Did you know folding was an option?

This’ll be my first post in awhile!  I’m sorry to say, the last few months may have been the absolute coldest of my poker career.  But, it seems, things appear to be swinging in my favor, and 2010 is a new year!

Today’s posting, however, isn’t about my recent woes.

I’d like to answer a very simple question: “What’s one thing I can do to start becoming a better poker player?”  [Note: Nobody has ever asked me this question.  I do not frequently field poker-related inquiries.  Seriously, who would ask me anyway?]

The answer is so clear to me: Fold more often.  WAY more often!

As I sit at the tables, I often wonder to myself, “Do these players know that they’re allowed to fold a hand?  Have they seen other people throw their cards to the dealer?  Are they aware that this ‘muck’ pile is where their cards generally belong, and if they so choose, they could decline the option of putting their money in the pot with their garbage holdings?”

I know, I know, a lot of players go to the tables simply for the action, and I must say, I love these guys.  But if you want to get good, you’ve gotta’ fold.  A lot.  The concept is so simple, and so fundamental to experienced poker players as to require almost no mentioning; yet, this tool, this folding tool, is ignored far too often.  At the end of a session, an extra bet not put in the pot is an extra bet won.

The easy-to-fix folds are pre-flop.  Quit playing J-7 under-the-gun, and stop calling raises with A-3.  J-10 is vastly overrated.  The trickier folds are post-flop, when your previously attractive A-K has whiffed completely.  This is where novices dump most of their chips, and end up walking out of the card room mumbling about how many times their A-K’s were cracked.

When the flop comes 6-7-8, and it’s two bets to you, holding A-K, I want you to know that folding is an option.  You’re allowed to do that.  It won’t even cost you any money!  Can you believe that?  Calling down to the river is not only expensive, but also fuels your tilt.  FOLD.  FOLD.  FOLD.  It’s an indispensable poker tool.