On Deception and Self-Deception: Part II

On Deception and Self-Deception: Part II
By Barry Tanenbaum

In Part I of this article, we discussed when and why to be deceptive. We concluded the you should make deceptive plays sparingly, and only when there is a clear reason why you need to be deceptive, and this hand will help you do that.

We continue with Part II, which discusses what plays to make and avoid in making your deceptive plays.

Varying your play does not necessarily mean playing weak hands strongly before the flop.

In the (admittedly extreme) example we just looked at, the deception was to play weak hands strongly before the flop. That is what a lot of people think of when they discuss deceptive play. Others think the opposite, and believe they should play strong hands weakly before the flop, which is even worse.

Your reputation as a deceptive player can be made without ever making a non-standard play before the flop. This is very important because what you really want, when all is said and done, is to be thought of as a tricky, difficult to read player while in fact playing very straightforwardly. Remarkably, this is not all that difficult to achieve. There are many opportunities after the flop to vary your play and become unpredictable without costing yourself money. In addition, in many games, there are excellent opportunities to make correct plays your opponents will not recognize as such, and they will think you are tricky when you are not.

Let us look at pre-flop play. I once held 77 in middle position. Several players called the blind, and I did as well. After a couple of others called, the button raised. The blinds called the raise, as did all of the other early callers. I made it three bets.

Now this is not a typical play, but we were eight handed, and the extra bet I was putting in was virtually free. (Because we were eight-handed, and the odds against flopping a set are about 7.5 to one, the extra bet I was making was virtually free). Some players like to make this third bet with QJs or KQs, which are big drawing hands, and that is not a bad play. I do not recall seeing this particular play made with 77. As it happens, it worked and I got to show my hand down and win a large pot. Interestingly, I did not flop a set to do so. The flop was 333, and I got action from an AQ and AK, who were sure I had a QJs type of hand.

But I really wanted to talk about post-flop deception. You can mix up your play any number of ways that will make opponents think you are deceptive. You can play big draws strongly sometimes, and not others. For example, you have AdQd. You raise pre-flop and get three callers. The flop is Td5c3d. You lead at it, the next player raises and one other player calls. Your reraise here is optional. You are getting a fair price on your draw if you raise, as you certainly would with, say, KK. But if you get to show down you hand, your typical opponent will only see that you made it three bets and "did not have anything."

Other similar opportunities include free card plays, raising occasionally post-flop with overcards instead of over pairs, check-raising instead of leading, and possibly even slowplaying. Making these plays some of the time makes you fairly unreadable. Proper application of these kinds of plays confuses the average opponent as to what you might have. This effect carries over into the majority of the time when none of these plays is available or warranted, and you play honestly, but get incorrect calls and folds because of your reputation.

You should rarely practice deception by playing strong hands weakly

The whole idea behind playing selective, aggressive poker is to get yourself into a situation where you have an excellent chance of winning. So when you get there, why do so many of you suddenly decide you have to cleverly slow-play, or smooth call, or some other play in which you fail to maximize the edge you so patiently waited to create? They might all fold, you say. Yes, and they might not.

Here is a hand from actual play. A fellow at a $6-$12 table was treating the table to a lesson on every hand. A hand arose in which six players took the flop. The board came 663. Everyone checked to me in last position, and I checked as well. The turn came a 9. Everyone checked again. The river was a 2, and we all checked a final time. The "expert" now showed us pocket sixes! He had flopped quads and never bet. Ever. He then was kind enough to explain to us (at length) that this was the one and only correct way to play the hand. Well, I beg to differ. This was a low limit game, and if he simply bet the flop, some people would have called. They usually do. Here he was being ultimately clever with a monster hand and made no money at all.

Now there is a whole lot more to poker than simply betting the best hand. And there are lots of times when that is not a good idea. But in terms of deception, I really advise you to play your strong hands strongly. And as often as possible.

Now if you begin to feel that playing your strong hands strongly is beginning to work against you, and you feel it is time to do something deceptive to counter that, play a weak hand strongly. Remember the advice earlier that you need clear evidence that your correct play is not working as well as it should.

When you feel deception is really required, do not give up your edge on strong hands. Bet them all strongly. If you have AA, raise before the flop and are reraised, go ahead and raise again. Do not call because "he might put me on aces." First, people rarely try to put you on anything. They play their own hands. Second, even if most people know you have aces, they still stay in to draw out.

But if you really feel that putting in the fourth bet with AA will give away your hand, then do it anyway! Sometime later, if the opportunity arises, put in the fourth bet with a different hand. Something like 88, AKs or KQs. If they read you for aces, fine. If you get to show down your hand (and hopefully win), they may be less likely to assume you have aces next time.

Note I am not saying play KQs like aces. After the flop, play well. Sure, you might try to represent aces since you feel that is what they think you have (or you would not be trying a deceptive play), but do not get carried away. You are not required to lose more money just because you tried to make a deceptive play.

Just like bluffing, you are still trying to win pots, not advertise your cleverness. Unless you are forced to, do not show the deceptive hand.

One of the stressful aspects of poker is that it is a lonely activity. By that I mean that most of your best plays will remain known only to you. You get to congratulate yourself, pat yourself on the back, cheer silently and go onto the next hand.

If you are doing all of the right things, you will win pots without the best hand. Do not show these hands. An aura of mystery is a far better thing than the momentary rush you will get by showing people how clever you are.

In a recent hand I raised in middle position with QhJh. An excellent player from the small blind made it three bets. The flop came 853, all diamonds. He bet and I raised. He called. When the diamond 2 came on the turn, he checked and I bet. He forlornly displayed his KcKh and tossed them sadly into the muck. I tipped the dealer and stacked the pot. I did not show him my hand. I did not needle him. Far better that he believes he played well, and mucks his winner again.

This topic does not have as much to do with mainstream deception as the others, but if you start playing deceptively, this sort of thing will happen to you. You will be tempted to show the hand for two reasons. One is to get accolades (or some reaction) from the others at the table. The other is that you might be thinking "Here I played deceptively, but if I do not show the hand, no one will know and I will lose all that value from my deceptive play."

Well, you are not playing for accolades; you are playing for cash. At least if you are the kind of player I am writing this for. If your deception works, and you win a pot without a showdown, even better. That means you are still hard to read, you can make the same play again, and you have more money than you used to.

In summary, many players are deceptive at the wrong times, with the wrong hands and for the wrong reasons. Proper deception, like all of poker, requires thinking through the situation, having a well-articulated reason, and never losing sight of the fact that profit is your goal.