Speed Thinking

Is fast thinking a gift at birth or can it be developed? Poker is a game of speed. This is particularly true in a casino or card club setting where there is a center dealer provided by the club. The dealer has an interest in keeping the game moving quickly because he makes most of his money on tips. Therefore, the more hands he gets out, the more money he makes. The better dealers will encourage you to act quickly. They do this in subtle and overt ways. Their subtle ways are by acting quickly themselves, and overtly by pointing to you, speaking your name and suggesting you act.

Most of the times you will not need extra time to decide what you want to do. However, there are times, important times, when you must make a critical decision. Quite often, an extra second or three will help you make the best choice. Here are three suggestions on ways to improve your speed and obtain the extra seconds that you might need:

A. I am a firm believer in looking at your hole cards as soon as they are delivered. If I should catch a marginal hand, I want to check out my position and the quality of the players yet to act. If I should catch a premium hand, I want to be able to ascertain the best way to bet this hand to maximize the potential profit. One trick I use in Seven Card Stud is to try to sit in number one or two seats to the left of the dealer.

That way I get my cards a few seconds before the other players and I can plan some strategy.

B. If I need some extra time and the dealer is looking at me, expecting me to act, I will often hold up one finger. This is the non-verbal way of telling the dealer, "I'm with the hand, but I need to consider my options. Please wait just a bit." Another way is to verbally ask for time. This communicates the same message.

C. By far the most profitable way to speed up your reaction time is to do a good bit of homework. Take the time to mentally work through what you believe to be the best way to react to anyone of several common situations. For instance, have a plan in mind for when you catch the big pairs, what to do with rolled-up trips in Seven Card Stud, when to raise to obtain a free card, and when to semi-bluff. If you have baseline reactions to these usually profitable situations, your reaction time will often be shorter and you will most likely have a more profitable session. The more of these relatively common situations you are prepared for, the more accurate your betting will be.

BETTER OBSERVATIONS

There is another direct benefit from speed thinking.

If you have prepared in advance, you will be much more observant of the other players and be able to pick up clues from them. If you are focused only on your hand and how to play it, you won't be as observant of others as you could be.

Most of us are not terribly gifted with speed thinking.

Therefore we need to find and use the tricks to assist us in cutting down the time we need. Asking for time is one way to gain a few seconds; seat selection is another way. In my opinion, the best way is to train your mind to have a catalog of plays at the ready.