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Knowing when to change gears


Poker skills are incomplete without a clear understanding of when and how to change gears. Changing gears refers to the skilful change of strategy with reference to what stage of a tournament you are playing in, and your chip count in comparison with others as well as the blind size.

Changing the way you play when your opponents think they have a handle on your style of play can confuse or mislead them, to your advantage. For instance, playing loose suddenly when you have been playing tight, or getting aggressive at a particular point in the game can lead your opponents down the wrong track and end up in them making mistakes that are beneficial to your position in the game.  These subtle changes will keep you from hitting the poker deposit button instead of the cashout button.

Knowing when to change gears is particularly important in poker tournaments. It’s a good idea to spend some time when you start playing in the tournament getting to learn as much as you can about your opponents’ style of play. This information will be invaluable when the time comes for you to change your approach to the game.

What do you need to know in order to be able to change gears with good result? You must have a good understanding of the way in which your opponents tend to play, be aware of what your opponent thinks of your game and style of play and even what your opponents think you think!

There are various factors to consider when you change gears. For one thing, most of your rivals will look back on your game for the previous half hour, and you can use this fact to change gears appropriately.  A good time to change gears in a tournament is when a new player replaces an eliminated one – for instance, if you are seeking to be the chip leader when there is a change of player, you could play loose aggressive if the new player’s stack is not too high. You must also take your opponents’ ability to realize when others are switching gears into account.

Skilled poker players change gears in reference to whom they are playing against. For example, you find yourself with nothing in your hand when you are up against a calling station in a pot. In such a case you would normally bluff, hoping that your opponents have not hit the flop either. Instead, you could change gears and check. Or you could be playing with a skilled player who has a good understanding of betting patterns – over-bet instead of slow-playing when you have a big nut hand and he or she could be fooled into thinking you are bluffing.

As you gain experience with changing gears in poker, you should be able to be ready to switch your style of play at any time. A skilled poker player is one who can smoothly adapt to the changing scenario during a game.

Gaining an understanding of when to switch gears in poker will improve your game considerably, and is well worth the effort and practice you put in.