The Asshole Strategy

I'm sure for those of you who play live tournments have encountered some players who are complete assholes. I'm talking about the players that showboat and boast when the win and think you make stupid calls and you're not a great player. You know, the kind of players you want to punch in the face. It makes you want to personally take them out or damage theri chip stack considerably.
I've noticed that doing that could hurt your game because you lose focus and the other players might take you down. I wonder if these assholes do it purposely as their stragedy. Make the players lose focus and take advantage of it. It's very unsportsmanlike but it could be a possiblilty that it is part of their gameplan. It could also be that they are assholes all the time.
So, when you encounter one of these assholes during your next live tournment, the best thing to do is ignore them. Let them have their boasting and insults. The best revenge is them losing before you do, especially if you're the player that took them down. Stick to your gameplan and remember, there are other players on the table to consider.

I'm actually going to a small home game tonight where one of the players is just as you described. I felt good the last time I knocked him out and hopefully it will be the same tonight. I know exactly how you feel about those kinds of players. Stay focus is the best advice besides putting a hit out on him. lol. I guess I've been watching to many Soprano's episodes. Have a Happy New Year.

There's a difference between being an asshole on purpose, and just being an asshole by nature. Look at players like Tony G. and Mike Matasow. They are behaving in that manner deliberately to get inside your head and throw you on tilt. Players like them, I think I could just laugh at and ignore. It's people who are just all around pricks (excuse the language)that I cannot stand--like Josh Ariah (sp) and that "Sheik" kid. What a couple of punks. They have some of the worst attitudes, and knowing that they are just miserable human beings would make me want to give them a thrashing to the tenth degree. But I think I need to get a LOT more experience under my belt before that would ever happen...

The only problem with this is letting these"assholes" get in your head. Just respond with something like: Corn poly wat the blisnarg. This will leave the special people at a loss.

Looky here, the king of assholes is responding to the asshole strategy. That's some kind of ironic. Let me tell you about this guy (corn) He is the king of trash at his home games yet never cashes. So I guess I would have to say to you :corn poly wat the blisnarg.

I'll actually play this way sometimes. Just to see how people react to you. I'm never vulgar but piping off ocasionally presents a looser image than exists in reality. Being underestimated can be advantagious.
The other day I decided to play heads-up at a ring table and go all in on every hand. After 4 hands the guy I was playing told me to "get a life you tool!" and then he quit.

I tend to agree with this. See also my thread called "The Dumb-Dumb Approach".

I find I piss more people off by acting nice and courteous when I take their chips.

with such classic lines as "I can't believe you called with that, what a F**" and the like....
If you don't play tight aggressive people assume you don't know what you are doing.

Loose aggressive is dangerous , but I've road it to success quite a few times.
But either way I'd rather be known as the guy who was respectable in victory or defeat.
If it takes being an asshole to win , guess I'ma loser ;-)

No your not. I agree. And 99% that's how I play it. But sometimes....
I just can't resist pushing somebodies buttons.

In a casino or live game that is not my home game i do feel you must conduct yourself with decency. Although there becomes times when you must use your personALITY to affect an opponents play

Well I have found that the best thing that you can do is to go ahead and punch them in the face. Ya I know I know, it won't win you any friends, but hey, you’re not playing to make friends, right? In fact, while the asshole is lying there unconscious, you can scoop up a good chunk of his change, after all, who's going to stop you after you just knocked the last guy to mouth off to you into next week? From then on, just bully your opponents out with big raises, they will be a little more than hesitant to call you, in fear that they may dish out a bad beat, then be the next recipient of your wrath. Of course, when using this strategy, it is a good idea to buy a round for your opponents with a portion of what you just took from them, at least so that you are invited back the next time!

LOL... Ima gonna have to go with joshy's strategy!

Yeah, you and me both! Wooo! That's some good stuff Josh! I am crackin' up over here! Solid.

Thank you Juice. I try

I like to outwit the idiots.. I'm pretty good at manipulating words, and coming up with quick wisecracks.. Of course, every once in a while, I come across an idiot thats better at wisecracks then me.. That pisses me off more than him trying to bully me out of every pot.. LOL.

I've noticed, most of these idiots, you can call a preflop raise, and then fold on flop..do that a few times.. they will have you marked down as the biggest pigeon they've seen all year.. Then when you got a quality hand, slow play it... By time you call his bet on the turn.. His head will be so full of air, it won't even register in his brain that you might have a better hand then him.. When these guys get so cocky from winning a couple hands off lucky garbage, they start believing that they're invincible.. and if you're not betting and reraising like a maniac like him, you must have a losing hand.. right?
I love being the one to say GG TYFP(thank you for playing) after they bust out from playing like a fool.