It’s time to Bluff
A “bluff” is when a poker player represents having a better or worse hand than what he or she really has. On the flip side, a “tell” is an unknown indicator someone gives off that they are bluffing.
Any player can bluff anytime–even someone who has never played the game before–but it takes some skill and practice to bluff well. You can bluff in three different ways: making an aggressive bet to represent having a better hand than you actually do, calling a bet passively or checking to represent you have a worse hand than you actually do, or semi-bluffing. A semi-bluff is where you are playing on a draw of some kind, and you make an aggressive bet. While your hand might be worthless at this time, later you may have the nuts–meaning, in retrospect, your bet didn’t look like a bluff.
One of the first important concepts to understand before you can begin to master bluffing is your table image. Your table image is how the other players at the table perceive you–as either tight, loose, aggressive, passive, skilled, unskilled, etc.
If you are seen as tight (play few hands), you will have an easier time bluffing because your opponents think you only play good hands. The opposite is true of a loose player. If you are viewed as a passive player, you will have a hard time bluffing because your opponents know if you are making a raise that you must have the nuts. No one will call your bet. The opposite is true of an aggressive player. If you are seen as unskilled by your opponents, they will try to bluff you frequently, but, on the other hand, you can get away with bluffing them more often. Again, the opposite is true of someone with an image of being a skilled player.
Once you realize where you fall on this spectrum, use that image to help you coordinate successful bluffs. Your goal is to pull off one, maybe two, bluffs an hour without getting “caught.” If you bluff too much, you gain an image of being a loose player and will reduce your profits. If you don’t bluff enough, you gain an image of a tight player and will get no action. No matter where you fall on this spectrum, you need to vary your play to be a great bluffer. You might play the first hour tight, then, as the table atmosphere changes, you might play the next hour looser. If you play the same all the time, you become predictable to your opponents. When you become predictable, you will not be able to bluff successfully.
A well-timed bluff is essential to its success. While you may be able to pull off a successful bluff anytime, there are certain conditions that increase the likelihood of your bluff being successful. For example, a good time to bluff is when there is a “dangerous flop” on board. A dangerous flop is one of all one suit (making a flush possible), one of connecting cards (making a straight possible), or one with a pair (making 2 pair, 3 of a kind, 4 of a kind, or a full house possible). You can make a big bet and represent that you have that flush or that straight.
Another good time to bluff is when either you are the new person at a table or when a new person joins the table. It takes any player some time to adjust to a new table atmosphere and new opponents. Because of this, most players tend to play tighter than usual until they “warm up” to the new table a bit. People playing this tight can usually be bluffed off a pot pretty easily. Likewise, when you are the new player, everyone will assume you are playing super tight until you yourself adjust. If you bluff the first hand you play, there is a good chance you will scare everyone off the pot.
Another great time to bluff is when you are in late position, especially if everyone has checked it or called the minimum bet before you. This is a pretty good indicator that your opponents have weak hands. If you represent a strong hand, you can probably scare some or all of them off the pot.
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Sometimes a poker player will have a hot streak, where he or she wins several big pots in a short period of time. If you are this hot player, no one will even notice if you squeeze a bluff in there during this time. When players are hot, other players just try to stay out of their way–like a hurricane.
Again, going back to your table image, another great time to bluff is when your opponents make little comments about how you play. From time to time, one of your opponents will say something like, “Man, you never fold after the turn, do you?” or “Uh-oh, you raised it before the flop…I’m folding.” When you hear comments like these, use them to your advantage. One of the great poker rules from the Mad Genius of Poker, Mike Caro, is to disappoint your opponents when they have an expectation of you.
When you bluff, it is the telling of a lie, a representation of false information. Because we have all been conditioned from an early age that lying is bad, our body’s react in certain ways when we do this primal, taboo act. Think of how a polygraph exam, or lie detector test, works–it measures these auxiliary signs of lying, like pulse, heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, and the sweatiness of your palms. Basically, a polygraph measures how nervous you are. When you bluff, you may feel your own pulse sky-rocket or your heart rate begin to race. It is important that you learn to bluff in such a way as to not give off tells to your opponents.
One way you can do this is by memorizing what you did when you last made a bluff–where did you look, where did you put your hands, what did you say, how was your posture, etc. Now, the next time you have the nuts, repeat these same subtleties. While you might think no one will notice but you–you’re wrong. You’re opponents might not recognize, “Oh, his hands are folded over his cards again…” but they will get a general ‘gut feeling’ that maybe you’re bluffing again.
