Texas Poker: Making the Most of Lying

Get easy tips that will help you bluff your opponents when playing Texas holdem or any other poker game.

When playing any poker game and especially Texas Holdem, bluffing to win is a required tactic but a dangerous one. If you perform it well, you win, if you perform it badly, you will lose. At first glance, it seems that it is worth the chance, but no. Unless you can bluff like an expert and unless the conditions are right, do not bluff. Remember that if caught bluffing at Texas Holdem, you will not only lose, but you will lose a big amount of money.

a) Verify that the cash amount of the pot is not very large. Likewise, if there are too many players still in the game desist from bluffing. You can bluff one or two players sometimes, but more than that and you will fail because there will always be either one or two poker players who play aggressively and do not flinch in the face of an aggressive player.

b) This rule applies mostly if you are playing a draw game, but even if you are engaged in one of the stud poker versions such as Texas Holdem only: Bluff (unless you are playing against only one player and you are sure he is a passive poker player) only if your cards sum up at least to a pair. If the double cards you are holding are not strong such as two threes or two fours, it would be wise not to try and bluff. Again, if by previous rounds you have learnt that the players still in the hand are passive or are running scared because they have lost big on one of the previous rounds where they bluffed and lost, you should take advantage and bluff them into losing again.

2) Do not bluff with nothing. Bluffing should be used to make a weak hand look better but not to try to make nothing look like something. Bluffing should only be done if you hold at least one pair. Some players will not back down from your bluff especially in the beginning of the game. They are trying to feel you out and see how you react in different situations. To fool them you are going to have to become a good actor.

d) If you win a round of betting and the other Texas holdem players see that you did it with a big hand, then for the next few rounds you are at a big advantage. The memory of your high-value Texas Holdem sequence will linger in your opponents' minds and this will help you tremendously if you bluff. Each other player will think twice before challenging your hand.

5) Watch the cards opened up on the deck. If there is a pair down, and if that pair is made up of a value less than nine, try and bluff. Odds are high that others will think you have the rest of that pair or at least a card to make up a triple. Use this and bet accordingly.

f) Just like in other games, you have to memorize the playing patterns of your opponents. Some will hesitate, some will bet always while others will think and then make their move confidently. What you have to do is to look for those particular players that are playing Texas Holdem carefully without taking any risks. These are the ones that you can bluff and make them fold their cards even if your cards amount to a big zero.

Closure:
Bluffing is not very different than lying on a test or to friends. If you are a good liar, you will be able to bluff with a lot more confidence than others. But you need to reduce the amount you lie because whereas in life people tend to believe you, in Texas Hold'em, players tend not to believe you.