It takes considerable skill to play effectively against such an opponent. However, when done well, it can be very profitable. I had just such an experience. I was playing an online no-limit hold’em game on a site that was recommended to me by lucky-7-bonus.ca and one player was such a maniac, often going all-in before the flop. The way he was playing, he may have been on tilt.

Those of you who have followed my column through the years will note that normally I much prefer playing limit hold’em in live games. I was playing online in this instance because I was still uncomfortable playing in live games since the coronavirus pandemic began. In this particular online game, we played for points –  not real money.

Over the long run you can expect fewer than 25 percent of your hole cards to be playable – worthy of investing your chips. But this “maniac” played every hand he was dealt. He won small pots – the blinds – when all of the other players folded to his big bets before the flop. On one occasion, an opponent called his all-in and beat him out when he connected on the flop. Maniac folded without revealing his hand. Then he promptly bought in again for another $1,000.

What would you do in this case?

Maniac was seated to my right, so he acted every hand just before me. He was in the cut-off position, and I was the button. A few players before him had limped in to see the flop. Then he pulled his all-in move. I studied my hole cards – pocket Aces. My hand was well ahead of his. As you may know, pocket aces become an underdog if more than three opponents stay in the pot. Fortunately, I was well ahead. So, I responded to the maniac by going all-in myself. All of the other players folded their hands, leaving us heads-up.  It was no surprise when I won the pot – a huge one!

READ ALSO: Poker Tips by George: Betting Patterns

That did not change the maniac’s ways. After a few hands, he was back to going all-in. This time, I was in the hijack position, again with the maniac to my right. Once again, maniac went all-in before the flop. This time I held A-Q off-suit. With only two limpers, I again went all-in, so it was heads-up again. Neither of us improved our hands and I was pleased to take a huge pot once again.

The next day, a loose player who seemed to be on tilt went all-in from a middle position. The players before me all folded so, with a strong starting hand and lots more chips, I again went all-in and took another huge pot with only a small improvement.

It is so much fun when you win big pots, especially against a maniac – or a player who plays like one when he is on tilt.

Presumably, it originated with the game of Texas hold’em to describe when you bet all of your chips. You may be calling another player’s bet or raising the pot. When you put all of your chips at risk during a hand, you are said to be all-in. But the hand continues. For subsequent bets made by the other players during that hand, the dealer creates a second, separate pot. You remain in the hand, but can win only the original pot in which you had participated by putting in chips.

Image Credit: Cardmates

A common example is when you have a strong hand and an opponent raises the pot before you, making a bet size larger than your remaining stack. Let’s say you’re playing poker at an online casino. You are short of chips on the table, so you put up all you have left; you are all-in. Then, the dealer places the difference in chips into a second pot, separated a short distance from the first pot.  You have no participation in that side pot, because you do not have the chips to match it. The dealer does the same for any other players calling the raise. I have seen as many as four separate pots in a single hand.

An Example All-in Hand

In an early position, our Hero started with pocket Aces in the hole. There was quite a bit of betting and raising during the hand. The flop and turn were A-10-9-10, giving the Hero Aces-full of tens – a monster! The Hero bet and was raised by a loose-aggressive player in a late position. Hero called the raise. The river was a blank. Hero checked his hand, and the late-position bet out. Hero figured him for trip 10s. and raised with his Aces-full, going all-in. The opponent called, turning up pocket tens – four-of-a-kind! WOW!

READ ALSO: Learn the Top 7 Poker Actions from Checking to Going All-In

In a cash game, Hero could buy in for additional chips if he decided to continue. In a tournament Hero would be out. If you find yourself going all-in and rebuying over and over during a game of poker, you are a big loser and would be well advised to take a long break from the game. Be sure you are not on tilt. Playing on tilt is almost always very costly. After a long break an and honest check-in with yourself,  you might consider starting again, but at a different table – perhaps at lower stakes. Give serious thought to quitting for the day. Tomorrow is another day…

All-in in Life

Going all-in is also used to describe occasions other than playing poker. With the Texas hold’em craze beginning in the late 1990s, the poker phrase “all-in” moved into our daily lives. Whereas “all-in” once referred to a scenario in which someone either wins a poker hand or loses everything in a moment, it now serves to describe when a person is enthusiastic or fully committed. It’s often used in business and marketing, sporting events, politics, the media, and even expressions related to religion.

