Poker Players Who Think They’re Playing Bingo

We’ve all done it in the past. Rocked up to a poker table, whether live or virtual, and played random strategies without any thought about what was really going on. Almost as if we were playing bingo and had no influence over the result.

Maybe if we had headed over to BingoSites.net we’d have never learned how to play properly and would still be playing randomly.

But once we did finally learn how to play poker properly, one of the biggest problems we found was dealing with recreational players who are unpredictable. It’s quite perverse that a skilled player can have so much trouble dealing with one who treats the game like bingo.

Let’s have a quick look at some of the different ways bingo players operate, so we can adjust and not fall into any of their traps.

Calling stations: Probably the most common mistake a bingo player makes is calling too much. Whether that’s calling with a minimal showdown hand for too many bets, or calling with a pathetic draw for too little reward.

The obvious way to adjust is to never bluff these guys, unless you pick up a specific read that they will always call on the flop and turn but fold to a third barrel.

The other way is to widen your value betting range. If you have a hand with marginal showdown value that normally wants to play passively and not build too big a pot, then these hands will be worth betting if you get called by worse often.

Maniacs: These are the guys that get a thrill from trying to bluff a player off the best hand, and are probably the worst type of bingo player to deal with. You need to understand that at some point you’re going to have to close your eye and click call

The difficulty is that it’s never clear just how far you must widen your calling range. The only advice that can be given is that you must use every piece of information that the player in question has given you. Don’t let them run over you, but also don’t get frustrated and make big calls with terrible hands.

Donks: These players have absolutely no idea what poker strategy looks like, and change their overall plan on every hand. In a nutshell it’s almost impossible to pin these guys down, but don’t let that worry you.

Your plan is to play ABC poker and then let them hang themselves. Don’t try any elaborate bluffs, although it’s always good to throw the occasional one in the hope you get called, likely meaning your value hands will get called more frequently later on.

If you pick up that they’re calling too wide over a period of hands then hammer them for value. Easy game!

Bingo players are the lifeblood of poker at the amateur level. Don’t be put off by their crazy strategies and unpredictable nature. These players are why poker is still very much beatable.