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BAD BEAT? THINK AGAIN
One of the distinguishing characteristics of an advanced poker player is the ability to process multiply pieces of information simultaneously during a hand.
For example, say a player believes he has a hand that is worth betting on the flop. Before acting he may be engaged in reading his opponents’ hand while he determines the chances of his own hand improving, and considers the relative merits of betting out versus check-raising.
Beyond this simple example, innumerable combinations of other variables vie for a player’s attention on a routine basis. The best players are generally cognizant of and actively assessing more variables than other players. Yet even a skilled player sometimes misses an important piece of information. The most immediate consequence can be misplayed poker hand. But failing to process all important variables in a hand can have less obvious consequences. One of the most common is that the missed information causes a player to assess an opponent’s play incorrectly, costing him money in future hands played against that person.
I observed a hand recently in which this was the case. Before the flop, Ben, a weak, loose player, called in an early position, a better than average, but not expert player who often tries to isolate weaker players with raises. The next player folded. Now Dean, a somewhat skilled and aggressive but far too loose player, made it three bets in a late-middle position. The players behind him folded. Ann, a poor player who will call raises preflop with weak hands, called in the big poker blind . Ben and Carl called. The flop came:
Everyone checked to Dean who bet. Ann, the bigs blinds, raised. Ben folded, and Carl, the original raiser, made it three bets. Dean responded by capping it at four bets. The two players called. The turn was the:
Ann checked, but Carl bet out. Dean now raised again. Ann folded, and Carl called. The river was the five of clubs, and both players checked. Carl turned over:
Dean won with:
Carl expressed anger and disgust at what he viewed as a bad beat. He included a sarcastic comment about Dean being psychic and knowing what was coming on the turn.
"The Best Player I' ve Ever Seen " / The Hit and Run Follies / An Illusory Winner /
On Randomness, Rushes, Hot Seats, and Bad Luck Dealers /
Why Learn to Beat Tougher Games? / Practicing Game Preservation
Short-Handed Play: Don’t Miss out / How I Learned Poker: Part I
How I Learned Poker : Part II