Why Jamie Gold is Better than You Think

Poker players, and gamblers in general, are probably some of the most honest people you will ever meet. This shouldn’t be confused with them being “good” people, although I’m sure there are a few completely altruistic souls. Their motivation for honesty is one of self-preservation. For example, if you lose a bet that you decide to not pay off, your reputation will suffer and your action will consequently dry up. If Pope Benedict and Doyle Brunson both owed me $10,000, payable tomorrow at noon, I would be more concerned about the Holy Father coming through than Todd’s Father.

All the truthfulness and honesty is abandoned as soon as you get a group of players to the felt. Poker, by its very nature, is a game of deceit. There will be times when you tell a story with your chips that is complete fiction, but you hope that it is believable. Someone once said that fiction is harder to write than non-fiction because it has to make sense. This is also true of your “chip story”. It has to logically fit into the chain of events to be successful.

If you read the poker instructional books and articles, watch all of the videos, and listen to the poker podcasts, one thing is next to universally accepted: you do the exact opposite of what the table (your opponents) is doing. If the table is playing tight, you loosen your game. If you’re at a table full of maniacs, you tighten up and pick your spots. I’ve heard this advice, as I’m sure you have, more times than I can count. So much that it is accepted as a basic pillar in your poker strategy.

What if your table can’t be categorized as loose or tight? What strategy could you employ to be completely opposite of the behavior of your table? According to the Book of Gold, honesty is the best policy. At first, that sounds slightly ridiculous, but let’s analyze a little deeper. All the players at the table are trying to deceive you. They’re throwing out “false” tells, but, hell, you know that weak means strong. And, they know that you know that. On the other hand, you know that they know that you know that weak means strong. So, where does it end? Does the uneasy sigh as they push all-in really mean that they are weak?

Wouldn’t it be a wrench in the works if a player was honest about his holdings? That, to me, was the genius of Gold. For instance, you’re dealt pocket 10’s. A 3x big blind raise narrows the field down to one other player. The flop comes 3-7-10 and you put out a pot-sized bet. Your opponent intently studies you: how you put the chips in the pot, how you breathe, etc. You look him right in the eye and say, “You don’t want to call that. I’ve got top set.” Invariably, not only will he call your bet, he’ll probably raise you.

No matter what you think of Gold, you have to give him credit for the strategy he employed to win the Main Event. It was different. It was original. And, as all the “good” poker books direct, it was the exact opposite of the behavior of his opponents.

Because nowhere on Earth is honesty so out of place and unwelcome as at the poker table.

And, for your entertainment:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yToEYmJ6Z3k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KC83Iy0C3Ho

Some “Gold”en Moments…

MikeShayne