SLOWPLAYING

SLOWPLAYING

So you got a pair of Aces.  All right, no reason to dance from the rooftops.  Even a stopped watch is right twice a day.  Now let’s see what you do with them.  While it’s very difficult to calculate how many times Aces hold on to win, I think a fairly scientific formula of “quite often” holds true.  But Aces can be cracked. 

So what is the correct way to play them?  “Raise,” you say.  “Nice thought,” I say.  A solid pro will tell you if you’re not going to fold, you might as well raise.  But a more interesting proposition may be to slowplay. 

Slowplay is used to induce more money into the pot when you have a monster hand.  The thinking is that if you come out strong with those pocket Aces, you’re going to scare the pot away.  Yeah, sure, you win.  But you don’t get much money for your trouble.  Slowplaying assures there of being more money in the pot, but does not assure you of the win.

The solution lies in the situation.  You’re more likely to pull off a successful slowplay if you have position on only one or two callers.  The more players in the pot, the more likely someone is to catch something to crack your aces.