Card Dead: best strategy for overcoming a cold deck?

[Propane Goat]

We've all been there: you're in the middle of a tourney or cash game and for a long stretch get nothing but hands like 52, 84, T3, with no pocket pairs and no good Aces or Kings. Your stack keeps getting eaten up by the blinds and you're forced to fold one hand after another.

We have several options to choose from in these situations, some are better than others.

Option number 1: If we are following the commonly given advice of "only play good hands," we just keep folding and hope for something better. The problem with this is that your stack keeps getting eaten up, and your VPIP keeps dropping.

If your opponents are paying attention, they will notice that you have been folding many hands for multiple rounds. When you finally raise with AA after folding 20 hands in a row you are essentially playing with your cards face up and everybody will know you finally have a premium hand.

Option number 2: Many players take a passive approach to the game where they limp in pre-flop with a lot of mediocre hands and hope to hit something big on the flop. I've noticed that once they've put chips in the pot, many players will go on to also call raises preflop with rags and will often even call all-ins.

One could argue that your cards don't matter if you're constantly limping in because you're going to get lucky sooner or later, but the amount you lose in pots where you don't hit will far outstrip what you win when you do.

Option number 3: Another option: represent good hands in the right situations when we actually don't have anything. This takes some thought and a lot of observation of your opponents, and can backfire if not done correctly.

Example: you notice that the two players to your left are folding every time someone raises unless they have a premium hand. You can use this to your advantage by stealing blinds on the button even though you have a trash hand, because you're either going to pick up the blinds when they fold or if they call you know you have to hit the flop hard or give up.

Another example would be a villain that on your right that constantly raises pre-flop but has a very high percentage of folding to 3-bets. You can often 3-bet with nothing and get them to fold a better but non-premium hand.

I was in this situation recently where it was getting late in a tournament and the player two seats to my right would always raise the button when I was in the BB. I had gotten lucky with premium hands for several consecutive rounds and 3-bet shoved each one, and they folded every time. This continued for a while and I was shoving anything I had in the BB every time they raised and they didn't adapt to it, they just kept folding.

Like that old quote says: "poker is not a game of cards played with people, it's a game of people played with cards." Simply put, the cards you actually hold are often less important than what you can make your opponents think you're holding.

Let's hear your strategies and pitfalls for dealing with being "card dead," what do you suggest to overcome this problem?

 

[fundiver199]

Maybe you can find a few spots to throw in a light open from LP or a light 3-bet, if you think, ofter players have noticed your low VPIP and might fold a little more. But generally speaking you just have to continue making the right decision, even if that decision is to fold 28 hands in a row, because you have junk. Patience is the key, and even if you bust from this tournament partly because of being card dead, that is fine. There will be other tournaments, where you pick up a bunch of good hands, and they are the ones, where you are more likely to cash.

 

[Phoenix Wright]

We've all been there: you're in the middle of a tourney or cash game and for a long stretch get nothing but hands like 52, 84, T3, with no pocket pairs and no good Aces or Kings. Your stack keeps getting eaten up by the blinds and you're forced to fold one hand after another.

We have several options to choose from in these situations, some are better than others.

Option number 1: If we are following the commonly given advice of "only play good hands," we just keep folding and hope for something better. The problem with this is that your stack keeps getting eaten up, and your VPIP keeps dropping.

If your opponents are paying attention, they will notice that you have been folding many hands for multiple rounds. When you finally raise with AA after folding 20 hands in a row you are essentially playing with your cards face up and everybody will know you finally have a premium hand.

Option number 2: Many players take a passive approach to the game where they limp in pre-flop with a lot of mediocre hands and hope to hit something big on the flop. I've noticed that once they've put chips in the pot, many players will go on to also call raises preflop with rags and will often even call all-ins.

One could argue that your cards don't matter if you're constantly limping in because you're going to get lucky sooner or later, but the amount you lose in pots where you don't hit will far outstrip what you win when you do.

Option number 3: Another option: represent good hands in the right situations when we actually don't have anything. This takes some thought and a lot of observation of your opponents, and can backfire if not done correctly.

Example: you notice that the two players to your left are folding every time someone raises unless they have a premium hand. You can use this to your advantage by stealing blinds on the button even though you have a trash hand, because you're either going to pick up the blinds when they fold or if they call you know you have to hit the flop hard or give up.

Another example would be a villain that on your right that constantly raises pre-flop but has a very high percentage of folding to 3-bets. You can often 3-bet with nothing and get them to fold a better but non-premium hand.

