Han Solo Poker

Remember that scene in Star Wars where Han and Chewie are chasing a bunch of stormtroopers down the halls of the deathstar? It takes the stormtroopers a few minutes before they realize "Hey, why are we running? We've got these guys out numbered!" and then they turn and chase Han and Chewie. Well something like that can happen at the poker table; you can rake in the pot if act boldly enough, but you have to take it down before the stormtroopers figure out what's going on. Sometimes weird things happen at the poker table and you can profit from the weirdness by acting boldly. In a confusing situation, the human instinct is to flee - so you can induce that flight instinct in your opponent by going on the offensive.

Case in point: I was playing a tournament in which I had made it to the final table with a sizable chip lead. I was playing very tight poker- and was well aware that I could now probably steal some pots based on my tight image. I was in the big blind, but I made the mistake of thinking I was under-the-gun and therefore first to act. I tried to fold my 7 4 off suit, but the dealer pushed my cards back to me, explaining that I'm in the big blind. Now technically speaking she made a mistake - even though I had folded out of turn, I had still folded and my hand should have been dead. But she gave me my cards back. No-one else at the table made any objection because they all thought it was funny that I made this mistake, and obviously I was going to fold if anyone raised my big blind. "That's a bit of a tell!" one joked and the others all laughed. And I laughed too - oopsie! Sure enough a guy in late position puts in a raise and it folds to me.

This is where I'm supposed to sheepishly fold, right? For some strange reason my instinct tells me it's time to do the unexpected. "You know, I think I might just play this. I call." This elicits more laughter. The flop comes with an ace and two rags - neither of which is a 7 or a 4. I check. My opponent bets half the pot and I don't even hesitate before pushing all-in. My thinking is that if he has an ace he'll call and i'll lose - but he probably doesn't have an ace. With less than top pair, he will almost certainly fold with his tournament life on the line. It is a confusing situation for him. If he really thinks it through, it will probably dawn on him that I'm probably bluffing but I'm counting on him folding before he reaches that point, that hey, why am I running? moment. Luckily for me the weirdness of the situation had him off-balance and he did what most poker players do when they are attacked - they fold.