Schizo Poker

I had an educational HORSE session last night in the home game.

One hand stands out. It was an S hand — seven card stud — a game I don’t actually know very well. Looking back on my own play, I see that I played like a n00b, and have more understanding into the thought processes of the newbie.

I had a pair of Queens and raised to open, behind one limper. The bring-in, Mike, calls me, and the limper, Charlie, does too. Fourth street looks like no trouble, so I bet it out. Mike raises. Charlie calls. Now the action is to me, and I may call, fold or raise.

I called, and that was a mistake. I know it was a mistake because at the showdown I learned I was ahead at the time, which means I should have raised. The bring-in was pushing his draw. And it worked. It made me freeze up and I didn’t know what to do, so I just called, and became a passive check-call player for the remaining streets, wondering if my Queens were good and hoping to hit two pair. He didn’t have any cards higher than a queen showing, but I was worried that he had two pair or trips.

That’s no way to play poker. I should have raised, or if I thought I was actually behind, folded. It turned out that Charlie also had Queens and he drew a better kick on seventh street. I failed to make either of them pay for their crap draws. Big mistake.

Mike’s semi-bluff raise put me on the defensive, and he won that hand (even though he didn’t take the pot) because he got us both to make mistakes. We let him draw for cheap as free, and if his draw would have hit, we would have paid him off. Also, if my concern that he had two pair or trips at the time was true, then I was paying him off all along.

So, I learned that in that situation, it was raise or fold. Just calling along to see what happens is the mark of the n00b.