I was in this situation recently where it was getting late in a tournament and the player two seats to my right would always raise the button when I was in the BB. I had gotten lucky with premium hands for several consecutive rounds and 3-bet shoved each one, and they folded every time. This continued for a while and I was shoving anything I had in the BB every time they raised and they didn't adapt to it, they just kept folding.

Like that old quote says: "poker is not a game of cards played with people, it's a game of people played with cards." Simply put, the cards you actually hold are often less important than what you can make your opponents think you're holding.

Let's hear your strategies and pitfalls for dealing with being "card dead," what do you suggest to overcome this problem?

For me, I usually follow option number 1 and perhaps mix in a little of option 3 if I need to survive. When you are card dead, all you can do is fold and hope for the best. If your chip stack dwindles into short-stack territory, then consider switching to "shove-fold poker." As long as you can survive the drought, then being card dead should eventually turn around. Option 2 is by far the worst in my opinion (because as you said), since you will miss far more often than you hit and this just makes you lose chips faster than simply folding.

Assuming you aren't playing a Turbo format or something fast, then the blinds shouldn't overtake you right away: we typically have time to fold, fold, fold and become selective of our hands. Perhaps we don't need to wait for pocket Aces when we are card dead (since observant opponents might just fold more often since you have not been "too active" lately), but what you don't want to do is start playing sub-optimal hands or worse - playing any two cards. Still play fairly solid stuff and just keep folding: happens to everyone and all we can do is wait it out.

 

[fundiver199]

When you finally raise with AA after folding 20 hands in a row you are essentially playing with your cards face up and everybody will know you finally have a premium hand.

This is not really true, because when you finally raise after folding 20 hands in a row, your range is exactly the same, as it always is. The PERCEPTION of your range AKA table image might have changed, if the opponents are paying attention, and are not HUD-users with previous data on you.

And sure this is not great, if your first playable hand is actually AA or KK. Which will happen sometimes of course. It has happened to me. Far more often though your first playable hand will be something like KJo or A4s, and then a tight table image is actually good. So the point remains, that we just have to take, what is dealt to us, and continue to make +EV decisions.

 

[Propane Goat]

Maybe you can find a few spots to throw in a light open from LP or a light 3-bet, if you think, ofter players have noticed your low VPIP and might fold a little more. But generally speaking you just have to continue making the right decision, even if that decision is to fold 28 hands in a row, because you have junk. Patience is the key, and even if you bust from this tournament partly because of being card dead, that is fine. There will be other tournaments, where you pick up a bunch of good hands, and they are the ones, where you are more likely to cash.

Agreed, I've also had situations where I've folded and folded until I'm one of the short stacks and then suddenly things turn around and I wind up on the FT or winning.

For me, I usually follow option number 1 and perhaps mix in a little of option 3 if I need to survive. When you are card dead, all you can do is fold and hope for the best. If your chip stack dwindles into short-stack territory, then consider switching to "shove-fold poker." As long as you can survive the drought, then being card dead should eventually turn around. Option 2 is by far the worst in my opinion (because as you said), since you will miss far more often than you hit and this just makes you lose chips faster than simply folding.

Assuming you aren't playing a Turbo format or something fast, then the blinds shouldn't overtake you right away: we typically have time to fold, fold, fold and become selective of our hands. Perhaps we don't need to wait for pocket Aces when we are card dead (since observant opponents might just fold more often since you have not been "too active" lately), but what you don't want to do is start playing sub-optimal hands or worse - playing any two cards. Still play fairly solid stuff and just keep folding: happens to everyone and all we can do is wait it out.

Great points, we definitely don't want to start trying to "force" something to happen especially when there is tilt involved. That usually winds up resulting in losing even more chips.

This is not really true, because when you finally raise after folding 20 hands in a row, your range is exactly the same, as it always is. The PERCEPTION of your range AKA table image might have changed, if the opponents are paying attention, and are not HUD-users with previous data on you.

And sure this is not great, if your first playable hand is actually AA or KK. Which will happen sometimes of course. It has happened to me. Far more often though your first playable hand will be something like KJo or A4s, and then a tight table image is actually good. So the point remains, that we just have to take, what is dealt to us, and continue to make +EV decisions.

I think it depends on the type of game we're in. Public donkfest freerolls are full of players who haven't advanced their skills to where they're paying any attention at all to what other players are doing. It definitely comes down to managing how you are perceived at the table.

 

[buckaclown]

My style is sweet money

Yo so I'm the ACR legend, phucked and phried... I put on drunk goggles when the deck turns cold and cross my eyes to where I think J3 is actually pocket jacks, then I start shovin' when those blinds get all thick with red meat, and meaty.

I've come back from less than 1 bb several times to win tourneys, so patience seems to be the overall name-o-the-game.