Going All-out

In addition to going all-in, you can also go “all-out” – doing the very best that you are able. You put all your energy and enthusiasm into it. Examples: She went all-out to make this party an unforgettable experience for her guests. Comedians George Burns and Gracie Allen always went all-out to keep their audiences laughing. And you can go all-out when playing poker, too.

Image source: Depositphotos.com

Playing online offers a number of interesting features. For one thing, you can play in the convenience of your own home – without having to drive to a brick-and-mortar casino. Imagine sitting in your den after breakfast, still clad in your pajamas, playing poker on your computer. Convenient! And you can play more than one game at the same time. The most significant feature of online poker is its speed. I have seen reports of players multi-tabling (something you really can’t do in a live poker setting) and getting in hundreds — or even thousands — of hands per hour. Contrast this with about thirty hands per hour for the same poker game played in a brick and mortar casino. But I have no personal experience playing poker online, and don’t intend to.

Why I Don’t Play Online

I am extremely cautious as to which poker game I play. After all, my hard-earned money is at risk. In deciding which game to play, the important considerations include the type of game, the stakes, and limit vs. no-limit. Low/middle limit Texas hold’em is my favorite game and the only one in which I am ready to invest my precious chips. But I will not play it online. I’d also recommend this conservative approach if you’re just starting out playing poker. Or if you’re going to play online, do so just for practice, not with real money at stake.

What is My Problem?

Whether you play hold’em live or online, the rules and skills are basically the same, but online games are just too fast for me – less than one minute to deal and play a full hand. How can you possibly study your hole cards and the board as the game progresses? What’s more, your online opponents are not visible to you. How can you observe them and try to read their hands as the playing progresses? Looking for their tells is impossible; they are invisible to you. And, even if they were sitting there at the same table, you would not have enough time to look for their eye and body motions while pondering your best actions.

READ ALSO: Poker Tips by George: The History of Texas Hold’Em 

Contrast this with Texas Hold’em as played in a casino. Those games run about two minutes and are almost too fast for us recreational players who play for the enjoyment, social interaction, and mental exercise. It gets worse when you age and play poker during your retirement years, as your reflexes and mental acuteness wane. Skilled players learn to cope with the speed of games in card rooms – less than half that of online casino games. In fact, that can encourage us to be alert and focus more on the game, without being diverted by people and activities unrelated to the game in play.

These days, it’s far easier to learn how to play poker, Texas Hold’em in particular, at sites online like casinotipspro and other places around the internet. The fact is that far more knowledge is readily available in the modern world at people’s fingertips versus back in the old days when you had to find a poker book or have someone teach you the game.

In 1967, a group of Texas card players, including Crandell Addington, Doyle Brunson, and Amarillo Slim, were visiting in Las Vegas and enjoyed the game. Compared to draw poker, in which betting occurred twice during a hand, in Hold’em you bet four times. And strategy played a bigger role in Hold ‘em. This they liked.

The World Series of Poker

Poker pro Tom Moore established a “Gambling Fraternity Convention” in Las Vegas in the late 1960s. Originally, a San Antonio, Texas businessman, Moore was part owner of the Holiday Hotel and Casino in Reno. At the group’s second convention in 1969, a tournament was held with Hold’em as one of the games played. The following year, Benny and Jack Binion purchased the rights to the convention and renamed the tournament the World Series of Poker (WSOP), with no-limit Hold’em as the main event. The WSOP started with only a handful of players, but by 1982 there were over 100 entrants. The WSOP has obviously continued to grow from there.

