The G-Spot: Some Merits of Calling

[Fonzi]

By Tony Guerrera

"If it's good enough to call with, then you should raise," cry the pundits. This advice is from poker\'s hands past...saying this is like saying that the best way to start a fire is to rub two sticks together! Most games will require you to trend aggressive, but completely ignoring the potential merits of passive play in certain circumstances is a big mistake.

Calling Is Sometimes the Best Way to Extract Maximum Value

Suppose you're in position against a highly aggressive and observant opponent who has the tendency to fire two bullets when he bluffs. He raises preflop, and you call in position. You flop top-pair/top kicker.

If you have a somewhat tight image, a raise on the flop might induce your opponent to fold immediately, meaning that you won't get any further value from your hand. By just calling, you risk the possibility that your opponent will catch up on the turn. But since your call on the flop keeps the pot small, losing the occasional pot when your opponent catches up isn't a disaster. In the long run, calling and inducing certain aggressive opponents to bet into you on later betting rounds can be more profitable than showing aggression immediately.

Calling Keeps Pots Smaller

In limit hold'em, the size of bets and raises is constrained. In no-limit hold'em, they aren't. Your bottom line will improve dramatically if you keep the following in mind: play big pots when you know you have an edge, and play small pots when you're uncertain as to where you stand. By calling in dangerous situations, you keep pots smaller.

Calling Allows a Hand to be Played Across Four Betting Rounds

When you reraise preflop or on the flop, you set-up a giant pot...one in which any mistake is disastrous because of the quantity of chips involved. And because players usually won't have sufficient chips to make it to the river without going all-in during such large pots, you're forced to make big decisions without having four betting rounds in which you can gain information.

As a skilled player, the more information you have at your disposal, the better. Sometimes, the way to maximize your available information is to have a hand play out across four betting rounds instead of only one or two.

Balance is the Key

It's usually no good to be incessantly aggressive, just like it's usually no good to be perpetually passive. Some situations will exist in which you'll get lots of value, and possibly more information, by 3-betting your foes on the flop. Others will exist in which check/calling all the way to the river is best. As always, be flexible, and don't literally abide by every one-liner poker edict you encounter.

Tony Guerrera is the author of Killer Poker By The Numbers.