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Sun Tzu and the Art of Poker

Sunday, June 22nd, 2008 by Phil

Sun Tzu believed that there are certain traits that are essential to victory in any combat situation. These same traits can be used foster success in a poker tournament.

“He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight”

When deciding which hands you will raise and fold with, a poker player should take many things into account besides the quality of their starting hands. The consequences of victory and defeat against various opponents should play a key role in a player’s decision-making process.

If an opponent is skilled and possesses a large chip stack, it may be wise to avoid that player in a tournament setting. It would be easier to play against opponents with whom you would not be risking all of your chips.

It is also important to avoid confrontations with opponents with whom you may not have an advantage against. For example, consider a situation where a certain player has been very unlucky on the previous hands. If that player starts to play poorly and make bad decisions as a result of this, it would be unwise to try and execute any sort of intricate bluff against them. It is unlikely that they will be willing to fold any quality hands regardless of your wit and cunning abilities.

Attempting to bluff against players who will refuse to be bluffed is a losing proposition. The ability to judge your opponents willingness to be bluffed is often overlooked as a necessary skill in internet poker.

“He will win who knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces”

This quote demonstrates the importance of evaluating your opponents carefully. If a player was to employ the same strategy against all of the different types of opponents, it is unlikely that they would be successful in the internet poker world. It is important to recognize which players represent a threat and which players are vulnerable to attacks.

The strength of your opponent is almost as important as the strength of each player’s hole cards. This is partially because of the implied odds when you are playing against a player with a lot of chips. When an opponent has a deep chip stack, there are adjustments that must be made when playing against that player. Although the implied odds can allow a player to weaken their starting and requirements, that player must also be more careful when they are in these situations.

Although this player might be able to win a lot of chips if they are able to improve their hand, they can also lose a lot of chips by making costly mistakes. Because of this, it is recommended that novice players avoid playing weak starting hands in these scenarios. In most cases, new players are not able to avoid making the large mistakes, which can cost them a lot of chips. As a player gains experience, they are able to play these situations more profitably by avoiding these big mistakes.

With regards to handling inferior opponents, the consequences of the potential mistakes are much smaller. The most common mistake that poker players will make against these opponents is to not play with enough aggression. This is especially the case in many tournament situations. When the blinds begin to represent a large portion of each player’s stack, it can be fairly easy to win pots before the flop regardless of the quality of your own starting hand. This means that an aggressive player will be able to easily increase their chip stack at the most crucial points of a tournament.

It is also not uncommon to see players make mistakes of the opposite nature. This happens when an opponent’s chip stack is so small, that is becomes unlikely that they will fold any mediocre starting hands. Thus, it is more likely that you will have to go to showdown if you try to bluff that player. Because of this, it is sometimes best to wait for a quality starting hand when you
are against a desperate player.