Bankroll 101 | Instant Bankroll for Poker
The art of the stealWe've talked about picking up bluffs during Internet play. Now we're going to talk about the steal, which is different from a bluff in that you're "telling" a story to set up a steal vs. an outright bluff. So let's talk about how to begin to tell your story.
Once upon a Time...
There was a poker player named Jack and he played 2/4 NL online poker everyday while his wife Jill was away on the hill. Jack loved nothing more than stealing pots from unsuspecting players. He would consistently take away pots from players with his accurate reads, rarely getting his steal attempts picked off. How did Jack do this? We'll let Jack explain:
"Ideally I'm heads up against a player when trying to set up a steal and hopefully I've made an accurate read on my opponents hand. For example, if I put my opponent on a low pocket pair then I'm hoping the board comes 7,8,9 or any flop with two of the same suit. This way I'm able to begin telling the story with my actions. Let's assume that my opponent bets half the pot to me on a flop of K,T,7 to me and I'm holding 5,2. The board is pretty scary to begin with for my opponent since he's most likely holding a pair 5s or 6s. By hesitating and reluctantly calling his bet I'm advertising to him that I'm on a draw (making him think I'm holding two spades or perhaps J,Q giving me an open ended straight draw). With the turn bringing the ultimate scare card, the Ace of spades, I'm able to really put the screws to my opponent.
Again, we are advertising to my opponent that I've got a big draw (flush or straight) and it's logical for him to assume this given the texture of the flop and my actions in calling him. One would naturally assume that if I was holding AK I would have raised him on the flop. I hesitantly called effectively telling him I'm on a draw and want to see the next card. Now that next card is the Ace of spades, making a possible flush or straight for my draw. At the same time I could have been holding a hand like a weak Ace, which still beats his small pair.
Let's assume that he continues his betting and makes a pot sized bet on the turn. This isn't really out of the ordinary for a good player, he will often bet the turn to "see where he is at". A bet here (while risky) is his only way of knowing whether his hand is good here. While many players will check here out of fear of already being beat, the outcome will almost always be the same. A big bet by me or a big raise if he bets will result in his pocket pair going to the virtual muck."
You have to create a story to pull off a steal. Without advertising what you're "holding" you simply can't pull off many steals. Your opponent will put a read on you and come back over the top with a big raise, forcing you to fold your hand. So the next time you find yourself in this situation, remember ole Jack and his story.