Hold ‘Em in Books, TV and Movies

As the WSOP grew, featuring Hold’em as the main event, a number of poker books became available for players looking to learn more about the game. Doyle Brunson’s Super/System was published in 1978. In 1983, Al Alvarez’ The Biggest Game in Town focused on the WSOP and stimulated the publication of other poker books and widely read magazines, introducing Hold’em to a growing audience.

READ MORE: Five Books to Help You Learn TheHistory of Poker

U.S. interest in Texas Hold’ em beyond Texas and Nevada also began to grow in the 1980s. California card rooms offered draw games, but Hold ’em was prohibited under a statute that made illegal the poker game of “stud-horse” (no longer being played). In 1988, Hold ’em was declared legally distinct from stud-horse in Tibbetts vs. Van de Kamp. This decision regarded Hold ’em as a game of skill. Almost immediately, card rooms across the state began to offer Texas Hold ’em.

After a visit to Las Vegas, bookmakers Terry Rogers and Liam Flood introduced Texas Hold ‘em to European card players in the early 1980s. This nicely completed the cycle that started centuries earlier when poker was first introduced into the U.S. by European colonists.

A number of movies were produced prominently featuring Texas Hold ‘em, starting in 1998 with Rounders, starring Edward Norton and Matt Damon. Several other poker movies followed.

Hold’em tournaments were televised starting in the late 1970s, but became really popular starting in 1999 when hidden lipstick cameras were introduced to show players’ hole cards on the Late Night Poker TV show, and in 2003 when the World Poker Tour introduced lipstick cameras.

Chris Moneymaker and Greg “Fossilman” Raymer

Also in 2003, the WSOP experienced the unexpected victory of Chris Moneymaker, a recreational player who earned his buy-in to the tournament by winning an online tournament. This win by a non-professional player resulted in an outpouring of interest in the game of Hold ’em – and in online poker. Imagine, even a rank novice could become a world champion! And then, a year later, adding to the excitement, Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, another recreational player, took the 2004 WSOP Main Event.

Today, millions enjoy Texas Hold’em, and its future looks bright.

Skilled players relish having a fish or two at the table. They are always welcome because they are bound to “donate” their chips to the better players. The fish are “the live ones” at the table.

How to Use the Fish

Let’s illustrate a situation where you are in a hand with a fish in a $4-$8 limit game. The player might be an avid sports bettor, specializing in NFL picks against the spread, but in poker he’s not too highly skilled.

Suppose, from a late position you are dealt As-10h. There is a raise before you from an early position, which is called by your fish from the middle position. After considering a re-raise, you decide to just call along and see what the flop brings.

The flop is 10d-3s-10c, giving you trip 10s – a monster hand! You know you are a big favorite to take this hand. This is an opportunity to build the pot that you expect to win.

Both opponents check to you. And you decide to check along. Had you bet out, very likely one or both of your opponents would have folded, leaving you with a very small pot. (What a waste!)

The turn is the 10s. With three 10s on the board and the 10h in your hole cards, you have quad 10s –  4 of a kind! Wow! Of course, your two opponents have no idea as to the strength of your hand. It’s sure to be the nuts.

On the turn, the early position checks to our fish in a middle position. Fish studies the board, glances at his hole cards, and decides to open bet; it’s now $8. You suspect he is bluffing, hoping to steal the pot. Holding four-of-a-kind, most players would likely raise his bet – betting for value. Being skilled, you decide instead to just call his bet on the turn. This way, he is more likely to bet out on the river. If you had raised his bet on the turn, even a fish would probably have folded his hand – and you would have lost your fish.

The river card is a blank – not likely to help anyone. Even if it does improve the fish’s hand, there is no way he can beat your quad 10s. Because you did not raise his bet on the turn, the fish decides to bet out again on the river. Thus, you have gained an extra big bet from him, and a chance that he will call your raise on the river. That extra bet or two can make a big difference over the course of a poker session, helping you to go home a winner – and with a big smile.

Of course, the same applies to no-limit and high-stakes games; and your profit will be so much bigger..

