Game Balance

Basically the game of any player can be categorized along three dimensions: loose vs. tight, passive vs. aggressive and weak vs. strong. The loose vs. tight distinction refers to how many starting hands the player plays. The loosest player imaginable will therefore hold a completely random hand whereas the tightest player conceivable will fold anything but pocket aces. The passive vs. aggressive distinction refers to the degree to which the player tends to take the lead and get the last bet in the pot in the hands he chooses to play. Some players (tilted maniacs) will cap whenever they get the chance, whereas many passive calling stations will only raise if they have the nuts, and sometimes, not even then. Finally, there is the weak vs. strong distinction, which refers to the staying power of the player. A calling station is by definition a strong player, as he will call most hands with which he proceeds from the flop all the way to a showdown. Other players will lay down quite strong hands like top pair weak kicker or 2nd pair if they face action and the board starts to look scary.

In many poker books it is stated that you should play tight and aggressive poker, but this is in my opinion a truth with modifications because to any conceivable style of play, there is a counter-weapon. Most players pretty much play the same way all the time (except when they go on tilt). But all great players are capable of deviating from their normal strategy when the situation demands it. And when you play in a game full of great players, you will see everybody constantly trying to adapt to the constantly changing styles of their opponents.

So when you sit at a table, the first thing you should notice about every one of your opponents is how they play in each of these three dimensions. In my experience, if I don't spot these differences in style among my opponents that is a sure sign that my own game is out of balance (how do you find the right balance when you don't know what you have to counterbalance?).

Loose vs. Tight

How do you play a very loose player? Well, the first thing you should notice is that you can't put him on a hand, as he plays any two. Often I see someone giving a loose player a lot of action with a hand like AK on a A72 rainbow flop. This is not how to play a loose player. The loose player has the advantage that he generally has a much better idea of the strength of the tight players' holding then the tight player has of his. Therefore, playing loose will allow you to get paid off generously when you hit a big hand. The flip side of that coin is that often you will be in trouble even when you hit your flop. Not just kicker problems, but as you play lower cards you will also often flop second and third pair, leaving you with more tricky decisions after the flop. So when you face a loose player you must bet weaker hands for value, while avoiding giving loads of action with hands like top pair top kicker when the loose guy plays back. You want to win many pots, not necessarily big pots.

How do you play a very tight player? First you must recognize that you can limit his possible holdings to a considerable degree. Pocket pairs and two cards ten and higher is pretty much it. And a really tight player wont even play a hand including a ten except from late position. This means that when the flop comes low you know that it hasn't helped him. It is now time for you to take initiative, depending on how strong your hand is on the flop and how strong he is (the weaker he is the weaker the hands which you can attack (as you have more folding equity). Furthermore, you might be able to play a little looser; especially if he will call you down with any hand he chose to play after the flop. You can see a lot of flops for the price you gain when you hit two pair against his AK on the A72 flop, provided that he gives a lot of action post flop, and provided that you get out when you hit a piece of it but still know you are beaten. As it should be evident from this there are times to play loose and times to play tight.

Passive vs. Aggressive

How do you play a passive player? Well playing against a passive player can be a mixed blessing if he is also strong, and applies his strong passive style specifically against you when he correctly perceives you to be overaggressive. But overall, being passive is really bad. There are several reasons for this. For one thing, the passive player lets his opponent control the size of the pot. This means that the pot gets bigger when his opponent likes his hand then it does when our passive hero has the exact same hand. Furthermore, the passive player will hand out a lot of free cards, and will lose a lot of pots because of it. Therefore, I think the best way to approach a passive player is to bet when you like your hand, check and take a free card when you don't have anything to show down, and fold top pair top kicker when he check-raises you on the turn, as you know he will only raise when he has a genuine monster (that's why we call him passive remember). Often people get over aggressive against a passive player, but this is silly, as he will simply check it down unless he has a good hand. So instead of investing in a hand where you are likely (but not surely) behind, you might as well keep the pot small and take a free showdown. The exception to this is if he's the kind of passive player who tends to delay the execution of unpleasant decisions made on the flop until the river.

Against aggressive players who like to take the lead and play their hands fast you must punish them for speeding. This can be done in two ways. You should generally check-raise them more, as you can rely on them betting when you check to them. And you should often call them down when you have a fair hand to show down, and the flop makes it likely that he is pushing a draw. To do the latter you must play strongly, or you will end up folding way too much when the board gets ugly and he on keeps firing. You will need both weapons.

I presume that most of you have run into the loose maniac who will ram and jam with any two. Nothing is more lethal than a maniac on a rush. The first thing to realize is that the maniac actually increases the stakes by increasing the average pot size. This in effect increases your swings. You are therefore not as stuck as it might appear as long as this guy is still in the game. Against a maniac on tilt, you should let him bet and call down.

Weak vs. Strong

A strong players is not necessarily a good player, rather the term strong can refer to a calling station who just can not be run out of a pot no matter what the board or the action looks like. A strong player can also refer to a good player who is adept at exploiting someone else's weaknesses or their overly aggressive play. In high limit games, you will often see a lot of bets going in on the flop and then check-check or bet call on the turn and river. What these players do is that they make sure to pot commit themselves on the flop, so they have pot odds to reach showdown almost no matter how the board gets along the way. The downside of being strong is that you will pay off your opponent's good hands. The benefit is that you will pick off his bluffs, and generally force him to stay in line. When he stays in line, then you must get out of his way more often since he will be ahead most of the time when he bets.

A weak player is a player who will fold a relatively high percentage of the hands with which he saw the flop without reaching a showdown. Obviously this is a bad investment, and typically it is a symptom of the player not making his mind up early in the hand, or refusing the conclusion he reached on the flop if it involves him folding a hand that has some chance of improvement. When you face a weak opponent, your failure to bet the river with a busted draw is a crime! As a matter of fact, you should probably bet any hand that you have taken to the river if you have the chance.

But enough on how to exploit weakness in others, because most players will play weakly at times. Especially when you run badly, it is only natural to expect your bad luck to continue, and good players will pick up on this and start to push you around, correctly perceiving you as the weak player you have degenerated into. Apart from being passive, being weak is the thing that can hurt you the most. You cannot let your opponent own every scare card left in the deck! Often, a timely raise will buy you some of these scare cards, so you can represent them if they land on a later street. Also, you must be very aware of how many draws the flop leaves open, and how likely it is that even though you don't have much; it actually beats his busted draw. I once played a super loose aggressive maniac, where I called him down four times with King high unimproved and won three of them! That's how you stop a bully, and when somebody is pushing you around, you must take a stand at some point. Play back hard when you have a fairly good hand, and if he has hit a monster so be it. In any event, you have sent the message that you are not weak.

You should always know how each of your opponents plays in these three dimensions. You should also have an idea on how the observant players view this, and how they try to exploit the weakness they have discovered in individual players, so that you can punish them when they are making moves. And finally, you should be observant enough to recognize how players involuntarily may change style as they get tired or stuck in a session. This is what poker is all about. Thanks to Leigh Lightfoot-Martin for proof reading this article.

Thanks to Leigh Lightfoot-Martin for proof reading this article.

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