Elite Strategy: No Limit Hold'em with David Peters

January 22 2010, David Peters, Michael Friedman

Poker is a game of information so it is in this vein that PokerNews brings viewers a strategy section devoted specifically to helping to develop one’s game. Titled ‘Elite Strategy,’ these articles feature the wisdom of some of poker’s top players and they provide viewers with a look at what goes on inside the head of the game’s elite when they are looking to build their stack.

The Player: David Peters

At 22, David Peters has become a well-respected player for his live and online play with 35 live cashes. Since turning 21, he has already won four live tournaments and amassed over $791,217 with the biggest win coming from the Heartland Poker Tour Soaring Eagle stop where he cashed for $130,000. His biggest online win came after he logged a Full Tilt $1K tournament for $110,000.

Game Type: No Limit Hold’em

The Out-of-Position Float

Floating in position is a move that’s commonly used and can be very effective, but another tactic that is used far less can also be very effective at the right time is the out-of-position float.

Very often, when you call a raise out of position you’ll be facing a continuation bet and if you just always give them credit for a hand you might start to get run over. Because of this, sometimes calling with nothing, with the intention of trying to take the pot away later in the hand, can lead to a big score. Although this move can be difficult out of position, it is a good way to keep your opponents guessing. It’s important, though, that you understand which way the board reads and which opponents it would be useful against.

Here is an example of how this play could be used:

A good example of a hand n which I used this tactic comes from an online tournament I played recently. A good player in middle position raised to 800 with blinds of 150/300. I called from the big blind with . The flop came . We both had about 25k to start the hand, so we were fairly deep. I checked and he bet 1,300. At this point, I thought this would be a good spot to float, since I expected he would bet there with the vast majority of his range, plus, because it’s a very dry flop, I figured he wouldn’t be able to put me on a missed draw, so I called.

The turn brought the . I checked, then he checked behind. Now, if he had bet here, I might have check-raised depending on whether I thought he was weak or not, but he just ended up checking behind, so I didn’t. The river was the . With about 4,600 out there, I bet 3,200,which sent him into the tank before he eventually folded. With no missed draws possible and the fact that I expected him to think that I would just check a hand like 6/6 or 8/8, I thought he would give me credit for having a king or better.

This particular spot was a good time to do it because it was a good flop for it, and my opponent was a thinking player. On a fairly draw-heavy flop against someone who pays off a lot of bets without really thinking about how the hand was played, I’d advise against it, since they’ll find a reason to think you're bluffing. Also, against a player who just mindlessly bets every street and is kind of a maniac, it probably isn’t a good idea to do it because they’ll frequently put you in very tough spot. Even though I didn’t run into this in this particular hand, it’s better to try it when you at least have some outs like a gut-shot straight draw or maybe an over card or two, but sometimes a good situation presents itself when you don’t have either of these.

The out-of-position float is not a play that should be overused, but when used at the right time, it is a good play to add to your arsenal because it keeps your opponents guessing and since looking for spots to accumulate chips is important, this is a great way to do just that.

David Peters is a member of Poker Players International’s Elite Team, an agency that represents scores of players spanning from Hall of Fame inductees to online superstars.

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Comments

PayRoII
08-10-2010 13:36

Very solid

Horoeschio
01-23-2010 02:16

Solid article. Thanks.

Chipmovr
01-22-2010 20:55

Some very good advice from one of the sicker players in the game today. Thanks for the free advice and best of luck in the future David!