Why Did you call my ## with that ## !!! You Donk!!!

heeeeeeee haaaaaawwwww

because it was sooted!

Those are the hands that you can play from utg. When you are on the button with no raise, you can play a lot of different hands. The table though will let you know what you can play. If they are real loose you have to tighten up. But you have to play sometime. lol.

think if you play a hand you think is a winner and u win then you were right to play it. its that simple.

Great blog Merlin...

There are times that I will make a call or reraise if I believe an early position raise is weak and the table folded around to me. A lot of times people with marginal hands will min raise or 2-3x raise in early position to protect their hand because they want to see a flop with it.

I have this happen a lot when I pick up small pairs. An EP player will min raise with something like 9-10suited. They want to see the flop so they min raise hoping that no-one will come over the top. If I'm on the button or even in one of the blinds with a small pair I will push at them to get them off their hands.

Some people just can't push the fold button. So they call with 9-10 suited or Q-10 or something like that and when they get no help.... I AM THE DONK!!

Just push the fold button buddy and it won't happen to you. Poker is a game of putting people on ranges and then making plays that will benefit you based on the range they have. I usually don't make a play like that unless I have a good read on someone. I was playing an SNG with a guy today that limped preflop with QQ and then again with KK later in the game. That is not a guy that you want to make a move on. You never had any idea what he had. But most people at the microstakes pretty much tell you the strenghth of their hand based on their bets.

That brings us to another good reason to make a "donk" move. If you have some chips and can afford to lose a few, I will make what is considered a donkey call just to show down a crappy hand. It is better if you are in early position and can actually open. This puts a warning out to the other players that I will open with anything. Here you can 2x or 3x open and show down a crappy hand. Later when you get a good hand just 1x open. You will usually have people falling over themselves to raise you. Then you simply take their chips. It's a hell of a lot of fun. It also sets people off. Usually you can take half of their stack this way and within 5 or 10 more hands they give out the rest of their chips. Again, a hell of a lot of fun.

This is a game of strategy. I love rope a doping people. Occasionally it happens to me. But I try to control the pot. Pot control is the key to not losing big. I like to lose small and win big. In the end if you do this...... YOU WIN!!

I'm in late position and there is an all in with no takers. I'm holding KQ suited and have the guy covered about 5 to one in chips. He has been going preflop all in several times in early position and when he was forced to show his cards they were weak hands that hit the board. I would call him in those situations.

I also called an all in once at a very tight table that had four allins prior to my bet. I had 89 suited hearts. My thinking was that these guys have been playing tight and their cards are probably all face cards. So at least half of the face cards are in play and a lot of cards that would make my 89 of hearts a winner are still out. I floped my two pair of 8's and 9's and won a huge pot.

I follow my gut! Not just because it sticks far enough out in front of me that I can't see my feet either...lol..When a games is progressing and I have developed a read on a certain oponent, if it looks like we can get heads up then I will play a lot of different hands for several reasons. The biggest reason id to outplay them after the flop, it doesn't matter what cards you bet, or reraise big with, it just matters what your oponent THINKS you have.

There are times also that when you play less than great starting hands, and hit them, your oponent won't put you on that hand thinking that there is no way YOU would play a hand like that. Good Question, I will tag this one to read the other remarks...lol..

..............play on ........Tc..................

Playing so called bad hands for cheap is a good tactic from time to time(ask Negreanu or Ivey), you take the other guy by surprise when you hit and u will usually get paid off.

Its poker, and you can play any hand you want. Anyone that says different is just crying because they got beat..

Complaining and calling people names because they play bad is the worst thing you can do. They may get lucky now and then but we need these people to make money. Think of them as customers, if they never win, they will stop playing, and if they stop playing who do good players take money from??

P.S. the DOYLE BRUNSON hand is 10 2.

Good point broncoboss about showing down a bad hand. This will often pay off huge later. I often play reckless early at a table just so i will get called when i have a good hand, and it usually works. People notice when u play bad far more than they notice when u play good, so a few so called bad moves or bluffs will often earn u some $$$$ in the long run.

Somehow I am not even sure how this is a serious question.

Take 8 hours, sit down, and imagine every possible reason why people make the plays they make. It will take at least that long.

It was sooted; had top pair; can't fold ANY live hand; had to leave soon; was at work and couldn't play long; felt lucky; was their 'fav' hand; don't know how to play so the computer will tell them (especially oma-haha); feel lucky today; he did it - so can I; saw it on ESPN; double up or die; jr. learning how to play; really don't care; playing for fun; it's free - who cares; won with it yesterday; read it in a book; saw it in a RB quiz; promised to mow the lawn-soon; enjoy messing with people who think this is serious; we'll show them aggressive; excessive alcohol, excessive pot; ill-tempered pesonality; impatient; why waste time not playing hands; baby crying - gotta go; clicked wrong button; chasing; fishing; etc; etc; etc. I think you get the point.