Let’s focus on a draw to the flush…

With four cards of the same suit, there are 9 more cards of that suit unseen (presumably remaining in the deck). You have 9 outs, any one of which will complete your flush. Based on the number of outs, you can readily determine your card odds – the probability of making your hand with two cards to come.

Using the 4-2 Rule

You can do the math to estimate the card odds by using the 4-2 Rule. Multiplying your 9 outs by 4 gives you the approximately 36 percent chance (probability) of filling your flush on the turn or on the river. Then your card odds are (100 – 36) ÷ 36 which is equal to approximately 2-to-1 against you. After the flop, an early position opens the betting and is called by two other players. Now, you must decide your action. Let’s say it’s a $4-$8 limit game. That amounts to $12 you need to call after the flop in addition to the $15 already in the pot, for a total of $27. By calling that $4 bet, the pot odds are $27 ÷ 4 which is approximately 7-to-1. The rule with a drawing hand is that the pot odds must be higher than your card odds to make it a profitable “investment” – as is the case here.

If you miss your flush on the turn, then multiply your outs by 2. This gets you a reasonable estimate of the odds of making your hand on the river. Once again, compare your card odds to the pot odds.

There are handy charts available in many poker books, but the 4-2 rule is probably the easiest way to do this math. Or you can memorize it: With 9 outs on the flop, your card odds are 1.86-to-1 against connecting either to the turn or the river, and 4.33-to-1 on the turn to the river.

What if Your Outs Are Overcards?

In addition to your 4 cards to a flush, let’s take the case when both of your hole cards are higher in value than any of the cards on the board – they are overcards. Each gives you an additional 3 outs to pair up – 6 outs in all. Instead of just 9 outs to the flush, you would have 15 (9 + 6) outs; and the card odds against you would be only 0.85-to-1– favoring you to connect to take that pot. That may seem great, but don’t get carried away. There is a mean sharp hook here: Catching top pair is much less likely to win the pot compared to filling the flush. For example, one of your opponents may have been calling or betting with two-pair, leaving you second-best.

But you do have the option to protect against this. Since those overcards are less valuable, you should reduce their “effective outs” by a factor of three. Now you would add only 2 outs to your 9 outs for the flush draw. And now your card odds are back up to 3.18-to-1 against you. That could make a big difference since the bets on the turn are doubled for this limit pot ($8 instead of $4) and the pot odds may be lower as some opponents decide to muck their hands.

Caution: After your bluff is called, do not try to bluff again for at least 20 minutes – so a player who saw that hand is less likely to remember it.

Bluffs can be categorized based on position. Using position when bluffing is essential to success. I thus recommend bluffing largely from late position.

The Late Position Bluff offers special advantages over bluffs from early and middle positions, as the late position player sees what the other positions do before he must act. For example, if a tight player has raised from an early position, and his raise is called by a middle position, don’t even consider trying to pull off a bluff. These players are likely committed to their hands.

Other Bluffing Tips From Late Position

• Observe how many opponents have called. It is much easier to bluff out one or two players than three or more.
• Note which opponents have bet or raised before you and what type of player he/she is. (Don’t try to bluff out a calling station.)
• Look at how many chips each opponent has. You cannot bluff out a player who has only a few chips in front of him.

Bluffing can also be evaluated by when you bluff in the course of the hand. Here are some thoughts on bluffing at each street.

Bluffing Before the Flop

• If the early and middle positions have all folded before you, consider making a late-position raise as a bluff. Steal the blinds.
• If an opponent who is particularly deceptive often raises, consider reraising him with a marginal hand or better. Chances are he is bluffing – and you have position over him. Very likely he will fold to your re-raise, or fold when you bet on the flop if he doesn’t catch a strong hand.
• If you bluff by raising from the hijack position after one or two limpers, the opponents behind you likely will fold; it’s a double-bet for them. Then, you become the “virtual button” for the rest of that hand, giving you a positional edge over the other players.
• If one of the blinds calls your bluff raise, he probably has a very good starting hand. Look for any tells he might display. Consider his playing traits before you decide whether to try another bluff on the turn.

