Hi all,

I acted (and played) like a fish last night for the first hour or so. Limped every trash hand, bet $5 on every street whether or not I had it. Called 25BB AI OTT with bottom pair 73ss on a 3-5c-6c-Qc board (unexpectedly, I was good!). Thirty minutes into the session, several players were commenting about how poorly I was playing. It was f*cking hilarious and honestly, *almost* worth the $100 I lost in the process. I'm probably lucky I didn't lose more.

A couple hours in I slowly changed to my normal TAG style and stacked a couple people. Ended up a few hundo and left. I doubt I would have been paid off the way I was had I not conveyed such a terrible image earlier.

This is probably not profitable in the long run because it is unlikely I will play with these villains again and even if I do, the attentive ones will catch on eventually. But has anyone else experimented with this so-called strategy to their advantage? At the very least, it is comical to be erroneously perceived as the "fish" at the table, even if only for a day.

Thanks,
DT

I think for the most part you're overthinking it.

The truly bad players won't notice what you're doing and just be calling it off on their end cuz that's what they do with whatever hand they're calling it off with.

And the good players are good enough to figure out when you've switched gears / what you're really all about.

I mean it probably doesn't hurt to keep everyone on their toes with some random / poor / etc. plays once and a while, but if you overdo it then it'll be hard to recover. It's sometimes hard enough winning money when you're playing good, let alone horrible.

GimoG

If you're going to execute the reverse bumhunt, be sure that the dividends come because you're playing 1/20th the stakes you normally play in the hope that some low stakes grinder will chase you to 25/50 .

Reverse bumhunt. Rofl.

Yes. In the first level of a tournament (when the pots are relatively small compared to your stack) I try to get a bluff through with complete trash and show (e.g. raising 3x from EP or MP with T7o and then c-betting pot on an A or K-high board to take it down).
It takes quite some time till the impression wears off and I do get paid off for my value hands nicely until then.

Your up front cost is much lower by playing like a nit to start, then open up. Your bluffs go through like a hot knife through butter.

The strategy is called shifting gears. Honestly, if you wanted to get more action, there is no need to lose a bunch of money doing it being a calling station.

The gears you want to install are:
LAG
TAG
NIT

If you really want more action, show all of your LAG and TAG bluffs.

I personally prefer less action. I show when I bet strong on the flop with a set so that next time I bet strong with overs and gut-shot, my opponents hopefully put me on a set and fold on the flop or turn.

IMO you reduce variance and significantly increase winnings if your opponents fold to your bluffs and continuation bets. And you have a hard time if your opponents play back at you with marginal hands.

+1000 this then you 4 bet with a5s and watch them fold kks and just smile to yourself

KK suited. Nice one.

I prefer to just spout off horrible poker theory to either convince others to play poorly, or to make them think I'm a fish.

I play bad enough to make them think I am a fish without trying that hard.

Usually after an hour or two of boredom tilt.

True, but bluffs make less money than value bets that get called, since in the bluff hand you're (obviously) not getting the chips of the call.
If you play like a nit at first you may get more bluffs through later but people will less likely pay off your value hands with marginal holdings.

Specifically in tournaments with short levels time is also a factor. Getting a LAG image takes only one hand. Getting a nit image takes many.

I guess no approach is always the best. If the table is predominantly loose then pretend to be a nit. If the table is predominantly tight then pretend to be a LAG.

You’re not acting like a fish, you’re just being a fish. Do it for entertainment value if you think it’s fun. Don’t do it as a money making strategy.