Many people are constantly trying to find new pastimes as they’ve gotten tired of their old ones or they’re simply unable to partake in them right now for whatever reason. Oftentimes these people gravitate towards poker since it’s an incredibly popular game and it’s quite fun to play. One of the things that they often worry about is their belief that poker requires not only a lot of skill but also lots of bluffing. This isn’t true and today we’ll cover how to play poker with little to no bluffing as it is a viable strategy and many people have earned lots of money from it, it’s even a defining trait of some popular poker players. So let’s get into it.
Is bluffing really not needed?
Bluffing is only one part of poker so it shouldn’t surprise you that you can play without utilizing it at all. This isn’t what shocks most people, what shocks people is the fact that playing without bluffs is not only a completely viable strategy on par with others, but it can oftentimes lead to more wins than if you had tried to bluff. Most people expect that not utilizing even a single aspect of a game will lead to lower win rates but this isn’t true for poker which is one of the things that makes it so special.
Bluffing can be viewed as a gambit, i.e. a calculated risk that can have a good payoff if it goes well. The issue here is that even if the risk is calculated you may have the issue of miscalculating and getting burned. Of course, higher risks generally lead to higher rewards, but if you wish for consistency then foregoing bluffs is a pretty decent way to do so. By only playing hands that statistically have high chances of resulting in a win you can minimize losses while maintaining good winnings.
How does it work?
This strat, as you may have already assumed, requires a decent knowledge of poker. You need to know how good different hands are statistically and whether or not they’re good enough to raise. This is something that will take a decent while to learn but once you do it will be well worth it. Being able to quickly decide whether you have a good enough chance of a winning hand is crucial for this strategy to work at all.
Once you have acquired the necessary knowledge then you simply need to play based on the win percentages of those hands. You’re bound to get people calling your bluff pretty frequently, but little do they know that you aren’t bluffing and that you actually do have a very good hand. Of course, sometimes they will still have better hands than you, it’s just how it is, but it will still lead to a very respectable number of wins.
Won’t people catch on?
The thing that makes this strat so good is that you’re basically relying on the win percentage that your hand intrinsically has. This means that at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter if people catch on or not. You will of course have a better time if people do think you’re bluffing, but even if they don’t it doesn’t change your situation very much. This means that there are very few holes in your game plan aside from having bad luck but everyone is limited by that in the same way.
Knowing that there is very little your opponents can do to influence whether you lose or win is an incredibly good feeling and can lead to higher confidence. You rely completely on the luck of the draw and your own knowledge and intuition. You don’t need to be worrying about whether you’ll be losing more chips because of a bluff failing or not. And keep in mind it also works online, so if you’re looking to play poker with bitcoin it’s still a viable strategy.
Conclusion
While it may seem like an unusual or even “boring” way to play to some, it’s certainly been proven to work when you’re simply going for as many winnings as possible. Give it a shot and see how you enjoy it. You might even realize that you enjoy it and find a new and fun way to play.
Disclaimer:
- As per the Public Gambling Act of 1867, all Indian states, except Goa, Daman and Sikkim, prohibit gambling
- Land-based casinos are legalized, with certain guidelines, in Goa and Daman, as per the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act 1976
- Land-based casinos, Online gambling and E-gaming (games of chance) are legalized in Sikkim under the Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Rules 2009
- Only some Indian states have legalized online/regular lotteries as per and subject to the conditions laid down by state laws. Kindly refer to the same here
- Horse racing and betting on horse racing, including online betting, is permitted only in a licensed premise in select states. Kindly refer to the 1996 Judgement by the Supreme Court Of India here and for more information
- This article does not endorse or express the views of Qrius and/or any of its staff.
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