Profit Selling Your Junk Hands

[Kramer]

With Daniel Negreanu

You might ask yourself why a top notch player like Gus Hansen plays a hand like 9-2 off suit which you'll see him do in a televised poker tourney.
Any poker book in the world will tell you this hand is in the trash category.
After you finish reading this column , you'll have a better understanding of the theory behind playing trash hands from time to time and when it may be right to do so.

Playing a trash hand is based on two things :
You're representing a strong hand by bluffing and you're hoping yoour opponent(s) dont have much of a hand.

Lets say your playing a game of texas hold em.
Everyone has folded to you in the last position.
You're dealt the worst hand 7-2 off suit.
98% of the time I'd suggest folding.
Unless of course you know the two players in the blinds are CONSERVATIVE TYPES
who operate predictably.

In this case you can raise with any 2 cards. Now this is important.
Because you're not playing your hand you're playing THEIR hands.

If you do raise chances are the blinds will; both fold.
Even if they don't you aren't necessarily out of hand.
Suppose the big blind calls and flop comes up AS,9C,,4D.

If the conservative player doesn't have the ace he'll likely check to you.
Despite the fact you have nothing at all you should still bet on the flop .
If your opponent calls , or worse raises , then you abort your mission.

What will happen more often than not is he'll fold if he doesn't have the pair of aces.

That's not the only way you can win the pot.
You could hit the pot yourself.
7-2 is a pooor hand but you may get lucky and flop a pair , two pair or even
3e of a kind.

Most beginning players are focused on " What do I have"
The next step from there is " What do my opponents have"
The third step which helps explain why Gus Hansen plays Junk hands is
"what does my opponent think I have"

[skippy]

Originally Posted by Kramer

With Daniel Negreanu

You might ask yourself why a top notch player like Gus Hansen plays a hand like 9-2 off suit which you'll see him do in a televised poker tourney.
Any poker book in the world will tell you this hand is in the trash category.
After you finish reading this column , you'll have a better understanding of the theory behind playing trash hands from time to time and when it may be right to do so.

Playing a trash hand is based on two things :
You're representing a strong hand by bluffing and you're hoping yoour opponent(s) dont have much of a hand.

Lets say your playing a game of texas hold em.
Everyone has folded to you in the last position.
You're dealt the worst hand 7-2 off suit.
98% of the time I'd suggest folding.
Unless of course you know the two players in the blinds are CONSERVATIVE TYPES
who operate predictably.

In this case you can raise with any 2 cards. Now this is important.
Because you're not playing your hand you're playing THEIR hands.

If you do raise chances are the blinds will; both fold.
Even if they don't you aren't necessarily out of hand.
Suppose the big blind calls and flop comes up AS,9C,,4D.

If the conservative player doesn't have the ace he'll likely check to you.
Despite the fact you have nothing at all you should still bet on the flop .
If your opponent calls , or worse raises , then you abort your mission.

What will happen more often than not is he'll fold if he doesn't have the pair of aces.

That's not the only way you can win the pot.
You could hit the pot yourself.
7-2 is a pooor hand but you may get lucky and flop a pair , two pair or even
3e of a kind.

Most beginning players are focused on " What do I have"
The next step from there is " What do my opponents have"
The third step which helps explain why Gus Hansen plays Junk hands is
"what does my opponent think I have"

Very similar to what I posted recently, how this notion can be applied to sports capping.

Its NOT how many points a team scores that determines whether they win or not, its how many points they give up.