to slow play the hand but once I see all the callers the gears in my head start turning, and Im afraid of somebody making a HIGHER full house on me, and things of that nature. How valid are those fears, and should I be playing the odds and slowplaying all those monster hands , and averaging out over time not worrying about the odd beat ?
Thoughts on when and how and why you slow play are apreciated.
Thanks !
Re: To slow play or NOT to slow play...
Quote:
Originally Posted by dreamover
My uncle who plays professionaly told me early of NL, "this is a trapping game". He also told me later, "I slow play all my winning hands, which is more risky but far more profitable".
Online/Offline?
Stakes? Effective stack size?
For the most part, people call too much and playing fast is more often than not the way to go as you win the max when they have a hand and mitigate the risk of being sucked out on and paying off big.
Many opponents are very transparent with bet sizes, small bets with weak hands, value bets (with slow play mixed in) for strong hands, over-bets are often bluffs (how can you call that?!?!?!) Throw in the calling reflex, paranoia, mistrust and lack of tells online and just pushing with the nuts is a pretty darn good line, more often the best line than you would think.
For a long time, I would just auto-push hands like T9s on a Js8c2s board. I got called A LOT. Now I often push JJ/88/22 here too and get called A LOT. Contrast this to slow playing and having a straight or flush card hit. You gave up value on the flop and ended up in a difficult spot on the turn. Another part of NLHE is avoiding difficult spots. Sure, great players find a way to get the most of them, but the best players avoid them when a better option is available.
Consider the amount of mony in the pot and amount of money behind. In a small pot, you have less to risk by slow playing, but it's hard to win a lot if you don't build something. In a healthy pot with little money behind, skipping streets is fine because it's easy enough to get it in on the next street. In a healthy pot with lots of money behind, playing fast is often best to mitigate the suck-out cost, get maxium value and getting a hand drawing live (as few as 2-4 outs) to fold isn't too terrible.
Finally, consider that many players make dubious calls for lots of money on a medium-strong draw. If you slow play, you fail to get money in when the other guy is willing to pay.
Re: To slow play or NOT to slow play...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fnord
Quote:
Originally Posted by dreamover
My uncle who plays professionaly told me early of NL, "this is a trapping game". He also told me later, "I slow play all my winning hands, which is more risky but far more profitable".
Online/Offline?
Stakes? Effective stack size?
For the most part, people call too much and playing fast is more often than not the way to go as you win the max when they have a hand and mitigate the risk of being sucked out on and paying off big.
Many opponents are very transparent with bet sizes, small bets with weak hands, value bets (with slow play mixed in) for strong hands, over-bets are often bluffs (how can you call that?!?!?!) Throw in the calling reflex, paranoia, mistrust and lack of tells online and just pushing with the nuts is a pretty darn good line, more often the best line than you would think.
For a long time, I would just auto-push hands like T9s on a Js8c2s board. I got called A LOT. Now I often push JJ/88/22 here too and get called A LOT. Contrast this to slow playing and having a straight or flush card hit. You gave up value on the flop and ended up in a difficult spot on the turn. Another part of NLHE is avoiding difficult spots. Sure, great players find a way to get the most of them, but the best players avoid them when a better option is available.
Consider the amount of mony in the pot and amount of money behind. In a small pot, you have less to risk by slow playing, but it's hard to win a lot if you don't build something. In a healthy pot with little money behind, skipping streets is fine because it's easy enough to get it in on the next street. In a healthy pot with lots of money behind, playing fast is often best to mitigate the suck-out cost, get maxium value and getting a hand drawing live (as few as 2-4 outs) to fold isn't too terrible.
Finally, consider that many players make dubious calls for lots of money on a medium-strong draw. If you slow play, you fail to get money in when the other guy is willing to pay.
Some great food for thought there, thanks very very much for that.
What about when the board is a "danger" board. i.e. I've raised with AK off, and the flop comes AAK as happened to me the other day, and I know people are likely terrified unless they are holding KK.
Re: To slow play or NOT to slow play...
Quote:
Originally Posted by dreamover
Some great food for thought there, thanks very very much for that.
What about when the board is a "danger" board. i.e. I've raised with AK off, and the flop comes AAK as happened to me the other day, and I know people are likely terrified unless they are holding KK.
This is a case where you have the deck crippled. Without a read changing my play, I bet here less than 25% of the time for balance, but usually just try to induce the bluff.
I'm talking more about stuff like slow playing 22 on a Q72r flop.
