It happens all the time in poker...
Even I was younger and foolish, it happened. And I hate to admit it, but it still occasionally occurs when I forget to use the brain the good Lord gave me!
A player will sit down at your table with a ton of chips. The buy-in may be $40, but he piles $1,000 or more in front of him. With a confident smirk, he is telling the other people at the table he is there for action.
You can be fairly certain of one thing:
This is an aggressive player. He will push his good hands and try to run over you with his bad hands.l He is a brave dude and he is simply asking -- make that begging -- for trouble.
Here is another premise. The game is Omaha High-Low. You feel brave and aggressive so you lessen your opening hand standards. You find yourself with A-3-J-Q suited and so you decide to call the bet. You even call a raise hoping you will hit your suit.
Bad move. Extremely bad.
The odds of probability are definitely not on your side. You very rarely will hit a flush draw and the A-3 is not a good starting hand, so why should you risk your chips on a miracle draw?
I have had my nights when I played A-3 or A-4 suited and those nights generally were not good for me financially. Today I have a rule that I don't violate -- unless I am in the blind and forced to call, I will not call the opening bet with an A-3 or A-4. It's just too risky and you generally end up with second best, which is not a good position to be in Omaha High-Low.
A player can be too brave when he raises too much before the flop. While it is okay to raise occasionally, most of the time it is better just to call. If you have a good hand and someone else raises, that's fine to just call. Then if you get a poor flop, you won't feel pressured to bet or call a wager. You can just fold and save your chips.
Let's say you raised with A-2-3-6 and you are suited. That is a reasonable hand to raise with. But if the flop comes K-J-5, you should fold on fourth street when someone comes out betting. The objective of Omaha High-Low is to scoop the pot, not win just one half or a quarter. And your chances of scooping have been reduced to two: nil and none.
By the way, keep an eye on the player who sat into the game with all those chips. See how many he had left after a couple hours of play. Chances are his pile of chips will be decimated the longer the game goes on.
I believe in being an aggressive player, but there is a difference between being aggressive and being foolish. Too many players take the foolish route.
Once the momentum goes against you in poker, regardless of the game, it is difficult to regain it. A player will find himself playing marginal hands to start winning again but it rarely happens. Sadly, you are probably going to have to settle for a losing night.
Most people love a good war movie when a brave (but foolish) kid decides to be a hero. He charges the enemy machine gun nest, gets off a few good rounds, and wipes out the gunners. As he smiles in victory, a sniper picks him off. That is what happens to too many players who are too brave at a poker table.
Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.
(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter and poker player who lives in Phoenx, AZ. He has published 2,000 articles in 50 magazines and 125 newspapers. If you want to share a gambling story or book idea with him, send an email to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).
