[Thinkerbell]

Encouraging a player to bet into you is part of trapping. The most important element of this is you have to have the winning hand, no doubt. If there's any chance you don't, then the other player might be trapping YOU.
Playing like this is a sign of experience. A less experienced player gets a good hand, or has the nuts, and they bet big or go all in right away. (Of course, there's plenty of scenarios in which making big bets or going all in early is the right thing to do.) This sends a pretty strong signal about what he has, and players will fold. So the hand may be won, but the pot isn't very big for the quality of the hand.

[wheeloftime]

Thinkerbell
Love it. Call it the ode to the poker god.

[Cardie]

I am glad I read this thread. I have actually learned a few things that I think will add to my poker strategy.

[chipraker420]

Did you take that quote out of my book? I coulda swore that was the start of chapter 2. PMSL!!

[americanwit]

In draw poker, the most common draw poker is Jacks or better. That's when you have a pair of Jacks or better and you can only play or start opening bet if you have that. For example, if the first player that has been dealt to has Jacks or better, he will actually open the bet and place his bet. This is kind of a bad situation for him as a strategy because now he has to wait for everybody at the table to go out and make their decisions and they know since he opened the bet that he has at least Jacks or better in his hand. So they can bet heavy and try to force him out making him think that they have three of a kind, flush, full house or they would generally may have that and try to force them out well. So acting first and opening up in Jacks or better is sometimes a bad situation to be in. However, if you are the dealer you act last. Everybody around the table has checked, you know that they don't have Jacks or better to open the game and at that point if you have Jacks or better, that is when your hand becomes a really strong position to play in. And you can start the bet and everybody else is forced to fold or stay in and hope for the best. And another common thing that people do the best way mathematically to improve their pair of Jacks or better is that they discard three cards and let the dealer give them three new cards. That is good but it also tells everybody at the table that you have a pair. A better way to do it is to only discard two of the three cards keeping one card as a kicker and that will kind of play a little bit of psychology on the people at the table making them think that you probably have three of a kind and you are maybe trying for a full house or something like that. So these are all things you want to think about when you are playing the game strategies and little things like that positioning of where you are sitting, that you can mess with the other players because it is the game of skill. It's also a game of psychology though. If you are putting fear in somebody by placing their bet and their money is on the line, they don't want to lose it, the risk is too high for them, they are going to full and you are going to win what's in the pot.
Found at expertvillage . com