When Should you Call in Poker?

Most people are aware of the different terminology used in the poker world – there’s bluffing, raising, checking and, the most unglamorous of all, calling. Calling is basically the act of simply marching someone else’s bet and not raising it in any way and is often seen by some as a sign of weakness in certain situations.

For this reason though – and for a number of others as well – simply calling can be an effective strategy when it comes to trying to win a hand of poker. But how can calling benefit you in your quest to be as good as you possibly can be?

The best use of calling is to lull your opponent into a false sense of security when you have an absolute monster of a hand. Obviously you want them to feel confident that they are going to beat you and to therefore throw money into the pot – something that they won’t do if you keep acting strong and reraising. By simply calling, the other player will think that you are just waiting on a draw and that they are in the driving seat. On the last round of betting you can hit them with a big raise and whether they call or fold, you will have won a lot of money!

It must be noted that simply calling when you have a good hand can be a risky business, especially if the cards are there to encourage the other player to stay in with the hope of making a flush or a straight. If the cards do signal this, then bet big and get them to fold – it is better to win a little than to end up losing a lot.

The other reason that people call – mainly on small final bets – is so that they can see the other person’s hand. Even if they know they are going to lose, seeing the opponents hand can give a great insight as to how they play and can also help to confirm the existence of a tell, meaning that you will have the upper hand for the rest of the game.

There are a number of sites online that will allow you to perfect the art of calling, as well as perfect bluffing, raising and folding as well! One of these is www.pokerstars.co.uk and most of the time you will be able to get a joining up bonus with your first deposit.