Bluffing in No Limit Poker

'Dear Latest Casino Bonuses,' a member writes. 'I am a limit poker player and feel I am good enough to play no-limit. My only problem is bluffing. I just can't seem to make myself bet when I don't have a made hand. How can I overcome this obvious flaw in my game?' Jim W., Spokane, WA.

I checked with a couple of my compadres as well as with my own knowledge and prejudices with poker, and I came to the conclusion that you cannot overcome such a major obstacle.

There are many players who do a good job of playing limit poker. Some of them win 70 or even 80 percent of the time.

But when the make the move to no-limit, something happens to their game and their bankroll. It's like a baseball player who is rated AAA making the jump to the major leagues and discovers he can't hit a curveball. If you can't hit a curveball, you'll never make it in the majors. The same fact exists if you try to play serious no limit poker without having a handle on bluffing.

Doyle Brunson was the master of bluffing at no limit. He was so good that some of the top players didn't want to play with him.

Doyle was a psychologist when it came to playing no limit. He knew how to assess his opponents and when to pressure a player into folding.

When he had a certain amount of his chips committed to a pot, Doyle knew how far he was willing to go to protect those chips. He also was shrewd enough to know how the pros think. Doyle would play them like a deep sea fisherman plays a trophy-sized marlin or Bluefin tuna. In short, he had the guts and intelligence to risk a lot of money to win a bet and maintain his superiority.

Some people were not meant to play no limit poker. Maybe their blood doesn't run as cold as the blood of a true professional. Who knows where the line is drawn? I know I am not cold-blooded enough to stand up to some of them. In a poker tournament situation, no problem . But when you're playing for cash money, that's another situation that I would rather avoid, thank you.

Now I don't want to discourage Jim from trying to play no limit. If he is brave enough and has the money, go for it. He may discover he has a relish for trying to fake a bet with he has a losing hand. More power to him if he can get the job done.

But if he experiences losing session after losing session and just can't seem to put his game together, he shouldn't feel bad. Just stop playing no limit and find a comfortable level of limit poker to play. He will find that his game will sharply improve and he will discover himself winning instead of losing which, after all, is what poker is all about.

Of course, the best way to practice no limit is in a tournament. You get a lot more chips for your money and will be able to observe how other no limit players play while learning your own moves. You can make a $30 buy-in and receive $5,000 or $10,000 in chips, which will give you a lot of playing power.

Playing good no limit poker requires a special kind of courage and heart that some players simply don't have. There are many broken would-be no limit players along the Boulevard of Broken Dreams. If they had stuck to their proper level of limit poker, that wouldn't have happened. Good luck to Jim in whatever direction he decides to travel.

Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.

(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter and poker player who lives in Phoenx, AZ. He has published 2,000 articles in 50 magazines and 125 newspapers. If you want to share a gambling story or book idea with him, send an email to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).