READ ALSO: Top 3 Tips for Bluffing in No-Limit Hold’Em

After the Flop

• If everyone checks to you, your Late Position Bluff may very well induce them to fold. That’s especially the case if the flop brings small and medium cards to the board (no face cards with which opponents usually stay to see the flop) or a small pair with a small/medium third card. It is likely that the flop missed everyone. In that case, if the betting is checked to you, then your Late Position Bluff is very likely to force out the remaining players – leaving the pot for you. You win by default.
• If the flop is dangerous, stop and think. Examples: three cards in sequence, two or more of the same suit, two or more honor cards. With such “scare cards” falling on the flop, it is possible that an opponent has flopped a big hand or a big draw. In that case, your Late Position Bluff bet would force out only the weaker hands while a player with a strong hand remains in the pot. In fact, that player may raise if you bluff bet again on the turn. That could be costly. Be cautious; use your position to see what your opponents do before acting – and look for tells.

On the River

• If your bluff fails to connect by the river, all is not necessarily lost. Try to “read” your opponent for a reasonable guess of his range of hands. Your bluff on the river might be enough to force him out – leaving the pot to you. After all, he has no idea of the strength of your hand. And the pot odds are bound to be favorable at this point.

This applies to the game of poker where you are playing against other players, but not when you are playing slots, the roulette wheel, or any other gambling game in the casino. In those games, the casino sets the “pot” odds – the payout – and it’s always in the house’s favor. That’s how casinos are profitable and stay in business.

Pot Odds

There are two categories of pot odds: the current odds and the implied odds. Let’s demonstrate this with an example:

You are dealt A-9 hearts in a game of $4-$8 limit hold’em, with a full table of nine players.
On the flop, the dealer puts two more hearts on the board – Jh-8h-3s. You now have a draw to the nut (Ace-high) flush and need only one more heart on the turn or on the river to make your hand.

An early-position player open-bets and is called by two other players. It is your turn to act. You should call that bet as long as the pot odds are higher than your card odds. Let’s study the situation:

There are nine hearts remaining unseen in the deck. Pulling out your Card Outs & Odds Chart (see below), you see that, with nine outs, your card odds are only 1.86-to-1 against connecting. Round it off to 2-to-1 for convenience. (Estimates are okay.)

Note: The first column odds assumes the player will stay to see both the turn and the river.

Now, the pot odds are important. Looking at the board, there are about 20 chips in the pot. To stay to see the turn, you must match the previous bet ($4). So, the current pot odds are 20-to-4 = 5-to-1 which is higher than your card odds. In the long run, you will win those chips. It’s well in your favor!

Image Credit: The Poker Bank

Fortunately, the turn is the five of hearts. Your Ace-high flush is the nuts! There are no pairs on the board, so an opponent cannot have a full-house or quads that would beat your hand. What a great haul – especially after a rag falls on the river and you bet for value as you raise an early bet.

Better Yet…

I don’t advocate being greedy. But your goal is to win as many chips as possible. The more the merrier! The more I win, the more fun it is. Let’s consider the implied pot odds. That takes into account any additional chips put into the pot by your opponents on subsequent bets.

In this case, what would likely happen if you raised on the flop – rather than just calling the previous bet – after you catch the draw to the nut flush? It’s almost certain that the three opponents who bet before you would call your raise. They already have invested a bet in this round, goes their thinking. A raise of $4 adds $12 to the pot. Compared to your raise – four more chips – you are gaining an additional 3-to-1 pot odds in the pot.

The Check-Raise Concept

Check-raising is another tactic used by many players to build bigger pots, but there is a big difference. . . It relies on aggressive play! As originally conceived, the check-raise is used when you hold a powerful hand and believe it will win the pot.

READ ALSO: Poker Tips by George: Skills Are the Key 

Instead of betting out from an early position, check your hand. Then, after an opponent bets out – and perhaps several others call his bet – you raise when the action gets back to you. Chances are that most, if not all, those who had bet before you will call your raise. And the pot grows! The check-raise is a trapping move intended to build the pot. By checking and then raising your opponent’s bet you use his position against him to get more money into the pot when you’re holding the nuts; you are check-raising for value.

