On Bluffing

Gus Hansen has some recent blog post about bluffing here. Some interesting thoughts by him that are worth consideration:

“Bluffing is a key component to a winning poker strategy, and therefore I am constantly trying to add more and more bluffing features into my game. Some might think that I already bluff too much, but truth be told I still need to work on my bluffing frequencies in some specific situations.The fact that trickery and deception play a significantly larger role in short-handed poker makes the matter even more imminent. In heads-up play you are constantly on the move, and being able to pull the trigger in all sorts of situations with or without a hand is of utmost importance.”

“Notice that if I don't have any experience playing 'live' against someone, I always put them in a much tighter category than where I would be found. Against most opponents in big buy-in tournaments, a decent-sized bet on the turn will be enough to take out hands like AQ and AJ and maybe even 88 as well.”

“From past experiences I know for a fact, that each and every tournament player, I have encountered out there, cherish their chips to such a degree that bluffing should be upgraded from an occasional occurrence to a major weapon at your disposal in every hand you play.”

I don’t know if he is just advertising, but I would wager not. Against the right players, its very important to keep these thoughts in mind. Against the right players.