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Tournament Poker Strategy - First Impressions Last
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Author: Marc Weinberg
The psychological games that underpin so many aspects of successful poker are often similar to those played out in everyday life. The issue of "making a good first impression", superficial and inaccurate though it may be as a means to judging others, is a part of tournament poker as it is a part of life.
It would be wonderful if people didn't judge us at all, or if they did to base it on our character and personality. But life doesn't work that way, and neither does tournament poker. In both instances we are forced to make a quick appraisal, and the stakes involved can be very high. We need to form a snap opinion about our opponents' abilities - will they threaten us, can we dominate them, are they safe and reliable or combustible and unpredictable?
Unfortunately, a lot of poker players tend to formulate these opinions based on the first impression: that is to say the first hand that the opponent plays, especially if they happen to be involved in the hand against that opponent. So, if you start out tight and then win a big pot first time out a lot of your opponents will automatically define you as a dangerous tight player. If you start out with a bluff, get caught having to show your rags, and lose the pot (or even if you win) you will now be seen as a loose cannon.
There are situations where this psychological profiling falls away in importance, namely when a player has a lot of chips (dangerous regardless of your first impression) or is short-stacked (no respect for you regardless of prior actions). But most hands in a tournament will be played between competitive chip stacks, and that first impression will count.
Do not throw away your good name early on in a tournament. Try to build a table image that commands respect. That can be achieved by refraining from trash-talking, or silly chatter of any kind, and by playing quality hands early on. Bluff when you have the reputation behind you, but don't do it straight off the bat.
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