Exploiting Table Image

Sometimes, during a poker tournament, a set of circumstances occur that mean you have a specific table image.

Last night, I was involved in very few hands pre-flop, only made a couple of smallish continuation bets, checked the rest of the time, and folded to aggression. The two hands that did go to showdown ended up doubling me up each time, but both were very strong hands (a set and two pair) so other players watching these hands would know I need a strong hand before calling a big bet, I would usually fold.

If you look at just these facts without understanding the reasoning behind them, then you would put me safely in the rock category, meaning that aggression and big bets would get me to fold in most circumstances.

This affects the way other players play you.

I started getting lots of pre-flop raises and all ins.

Lots of players, even those who weren't being that aggressive otherwise, started betting into me.

So how does this get exploited?

Patience first. Then think.

I am seeing an observable repeatable pattern from multiple players that can be exploited. In four main ways:

1. Pre-flop. Push all in or call an all in with strong holdings to double up.
2. Both. Call a big pre flop raise and bet into the flop large.
3. Post flop. Play a pre-flop raise weakly until the river and then double any bets with good holdings.
4. Post flop. Make a large check raise.

The first is simply about range, you are waiting to establish a range on the pre-flop all in callers so that you can call near the top of their range.

The second is taking advantage of the rock reputation. Most players will believe when a rock calls a big pre-flop raise, and then believe that the rock has hit when they bet big post flop (particularly if they have seen examples of lots of flop checking and folding to raises in previous hands). There is bluffing opportunity here.

The third is trapping with a strong hand by playing it weakly. So, even though your hand that you raised with pre-flop has hit, you make the same weak continuation bet you have previously (2x bb). Your opponent calls. You check the turn. They check the turn. On the river, thanks to your reputation, they assume you have nothing. If they have position, you check, they bet, you at least double it. If you have position, you at least double their lead out be on the river.

The fourth is again taking advantage of the rock reputation. When a rock does make a big bet, most players without top notch holdings will fold. There is bluffing opportunity here.

As in all poker, even making the right decisions and moves doesn't guarantee victory, after being successful at using strategy number 4 for one hand, I called an over aggressive all in player from the small blind in the big blind. Who had pushed three times on me in the last 20 hands.

I called with A Q off.

They had JQ off.

They hit the J and I was out.

The outcome was not important. The important thing was understanding how table circumstances can lead to you having a specific table image, whether accurate or not. Figuring out ways of exploiting that table image will lead to profits over time.