Slow-Playing in Online Poker
Slow-playing hides the true strength of your hand by laying a trap for your opponent in online poker. Your main goal in poker is to win as much money as possible from your opponents. When you have a strong hand and you are not careful of a card or two that might promote your opponent’s hand, slow-playing allows him to put more money in the pot before you reveal the strength of your hand.
By allowing your opponent to be the aggressive, you also provoke a stronger commitment to the pot from him. If the opponent on the other hand doesn’t have much invested in the pot, makes a small bet and you come over with a huge raise, he’s very unlikely to call unless he has a strong hand himself or suspects you’re bluffing.
If your opponent is not aggressive
If your opponent is the kind of poker player who usually doesn’t make big wagers without the best hand, slow-playing would not work. He would become more cautious when you check and call. Unlike the aggressive player who sees your check and call as a sign of weakness, a more cautious player would probably check behind you on the turn.
Is your hand strong enough to slow-play?
Slow-play is partially dependent on the character and playing style of your opponent. It is also dependent on how well your cards manage to hold up during the remainder of the hand. If you know that you have the best hand on the flop and you have more than one opponent, then you shouldn’t slow-play. You don’t want to give your opponents the chance to beat you.