Not necessarily in the order listed. Any reason will do. But really, aren't all the tale - tellers being honest? Poker is, after all, a game based in skill, honesty and fair play - isn't it ???

Theres no answer to satisfy all here but in agreement with all below, its the read of the calls, the cards, the players involved and the betting run. I was in late position with 56clubs, all b4 bar 1 went allin, my reason of thinking here was there were twelve high cards b4 me taking themselves out of any lo flop, so i 2 went all in, history showed all lo cards flop, turn and river giving me the winning hand, a str8. But the strange thing was nobody called me a 'donk' in fact one said good call !!!!!

Good or bad my logic and read was rewarded.

And thats what makes this game so intriguing, with so many permutations of cards, there is not one of us that can determine the outcome of a hand of poker, we can make good assumtions but at the end its the old lady of luck that has so much to answer for!!!

TC GL on the tables.

I have seen you play many times and I am certainly not in your calibre to respond to your question - but it makes me feel better that I don't always have to wait for the

as usual.... Nevada nick has a great response.

And it brings up probably another great blog.

I have found that late Friday and Saturday nights are my worst nights at the tables. I don't drink, but I'm sure a great deal of my opponents are and I have a hard time beating these games. I log when my play is going on and my number fall off the map on Friday and Saturday nights. You would think you could score against drunk people.... but I can't do it.

Lady Luck is in AAA. She joins every Friday and Saturday, every hour on the hour. ...

Bronco is right though. Alcohol and pot do have a great influence on the online games. Wish I had just $1 for each time a player made a chat comment about how much they are drinking and/or going to light up another one, and exactly what it is they are lighting up.

Alcohol and pot are both mind altering substances, usually resulting in decisions equally altered.

Just one last thought inbetween hands. Entered a PS Hubble, had some extra time. It's 45 minutes in. 12,000 entries, 4,000 left. I've played 2 hands. We 'might' have 3,000 left by the break. Try listing reasons for that.

World Series Of Poker 1976, final table, Doyle Brunson and Jesse Alto are the only 2 remaining. Doyle has about a 3 to 1 chip count over Alto.
Doyle is dealt 10s-2s, Alto is dealt As-Jh and bets out, Doyle calls.
Flop comes Ah-Js-10h Alto bets out, Doyle goes ALL-IN, Alto with Aces and Jacks calls.
The turn is the 2c, and Doyle hits his full house 10s over 2s on the river. Winning the W.S.O.P bracelet/ Championship

Fast forward to W.S.O.P 1977,final table, Doyle Brunson and Bones Berland are the final 2.
Doyle is dealt 10s-2h, Berland is dealt 8h-5c and calls
Flop comes 10d-8s-5h giving Berland 2 pair, bets out, Doyle calls with his 10s
Turn is 2'c Doyle Bets out, Berland calls and is all in.
and again Doyle fills his Full House on the RIVER with the 10c.

Now 10-2 (especially off suit) is among the worst starting hands in Hold em. But two years in a row they were the EXACT right cards to play to"WIN IT ALL"
Doyle Brunson played more then just the cards, he played the chip counts, the player, the timing, his instincts, and every thing else and both times he made the "EXACT RIGHT PLAYS, for RIGHT THERE, RIGHT THEN.
And some how playing 10-2's in the biggest game, against the worlds best, didn't make him a "Donkey" it made him the Legend he is today.
To quote Phil Ivey "Poker is about playing EVERYTHING but the cards, anyone can learn to play "Cards" in an after noon, but it's learning to play everything else, that makes you a Poker player"

Ok I asked that last night. I got busted out with : vs late in a tourney yesterday . But I played into him knowing he would with any semi good hand ( he was chip leader i was the near short stack ). I was bummed half expecting the bust (chip leaders have a nasty habit of hitting ) he hit st8 on the flop.

So my hand was not that weak but it was not aces. My theory is that there are "chip leaders" and then there are Chip Leaders and you can catch up a lot of ground in the 3 rd quarter by betting into these guys (the loose chip leaders ) they are an open wallet

But you take your lumps when they hit. I played that tourny for 4 hrs for this. Then you natural reaction is why call that. I went a little batty when he said it was good call cuase j10 is strong drawl LOL

good blog/poll as always merlin

huge subject for discussion, for me, the most common way is calling a big raise pre flop with any 2 cards because I have great pot odds AND the stack to do it with

thats when I usually get attacked by the guy who just got their AA cracked by my 79 off or whatever, I used to attempt to explain to the person, but not anymore

It took me awhile to really understand pot odds and when to take em or when to dump em