Ever wonder if that whole “slow and steady wins the race” thing applies to more than just running? Well, let me tell you, in poker, it’s a blessing! We’re talking about slow play here — a technique that’s probably more loaded with tricks than Usain Bolt’s starting blocks.
It all begins when you’re dealt a hand so good it makes you want to dance, but instead of betting big, you play it cool, weak.
You’re silently lurking with your awesome cards while everyone else is none the wiser. It’s crafty, it’s smart, and if you pull it off, you could be raking in more chips than you ever dreamed of.
No, hold up! Don’t go rushing off to go all “slow and steady” on everyone just yet! We’ve got 3 prime scenarios where slow-play really struts its stuff. So settle in, take it nice and easy, and let’s get you prepped for some seriously sly poker action!
In poker, “position” refers to where a player sits in relation to the dealer button. Being “in position” means you act after your opponents during a betting round, while being “out of position” means you act before them.
The later your position, the more information you gather. You get to see how others act before making your decision, which helps you gauge their hand strength, assess their willingness to bet, and adjust your own actions accordingly.
This might remind you of the “Glass Stepping Stones” game in the super 2021 TV show “Squid Game”, where the last three survivors made it across the glass bridge because the early players, by getting eliminated, “helped” them figure out which panes were probably sturdy tempered glass.
You see, being in position gives you more control over the pot size. You can check to see another card for free, bet small to entice calls or bet big to force folds. This flexibility is paramount when slow-playing.
With a strong hand in position, you can slow-play by initially acting weak. This encourages opponents to stay in the hand, potentially building a larger pot. As the hand progresses, you can gradually increase your aggression, extracting maximum value by betting or raising when your opponents are more committed.
In poker, “the nuts” refers to the absolute best possible hand at any given moment, a hand that cannot be beaten.
The “flop” happens when the dealer places the first three community cards face-up in the middle of the table. These cards are available for everyone to use to make their hand.
A “dry board” means these community cards don’t really connect with each other — there’s a scarcity of immediate draws or potential for improvement for most hands. The cards aren’t all the same suit, and they’re not in a sequence. For example, if the flop shows a 2 of hearts (2♥️), a 7 of clubs ( 7♣️), and a King of diamonds (K♦️), they don’t really go together.
So, let’s “flop the nuts on a dry board” — making the best possible hand with those first three community cards (2 of hearts, 7 of clubs, and King of diamonds), while those cards don’t look very exciting to anyone else.
First, we need to consider what cards we might have in our hands (our “hole cards”). The best possible hand would use both of our hole cards along with the King on the board. Given this flop, the absolute best hand (the “nuts”) would be King-King (in our hole cards). This would give us three-of-a-kind Kings, often called “a set of Kings”.
A dry board is less likely to improve opponents’ hands because there are fewer combinations of cards that would give them a stronger hand. This means your “nuts” hand is safer and less likely to be outdrawn on later streets.
Slow-playing the nuts on a dry board can be a powerful strategy. As you check or bet small at first, you appear weak and encourage opponents to continue betting, hoping to improve their hands.
As the hand advances and the board remains relatively unhelpful, your opponents may become more desperate and bluff or overplay weaker hands.
This is where your secret superpower (nuts hand) comes in handy! Because you’ve been acting as if you don’t have anything special, the other players might not expect you to suddenly start betting a lot. But that’s exactly what you do!
Holding off and then making a big bet later in the game can win you a lot more chips than showing your strong hand right away. Others dig a bigger hole before you show them you had the treasure all along.
In poker, “loose-aggressive” (LAG) players are those who play a wide range of starting hands (loose) and tend to bet and raise frequently (aggressive, kind of the Joker character in poker). They’re action-oriented and love building large pots.
If you’re targeting anyone for slow play, it should be them, especially when you have a monster hand. LAG players are more likely to bet multiple streets, even with weaker hands, giving you plenty of chances to trap them.
Initially, what you have to do is check or call with your monster (YES); you disguise its strength and encourage them to keep bluffing or overvaluing their own hands.
Lure them into a false sense of security and extract maximum value from their loose and aggressive tendencies. That is the spirit!
For forever we’ve been talking about going slowly in your games, albeit, it’s clear that sluggishness has somehow failed to account for the risks associated with slow playing.
First and foremost, slow playing can lead to missed value. By not betting or raising, you might miss out on extracting the maximum amount of money from your opponents.
Betting or raising when you hold a strong hand can help grow the pot. Your opponents might call your bets thinking they have a chance, and then — boom — more money for you when you win.
But if you always play it cool and don’t bet much, you’re essentially leaving money on the table.
Additionally, there’s always the risk of being outdrawn. Your seemingly unbeatable hand can become vulnerable on later streets, and slow playing gives opponents the opportunity to improve their hands and potentially beat yours.
So, while slow playing can be sneaky and effective sometimes, you need to know when to step on the gas and start betting big. Don’t blindly stick to slow playing and end up missing opportunities and losing pots.
You need to find the perfect middle ground between fooling your opponents and getting paid when you’ve got the goods!
And very importantly — don’t slow play with multiple opponents. Slow-playing can become a poor choice due to the additional challenges of post-flop situations. You could unknowingly give someone the card they need to beat you.
