The Pro's and Con's of Slow Playing

Poker Strategy: The Pros and Cons of the Slow Play
By Loki Luchs of Predictem.com

When I first started playing poker seriously, I once played against a man who told me: “You’re the only player at the table I’m worried about; you’re a hunter, sitting and waiting for me to put money in the pot.” The game had been loose with a lot of people betting, and it had been a good strategy to just let them do the work for me. I blended in with the background, winning pots without ever risking losing one, and all I had to do was not scare away my prey. Like most players, one of the first moves I learned in poker was the slow play. When I hit a strong hand, I wouldn’t want my adversaries out of the pot, so I would try my best to let them bet and to check-raise them for an extra bet on the river. Like most players, however, it took me a long time to realize that although it’s useful, slow-playing is a move that should be used sparingly.

One of the most discouraging things in poker is when you have made the nuts and there’s no money to show for it. If you have a big hand and want to ensure a lot of action, then this is one way that you’re not going to chase players away. You’re intentionally misrepresenting your hand to lull your opponents into a false sense of security. The time in which this is helpful is when you’re at a table of very aggressive opponents that will bet when they don’t have a hand! If you see that an opponent bluffs a lot in position or bets semi-bluffs, then check to them with the intention of check-raising. This gives them the opportunity to bet when they would normally just muck their hand. If you think that your opponent has a hand, however, most of the time it’s better to bet. He’s going to call you down, maybe even raise, when you bet out. He won’t put you on a super-strong hand because if you were super-strong YOU WOULD NORMALLY SLOW PLAY!

There are some serious problems with slow playing, however. First, since it has become a standard play, when you slow play and then go for a big check-raise (or even lead out on later streets) your opponents can get away from the hand relatively easily. Another problem is that many times when you slow play, your opponents will check behind. This not only defeats the purpose of the slow play (which is to hide your hand so that more money goes into the pot), but it also gives your opponents an opportunity to catch up by getting a free card. If they’re willing to pay for a draw, they should pay you as much money for the times they miss as you pay them on the times they hit. Despite this, many players try to get sneaky on a dangerous drawing board. Keep in mind that it’s much easier to fold a busted straight on the river than it is to fold a set of aces against a board that has only one straight possibility on it.

The biggest con to slow playing is that one of the worst things that can happen is that your opponents lose interest in the pot due to its size; if you don’t build a pot early, they are going to find it very easy to let go of the hand! Greed is a powerful thing! If the pot is huge, players might make poor choices with sub-par hands because they’re praying that you.

1. Missed a draw

2. Are on a pure bluff

3. Have temporarily forgot that you’re not playing Uno.

Stupid people do stupid things sometimes; don’t forget that smart people do to! Your best ally isn’t going to be that they can’t read your hand, it’s going to be that they read your hand and that they’re still going to call. Most strong opponents assume you’re trying to trick them at all times. Sometimes the best trap is to make them call you when they think you’re bluffing.

The slow-play is very affective when you’re laying a trap against aggressive opponents, but be careful that you’re not using it against weak opponents. The value of a calling station, for example, is that they will call your bets when you’re strong anyways, so don’t bother to try and trap them. Your profit comes from getting them to put their money in the pot, which doesn’t always include tricking them. For weak opponents, the trap is getting them to sit down at the table in the first place.

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