You can also use the check-raise tactic as a bluff or semi-bluff when you think your opponent may hold a better hand. Be sure to use the Esther Bluff for reinforcement. For example, you have flopped top pair on the board, but your kicker is mediocre. You suspect an opponent also has top pair, but could hold a better kicker.

Four Rules for Check-Raising

(1) From an early position, you flop what you believe is the top hand. You check in the hope that an opponent to your left will make the bet. After several others call his bet, it is your turn to act. Now make your raise, expecting most, if not all, of the bettors to call your raise. A multi-way hand is best. The rule here: Be sure one or more of your opponents is aggressive enough to make the bet. That may not happen if you are seated with a bunch of tight players. Note: You must be in an early position.

(2) If there is any doubt that an opponent will make the opening bet, don’t go for the check-raise. If you check and no one raises, you will have given an opponent a free card. (A no-no.) Bet for value instead.

(3) You can also use the check-raise as a bluff to make your opponent throw away the best hand. When using the check-raise as a bluff, don’t try it if there is more than one maniac or calling-station at your table. The most common situation where the check-raise can be used as a bluff is in a heads-up pot when you’ve called out of position. Check-raising as a semi-bluff is also a great way to add strength to the way you play your drawing hands. Next time you flop a flush draw, check-raise instead of check-call and give yourself a second way to win the pot.

(4) While you should be using the check-raise during every poker session, be careful not to do it so often that your opponents wise up to you.

The Power of the Raise

Even modestly skilled players realize the power of the raise. A raise can help you take the pot even when your hand does not improve on or after the flop. Example: It’s a $4-$8 limit hold’em game with a full table of nine players. In middle position, you are dealt Jd-Qc – a marginal starting hand. Using the hold’em algorithm, you quickly tally 30 points – 12 for the queen +11 for the jack + a bonus of 7 for the connectors. That score readily satisfies the 24-point minimum criteria for middle positions. So, you are in to see the flop. (Reference: Hold’em or Fold’em? – An Algorithm for Making the Key Decision).

There is a raise in front of you by a loose-aggressive player. You call with some trepidation. Let’s see how the flop fits your hand before investing further. A loose-passive player also calls.

The flop comes down: 6s-9d-2h. Garbage! – unless someone happens to hold a pocket pair of 9s, 6s or 2s, no one has hit this flop big. Those holdings are not likely. You doubt that either opponent has improved his hand. The early position quickly checks to you. The flop didn’t improve your hand either. But rather than check along to see the turn, you decide to bet out with a bold display of confidence and a reverse tell using the Esther Bluff. Both opponents muck their hands, and you take the pot –  not a big one to be sure, but it will pay a few blinds. More important, had you checked along, you would be offering a free card to your opponents. Most likely, one or both of them held honor cards in the hole. There’s a good chance one of them would connect on the turn or the river; in which case you lose. Better to win a small pot than to lose a much bigger one.

Other Uses

There are other occasions when a poor hand can win the pot. That would be the case if there is a relatively novice player at your table who is tight-passive. Call him John. He is seated two seats to your left. He is a young man who you suspect is fairly new to the game. Perhaps he learned how to play at Hyperino online casino. Every so often, he peeks at a chart showing starting hands for different positions.

The cards are dealt. The under-the-gun (UTG) player opens the betting. In middle position. you look down at pocket 7s. You call the bet. Meanwhile, John scans his chart. After some delay – met with scowls from some of the other players – he also calls.

The three of you see the flop: 6s-9d-2h (the same garbage flop as above). The UTG, the original better, checks his hand. From previous observation, you know he is not a deceptive player who might slow-play a strong hand. You are quite certain that the flop missed him, too.

You take the initiative and open the betting. John hesitates, and then folds his hand; and the UTG follows along. Once again, you have won the pot with what could well be the worst hand.