Does slow play bother you ? Version II.

Thanks to the many positive replys to my earlier post on slow play. They were great and I appreciate knowing how others feel. To add to that thread the first thing that gets me is the first hand dealt and everybody takes all the time they can get before calling. I've been called an idiot many times but if I get AA in the hole at the start, I don't need to analyze all the hands as I don't have any idea what they have, but I do know what I have. Either your are going to call or fold, period. I've been guilty of using time just to let them know that I have the same amount also. When I get my first cards, I know within a few seconds if I'm playing. These people that take all the time on each card need to stay away from RUSH poker for sure. I continue to have a problem with "BANDITS" (as I call them.) that get in and never play a regardless of what I've been told, they ruin the game. Had four BANDITS in a one table SnG recently and I went out in 4th place and one of the BANDITS actually finished 2nd. Go figure. Again, thanks for the feedback and have fun on the felts.

Perhaps I'm misunderstanding your point, but you seem to be focusing on preflop timing and suggesting everyone should make snap decisions in every case. If that's the case, then IMO you're quite wrong. Or, perhaps not "wrong" only if you're a recreational player who isn't trying to play at a level above the fish. It sounds to me like you're advocating the approach of playing your cards and not the other players, which is a classic beginner/recreational player leak. I'm guessing you love playing against bots, lol.

If that's NOT what you're advocating, then I apologize and ignore the rest of this... but that's certainly what it sounds like.

No matter the game type -- Rush, regular speed FR, turbo SnGs, or slow MTTs -- a good poker player plays his hand differently depending on the action in front of him, position, tendencies of players yet to act, stack sizes, bubble scenarios, payout structures, metagame, etc. etc. -- all sorts of decision points that need to be considered in their totality but often cannot be until the action gets to you. For instance, I may need a moment to determine what I think is a proper 3bet size to achieve my goal (max value, max fold equity, isolation, etc.), whether this is a good squeeze or resteal spot, or maybe I tank to ultimately decide on a fold when the player to my immediate right puts me to a tough decision.

Then beyond those strategic reasons, I can think of a number of other reasons off the top of my head why people take time to act, without trying very hard:

• I have a sudden change of mind when it gets to me, that I need to process. Hey, I'm human.
• I may be distracted by a number of other things going on around me. I have a home life, and I'm always multi-tasking. Sometimes that might be multi-tabling (to your bane, I know), paying the bills, going through work emails, answering the phone, reading/watching the news, listening to a podcast, tending to the wife/grandkids/dogs that are interacting with me, etc. Sorry, my whole focus isn't on you and your impatience.
• I may be trying to give off a specific timing tell, whether to project weakness, strength, or uncertainty
• I may be trying to tilt an impatient player *cough* Inducing tilt is a time-honored tradition in poker, which is why you should never advertise this chink in your armor.
• I may be uncertain of where I think I'm at in the hand (post-flop)

Your AA example is a perfect one of why it's NOT often an automatic decision. Trash hand decisions are almost always easy unless you've consciously decided to bluff, or get hit by the flop in the BB. The best hands are usually the trickiest to play optimally, and thus require more than "bot" thinking. AA preflop can be played in a variety of ways. Your assertion that "either you are going to call or fold, period" is quite wrong on a number of counts. First, nobody should ever (or, extremely rarely in very specific game situations) be folding AA preflop, lol. Second, calling is only one option and often not the best one. The only thing certain is that I'm playing it, but how I play it may require some thought. There is no one "right" way to play AA that assures maximum value. I might limp, call, min-raise, standard raise, raise big, 3/4/5 bet, or shove, depending on number of opponents, their tendencies, my table image, stack sizes, or other variables already mentioned.

Ultimately, a player who always play his cards the same way no matter what, is arguably never going to rise above the level of intermediate or even mediocre player.