 

[Bank Robber]

Alot of the same problems but I don't see any answers. Just "Hey try this"! If there was any correct answer "variance" or "luck" will either screw you or make your day no matter what you do. Play the people not the cards. What a crock of shit. If the cards are so unimportant why are they and the chips used? Retorical! It's a "Game" with game peices so yes learn all the tricks but for God's sake study your cards. Position aggression always works better if you have good cards. I can't tell you how many times, in late position with only the blinds to go through I've shoved and Ran Into it and ended my tournament. IF a psychic, a psychiatrist, a psychologist sat down at a poker table and they didn't know shit about poker but they were there to read the players when they bet their hands and determine if the players have good or bad hands by the way they conduct themselves I believe the players would fool them simply because they didn't know what good "cards" are! Cards, Good Cards are everything,✌️!

 

[MK_]

I think the only real option is to play poker, which is option number 3.

I've literally seen people routinely blind themselves out of the game by limp folding waiting for aces I presume, the goal isn't to stay in the game as long as possible with 2bbs....

I think the only way to look at the game is to play people, play, position, and yes play cards... you gotta play poker even card dead, which will include a lot of folding but you still gotta look for your spots👍

 

[flail1]

Raise with some of your poor hands in mid to late position only when you are first to act. I find trying to move a raiser off his hand with a reraise is a losing proposition in the long run. i think I have won many massive pots by hitting like trip 8s or something with that poor opening hand...

 

[kon44]

We've all been there: you're in the middle of a tourney or cash game and for a long stretch get nothing but hands like 52, 84, T3, with no pocket pairs and no good Aces or Kings. Your stack keeps getting eaten up by the blinds and you're forced to fold one hand after another.

We have several options to choose from in these situations, some are better than others.

Option number 1: If we are following the commonly given advice of "only play good hands," we just keep folding and hope for something better. The problem with this is that your stack keeps getting eaten up, and your VPIP keeps dropping.

If your opponents are paying attention, they will notice that you have been folding many hands for multiple rounds. When you finally raise with AA after folding 20 hands in a row you are essentially playing with your cards face up and everybody will know you finally have a premium hand.

Option number 2: Many players take a passive approach to the game where they limp in pre-flop with a lot of mediocre hands and hope to hit something big on the flop. I've noticed that once they've put chips in the pot, many players will go on to also call raises preflop with rags and will often even call all-ins.

One could argue that your cards don't matter if you're constantly limping in because you're going to get lucky sooner or later, but the amount you lose in pots where you don't hit will far outstrip what you win when you do.

Option number 3: Another option: represent good hands in the right situations when we actually don't have anything. This takes some thought and a lot of observation of your opponents, and can backfire if not done correctly.

Example: you notice that the two players to your left are folding every time someone raises unless they have a premium hand. You can use this to your advantage by stealing blinds on the button even though you have a trash hand, because you're either going to pick up the blinds when they fold or if they call you know you have to hit the flop hard or give up.

Another example would be a villain that on your right that constantly raises pre-flop but has a very high percentage of folding to 3-bets. You can often 3-bet with nothing and get them to fold a better but non-premium hand.

I was in this situation recently where it was getting late in a tournament and the player two seats to my right would always raise the button when I was in the BB. I had gotten lucky with premium hands for several consecutive rounds and 3-bet shoved each one, and they folded every time. This continued for a while and I was shoving anything I had in the BB every time they raised and they didn't adapt to it, they just kept folding.

Like that old quote says: "poker is not a game of cards played with people, it's a game of people played with cards." Simply put, the cards you actually hold are often less important than what you can make your opponents think you're holding.

Let's hear your strategies and pitfalls for dealing with being "card dead," what do you suggest to overcome this problem?

I'm an option 3 guy lol, I nit up when closing to to the bubble but your right in that you can't keep folding. In truth you need to do all 3 options all the time and shouldn't stick with any. Each table has a different vibe it's harder when you move mostly but I don't know about you but I make the table My Table as soon as I'm ins a position to lol.


I just finished this 50/50 and no word of a lie the Villian in this instance stayed out of all the action and played only premium hands hoping to get a cash when one of us 3 went out. Was an insane rollercoaster which saw me lose tops spot after a AK Vs QQ on a flopped A for me that saw the chip leader at the end get lucky on the River. But long story short, the MinCashNit was forced into the shove feast and ran face first into my KK after having a stack to make the cash mostly throughout... His fuming no double as the other two survived over and over 😅

 

[Poker_Mike]

We've all been there: you're in the middle of a tourney or cash game and for a long stretch get nothing but hands like 52, 84, T3, with no pocket pairs and no good Aces or Kings. Your stack keeps getting eaten up by the blinds and you're forced to fold one hand after another.

