Poker is Like Shooting at Targets

Poker can be a lot like shooting at targets.  You wait until the perfect moment, get your target carefully lined up in the sights and then you pull the trigger. The only problem is that the targets can, and often do, start shooting back at you!

We hear the poker experts talking about being aggressive. I agree, but I think a lot of the newer players mistakenly believe that means being aggressive all the time. They become what I call “gunslingers.”

The optimum tactic I believe, is to be selectively aggressive. I do not generally play Ace Ace pocket pairs the same as I play speculative hands such as 8 9 suited. There are lots of factors that may change my play and cause me to slow down or speed up, but in general I will be much more aggressive with wired pairs than when I have hole cards that depend on the flop.

When I run up against a gunslinger who pulls the trigger on me a little too often I make mental notes. Nobody gets great cards all the time. I select my spot and me and the gunslinger are gonna tangle. But, we’re gonna tangle when the time is right for me. Making mental notes of their betting patterns allows me to set the perfect trap when the odds are in my favor. I will sometimes bet into them in an amount likely to give them a false sense of security. When they fire in a healthy raise I go over the top in a big way. Many of the online knucks will call (figuring they’re pot committed) and pay you off.  At other times I simply lay back calling or checking until the shooter fires at me and then I go over the top.

There are many different styles of poker players. I actually have a preference for aggressive opponents. It is these shooters that I have probably won most of the largest pots from. They get in so far and then they don’t seem to know when to back off.

When a gunslinger starts shooting at you make your mental notes and when the time is right shoot right back at them. These gunslingers will pay off more often than you might expect.

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