Bluffing in 7 Card Stud Poker

The art of bluffing has long been a trait that successful poker players have been using for a long time, playing their hands as if they we holding the nuts when really they are holding a hand that is weaker in strength.

Bluffing in all kinds of poker is something that should not be a regular tactic as the chances of been called with your low strength hand increases with each time that you make the play.

Seven card stud has long been seen as one of the hardest poker game forms to integrate bluffing into, with players holding the cards that they are allowed to make their hand from.

There are two types of bluffing in the game of poker, both of which carry a different level of risk.

Semi Bluffing in poker is a play that is made while you are holding a relatively strong hand, played stronger than the hand would ideally be played. This form of bluffing offers you the chance to make the play but should you get a call means that you still have the strength of your held hand to fall back on.

With the chance of falling back onto a hand that carries some strength, this is one of the most common bluffing techniques used today.

The second form of bluffing is the pure bluff, a move that is made to signify strength when you are holding a hand that carries no strength at all.

The risk that comes with this form of play is much greater than that of semi bluffing due to the fact that should you be called, you wouldn’t have a hand that carries the strength to fall back onto.

With this been the case, more players opt to try to avoid playing the pure bluff technique, especially in either 7 card stud poker or its counterpart 5 card.

The reasoning behind this is that a number of the players cards are exposed to all opponents at the table, giving them a limited amount of information about the hand that you could be holding, effectively giving them more chance to make a correct fold or call.

If you were thinking about using the bluff playing techniques, there are a few things that you should remember when it comes to making successful bluffs:

1. Always mix up your playing style throughout the game – This means that players at your table find it hard to take accurate reads on your play as opposed to if you were to just play the power hands involved with the game.
2. Bluffing should always be considered before folding – Making a bluff can prove very profitable for a large number of players who are holding inferior hands.
3. Making bluffing plays will reduce the number of other bluffers at the table – The reasoning behind this is that players who are playing low ranked hands aggressively will avoid doing so in later hands of the game as they soon realise that they are losing valuable chips or stake to you on the occasions that you make your plays.
4. Finding your opponents weaknesses will become your strong point – Studying the playing methods of those who are seated at your table will mean that you can begin to notice regular plays that the rival player makes, things like regular completion of betting if they are holding a strong hand or just flat calling when they are holding a hand that should really have been handed back to the dealer once they looked in the hole. Doing this will mean that you will see the plays that they are making and opens the opportunity for exploitation to you once you execute you thought out bluff.
5. Showing a bluffed set of cards can have a negative effect – We have all been there, we have just bluffed someone out of one of the best possible hands when we are holding nothing but a rainbow of cards that account to nothing. You want to show the player that you have just offered him nothing more than a slap in the face but is that the best method? Showing your cards will expose that you are open to the option of bluffing and could well increase the percentage of calls you receive when you make your bluffing plays.
The last thing that should be thought about before making your bluff is the level of players that you are up against, if you are playing against a number of new and inexperienced players, you are much more likely to get a call on your play than if you were playing against opponents that had more poker ability.