We have several options to choose from in these situations, some are better than others.

Option number 1: If we are following the commonly given advice of "only play good hands," we just keep folding and hope for something better. The problem with this is that your stack keeps getting eaten up, and your VPIP keeps dropping.

If your opponents are paying attention, they will notice that you have been folding many hands for multiple rounds. When you finally raise with AA after folding 20 hands in a row you are essentially playing with your cards face up and everybody will know you finally have a premium hand.

Option number 2: Many players take a passive approach to the game where they limp in pre-flop with a lot of mediocre hands and hope to hit something big on the flop. I've noticed that once they've put chips in the pot, many players will go on to also call raises preflop with rags and will often even call all-ins.

One could argue that your cards don't matter if you're constantly limping in because you're going to get lucky sooner or later, but the amount you lose in pots where you don't hit will far outstrip what you win when you do.

Option number 3: Another option: represent good hands in the right situations when we actually don't have anything. This takes some thought and a lot of observation of your opponents, and can backfire if not done correctly.

Example: you notice that the two players to your left are folding every time someone raises unless they have a premium hand. You can use this to your advantage by stealing blinds on the button even though you have a trash hand, because you're either going to pick up the blinds when they fold or if they call you know you have to hit the flop hard or give up.

Another example would be a villain that on your right that constantly raises pre-flop but has a very high percentage of folding to 3-bets. You can often 3-bet with nothing and get them to fold a better but non-premium hand.

I was in this situation recently where it was getting late in a tournament and the player two seats to my right would always raise the button when I was in the BB. I had gotten lucky with premium hands for several consecutive rounds and 3-bet shoved each one, and they folded every time. This continued for a while and I was shoving anything I had in the BB every time they raised and they didn't adapt to it, they just kept folding.

Like that old quote says: "poker is not a game of cards played with people, it's a game of people played with cards." Simply put, the cards you actually hold are often less important than what you can make your opponents think you're holding.

Let's hear your strategies and pitfalls for dealing with being "card dead," what do you suggest to overcome this problem?

My advice is to stick to your game - whatever that is. But being truly card-dead can be demoralizing.

Even worse - often in this situation I don't see any wiggle room to outplay my opponents. Why? Because while I'm getting 23, 62, 72 and 93 over and over and over - I'm watching other players raise with premium hands, flop what they need and get paid handsomely. IMO that is one of the problems with getting "bad" cards - someone else is likely getting "good" cards - there are only 52 cards in the deck and it is a closed system (unless you brought an ace up your sleeve, wink!).

I can remember one large live tournament when I was rested, hydrated, well fed and eager to practice some of the week's worth of poker study. I was proud of myself to get to this "zen" moment for the 11 am start.

And then I just had a parade of crappy cards that prevented me from playing - my choice, fine. And, my bad cards would have lost every hand anyways. I was getting sour and didn't even want to talk with other players who were asking me where I was from, do I know of a good steakhouse nearby and why I wasn't playing a single hand in 3 orbits lol.

I remember winning one hand with QQ from a player that just moved to our table so he didn't know I had not played any hands. The whole table was cheering for me and delighted in seeing my tabled QQ.

Great! I thought maybe my run of bad cards was over...nope!

I was panicking over what to do. I was vigilant to look for spots to gain chips. I was proud of myself if I could steal the blinds - but that is only 1.5BB and not enough to sustain a run to the final table.

I knew that the way my run was going that eventually I would have a hand that would be "the best I've seen all day" and it would bust me.

Sure enough I am whittled down to 10.5 BB and I finally get AJo. To the table's surprise I shove and the SB re-shoves and to my surprise the BB calls. The SB shows AQ and the BB shows AK and I believed that I had manifested my exit from the room. Sure enough J on the flop and another on the river for good measure.

Ha! So now I had a stack of 31.5BB to try to play and get to the final table! But back to being card-dead and I ended 10 spots from the bubble.

As frustrating as that experience was - I congratulated myself for doing my absolute best that wasn't good enough that day.

Good luck !

 

[Spondzile]

IMO in cash games your table image does not play that big role.By that I mean good regs allready know what type of player you are,and fishes don't care at all who you are or what might be your opening ranges.In general to maximise your profit you should only play against weaker opponents.But ofc If you play higher stakes with table full of regs you should mix up your game and so on,but in micros it is irrelevant imo.

 

[Goalie35]

I think Mike Caro said it best. He was asked "what do you do when you are card dead?" His response "you lose". bluffing with poor cards may work occasionally but you will eventually lose. That's poker.