Aggressive vs. PAssive

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zerosalex

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aggressive in tournaments and passive in cash live. you only have limited amount of time in tournaments so you have to be kinda aggressive in a smart way at times. in cash games you have unlimited amount of time and blinds don't go up so its best to be passive and wait for good luck meaning you'll have the best hand and someone aggressive will give you all their chips eventually, patience.
 
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luki_jakdo

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aggressive in tournaments and passive in cash live. you only have limited amount of time in tournaments so you have to be kinda aggressive in a smart way at times. in cash games you have unlimited amount of time and blinds don't go up so its best to be passive and wait for good luck meaning you'll have the best hand and someone aggressive will give you all their chips eventually, patience.
totally agree :flute:
 
rdwr33

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hi. I always try to balance passivity and aggressiveness. most of the time it works. because I only use pokr for recreation.
 
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darcagegns

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Balancing both on preflop, and mostly agressive after.
 
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Majari_

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I think playing aggressive is better, because you can make money not only with good hands but also with bad ones by bluffing. Villain is always wondering whether you are bluffing or actually have a hand.
 
PsychoVas

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All the experts approve either a LAG or a TAG style of play. Loose and aggressive or tight and aggressive. Passive play is a big leak in one's game. Makes sense, right? You either win when you have the best hand or when everybody else folds. That is the advantage of aggression. Playing passive just allow the opponents to improve their holdings without a significant cost.
 
Roller

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Aggression wins over Passivity every time unless of course you get hit with the deck and can simply play the cards you were dealt and not the situation or player.
 
Rob Hobson

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There's no better style. It mainly depends on the player 's nature. The table mood, number of players entering the pot and other stuffs as well. But the player style counts more. This is my point of view.
 
Herkstwin

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Everything I have read about poker over the last 15 years and all the Leak Buster HUDs recommend aggressive. Passive players are long term losers.
I disagree with previous posters who say that passive is the way to play in a cash game. Passive play gives opponents the opportunity to bully you and chase more hands.
 
Shrops

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Aggressive

I believe tight - aggressive is the best way to play.
 
Mati532

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Aggressive in tournaments but playing with head not crazy ... and passive in cash tables.
 
Patoamz95

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It depends on many factors, in cash live it is always recommended to play a more passive style but position force is also used to give a game a little more aggressive, on the other hand, in a tournament it is recommended to have an aggressive image at the table but always keeping 50 % value bets and 50% bluff bets. In conclusion, both styles are profitable but in different modalities and never in excess, if you are a very passive player your rivals will take advantage of that and they will steal most of the blinds and if you are very aggressive your rivals will also start calling with a wider range of hands and your win rate will drop considerably, I hope it helps you, greetings
 
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619Leafs

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I would say you have to be agressively smart meaning picking your spots to be aggressive while maintaing discipline and not play every hand for the sake of it.
 
Whodahustla

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I made the transition today and it paid off!

I played passive for the longest time. I added to my bankroll yesterday and lost it all same day playing passive. I don't know how it dawned on me to play aggressive because playing aggressive to me................means you have a bluff sometimes and I always tried to avoid that because it's never worked out for me in the past. However, mid-day today after having to add more to my stack and losing most of that too :(:(:(:(:(:(:(:( I was very low in my stack and in morality:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad: and I just got fed up I guess. I started playing aggressive. In a short amount of time...........I grew my stack 7 times over!:cool: We'll see how tomorrow goes :). I'm gonna try to do everything in my power not to jump back on tonight. Maybe I'll watch a scary movie!:D
 
Einer777

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varying the style because if in the end you play one only explodes
 
Wrathchild

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TAG here usually, but LAG depending on the table. I'm not a super great player (I've only recently transitioned into a "winning" player through a bunch of study and determination to "git gud" so I can't tell you the best way) but I've learned that aggression is rewarded more often than passive play. If a table is splashy with calling stations, I tighten my ranges up and go HARD when I get something good/worth playing. On a tighter table with regs or nits I play a bit looser and bluff more often. But passive? Some other guy said "aggressive in tournaments and passive in cash games" I wholeheartedly disagree with being passive in a cash game, especially in a 6max, aggressive action is always the most profitable for me. In tournaments I limp in a lot early on, and play aggressively if I hit or if I think I can bluff the hand. Closer to ITM I bluff a lot more, and play a lot more aggressively since no one wants to bust out. Then ITM I tend to mix it up. If I'm deepstacked I more selective with the hands I play, but if I'm 20bbs or less I'll shove a lot, or minraise to steal blinds. Just depends on the situation.
 
christmasscorpion

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Hello, I advise you to adapt to your opponents and combine an aggressive and passive style of play
 
infonazar

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An aggressive player will always have an advantage over a passive one, because the initiative will always be on the side of the aggressive player. But in my opinion the best option is a combination, namely a tight aggressive style.
 
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It depends on the position, your opponents on the table, your stack and etc etc...
 
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Lina1020

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It's definitely the aggressive style that we can win as much as possible with our hands, but it's worth slowing down sometimes, or flop, turn, after you weigh in on the situation.
 
Debi

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There are good winning players in both styles - but don't be all of one or the other. Adapt your play based on the players at your table. If you are playing at a tight table then you should be more aggressive. If you are playing on an aggressive table then tighten up some.

That is very general advice and of course other factors come into play.
 
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Nounounou

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In my opinion it is depending of the type of people who are sittiing with you at the table.
 
perrywh

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Every table is different. When you learn to change up your play accordingly you will be a winner!
 
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crazycitizen

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I have been playing for a bit and noticed two different styles of plays. I was wondering which is better long term?


Game theory will show you why aggressive is technically better than passive. (Basically giving your opponent the option to release their equity.)
But I believe poker is situational.
However, generally speaking: I think passive < aggressive < assertive.
I.E. scared < risky < confident
 
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