When you have a big hand, and you check, call, or bet small, you are slow playing your hand. This tactic sometimes pays off big. Generally, this is a dangerous and foolish play that can cost you chips.
I’m not saying that you should never slow play. I do think that you need the right situation to do it. Most players slow play at the wrong times. Let’s look at why you should be careful.
Let’s look at a classic slow play as it goes terribly wrong. Your hand is AA. With the blinds at 10/20 you bet 40 from under the gun. There are two callers. The flop comes out A 6 10 rainbow.
You continue with a small bet to disguise your big hand. One opponent calls you. The turn card is a 9. You make another small raise hoping to keep him around.
Your opponent, all of a sudden, fires a big raise back at you. You just call, planning to bet the river. The river is a 2. Now you make a big raise, hoping for a call. He not only calls, he raises you all in.
You’re surprised, but thinking you’ve got this in the bag you call. You are shocked when he shows 7 8, making a straight. Did you just do that?
When you bet small pre flop, you let people in. When you bet small on the flop, you kept them around. When he pushes all in, you have to call, and you’re done.
Were you a victim of bad luck? Or was it bad play? I think you already know the answer.
With deep stacks, a minimum raise will be called by a lot of hands. By minimum raising on the flop, you will get called by long shot hands. When you call at the end you are expecting to see a smaller set, or two pair. If he had these hands you didn’t need to slow play.
When you get beat by his straight you should see the folly of the slow play. If he had a made hand, as you hoped he had, he would have called a big bet after the flop. A player with a gut shot straight draw should fold. This is even more pronounced if you raise more pre flop. Then when you make a strong bet after the flop it is a lot more chips to risk on a gut shot.
This is a good example of the risk of slow playing. There is a time and place for this tactic. Normally, just bet your good hands, and take what you can get.