How to Play Against Calling
Stations
written by BeatTheFish.com
When you play at a poker room that has a
lot of calling stations and not a whole lot of maniacs, there are
certain steps that you can take to ensure maximum profit. The basic
definition of a calling station is a player who usually won't take
control of the hand. They'll leave the betting up to you, and will
probably just call if they hit anything on the flop. That includes
making any pair or improving to a straight or flush draw. Calling
stations usually also like to keep calling you down when they're
holding any pocket pair.
Keep in mind that calling stations are
double-edged swords. On one hand, this type of player can be great
to value bet and gain some extra profit. If you make a strong hand
on the flop, you can continue betting a reasonable amount into them
and they'll keep calling you down to the river. They'll allow you to
build the pot and win more bets if they don't draw out on your hand.
However, you also need to keep in mind
that calling stations will also be calling on straight and flush
draws as well. The last thing you want to do is let them hit their
draw cheaply. Adjust the pot odds to your favor by betting the
correct amount. If you're heads-up against a calling station and you
have a strong hand but could also be outdrawn, you should consider
betting at least the size of the pot. If your opponent calls this
bet on a straight or flush draw, he's statistically making a mistake
and you're making him pay to do it. He'll still draw out on you at
times, but most of the time you'll just be gaining extra bets. Keep
in mind that most players aren't completely clueless, so if
you think that your opponents missed his draw, you should check on
the river and try to induce a bluff.
One of the key aspects to playing
calling stations is to seldom bluff them yourself. This is the type
of player that will call you down with bottom pair. That's great in
most situations, but if you can't beat that and you're on a total
bluff, you're going to lose some money. Keep an eye on the players
at your table and decide who to bluff and who you'll need to
showdown strong cards to. Calling stations are usually one of the
best type of opponents you can have because you're usually going to
the one taking control of the hand and dictating where the action
leads.
As soon as you sit down at the table,
start watching the players and classify them in your mind or using
the built-in notes feature on many of the online poker rooms. It'll
allow for easier decision-making when you tangle with those players
for a pot. Remember, value bet the calling stations, show down good
cards, and don't bluff them.
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General Poker
Strategy
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