How to Play Against Different Types of Opponents
Action A1 and Reckless Rick are "rammer-jammers" they raise and reraise way more than they should. Both can be very dangerous when they catch some card game. they give so much loose action that you are often forced to give them action with less than the nuts, because they will both try to run over you. Action A1 is more dangerous than Reckless Rick, because he knows how to play poker when he gets good cards or a good flop. A1 will show you a good hand more often than Rick.
Reckless Rick's style might be better defined by calling him a maniac. Maniac are the most difficult players to play against because it is very hard to put them on a specific hand. You will usually have to show a maniac the best hand. The maniac is the easiest person to trap when you do have the good, but if you're catching only marginal cards, he can knowing bluff you or force you to take a stand when you don't want to.
Most of the time, a maniac like Rick will cash course and burn early. If he gets a holdem poker game of some chips, however, you will just have to be patient and wait for the opportunity to trap him with a better hand. Playing like a maniac isn't all bad. Sometimes a Reckless Rick will win a tournament because his aggressive style allows him to win a tournament because his aggressive style allows him to win many uncontested pots, substantially increasing his chances of winning the tournament.
Passive Paul is far easier to play against than All or Rick. He will call if he has anything, but he will seldom bet and get full value out of his premium hands. If we bet and Paul calls us after the flop, we know he has hit something, if only a draw. We can bet into Paul with good hands, but we must be leery of bluffing hands him if he has called on the flop. If Passive Paul comes out betting or check-raises us, we know he has a real hand, and we must act with caution. We should continue playing only with strong hands ourselves.
Novice Nancy is more unpredictable than Passive Paul. Nancy usually cannot determine the relative strength of her hand after the flop and, therefore, is prone to making mistakes. By overbetting her strong hands, she "tells" us that we should avoid playing against her unless we have a strong hand. Nancy also underbets a lot of her hands, thus not protecting them from being drawn out on high low poker. Perhaps her biggest weakness is calling when she should fold. It is somewhat risky to try to bluff Novice Nancy, because she is calling station. However, we can value bet some of our medium-strength hands Because she will call us with something less. Nancy is the type of player we welcome to the game because she will find a way to give away her chips even when she has a big stack.
Tight Ted is By far the most predictable player at the table. You always know where he is at. You can run over his Blinds, bluff him after the flop, and duck him when he bets. Ted does well against players like Action Al, Reck-less Rick and Novice Nancy, who make lots of mistakes. That is, assuming that Ted doesn't go broke waiting to find a premium hand to play against them. seven card stud Rick and Al know enough to be careful when Ted is in the pot betting into them.
Loose Louie is another player whose style is difficult to play poker against. Louie plays more hands than he should, even in raised pots, but he knows how to get value from his hands when he hits the flop. Because he plays so many hands he is often difficult to read. If you have a big pair and middle cards come on the flop, be careful Louie might have hit the flop. If he is willing to give you a lot of action or moves in on you, be careful. Louie's style will often cause him to get short stacked or broke early in the tournament, but if he hits a few hands, he can be dangerous. Often, however, he will continue to gamble with marginal poker hands, even with a big stack, and thus put himself in jeopardy of getting crippled or going broke later in the tournament. If he slows down with a big stack and doesn't gamble too much, he is capable of winning principles the tournament.
Solid Sam is not as conservative as Tight Ted, but he is easier to read than Al, Rick or Louie. He is a dangerous player who knows "where he is" (he understands the relative strength of his hand) at all times. He plays his position well, knows how to trap, and seldom gets out of line. When he is in the pot, especially if he comes in from early position, play cautiously against him. If he brings it in for a raise, you know that he has a solid hand-after all, his name is Solid Sam.
Being able to read Sam and being able to beat Sam and being able to beat Sam are two different things. Sam's Biggest problem in tournaments is that he might not get enough decent starting hands to play before the blinds and antes cause him to get short stacked. He is not willing to take the same gambling game that Al, Rick and Louie take. Same usually last a long time, but often stays short-chipped and goes Broke in the later rounds.
Authority Artie usually knows a lot less about the game than he thinks he does. Sometimes he will make a great play, such as snapping off a bluff when he has a weak he hand. Other times he will fold a fairly strong hand when he shouldn't. He always knows when you make a bad play, but seldom knows when he makes a bad play. Artie is usually so busy talking and instructing that he misses the more subtle things going on around him. He is not dumb, just egotistical. Artie winning card game once in awhile, but usually fails in the clutch.