Picking the Right Times to Slow Play

Slowplaying involves checking with a strong hand in order to deceive opponents about the true strength of your holding. The idea is that you will make more money on later betting streets by disguising the real strength of your hand early. Slowplaying can be dangerous when attempted at the wrong times – often costing not just the bets you would have won but the whole pot.
This article looks at picking the right times to slowplay in a number of different situations. Getting the most profit from a monster hand involves both knowing when to slowplay and when to bet instead. This is governed by a number of factors including the ‘texture’ of the flop, the number (and tendencies) of opponents and also your opponent’s impression of you.

Many players are tempted to slowplay hands such as pocket aces before the flop. By limping into the pot instead of raising the real strength of your hand is well disguised. Slowplaying aces in this way has its place as part of a balanced strategy, however picking the right time to slowplay aces pre-flop depends on the nature of your opponents.

If your table is loose and passive you may end up with several opponents in a small pot after everyone limps behind you. This is usually a disaster for aces – reducing your winning chances considerably. Ideally you need aggressive opponents to raise behind you, giving you the opportunity to re-raise. Aces perform best in a large pot against a single opponent with a lower pair.
After the flop the main considerations for choosing to slowplay are the number of opponents and the flop ‘texture’. The texture of the flop refers to the number of possible draws – such as straights and flushes – that could be made on the turn or river. For example, compare a flop of 7-8-9 (all hearts) to 2-8-K (3 suits) for your pair of black aces. On the first flop several opponents may have strong draws, on the second no draws can be made on the turn.
Slowplaying on a draw-heavy flop, especially against multiple opponents, is a terrible move. Instead bet out to take the pot right away, if you meet resistance then use your best judgment to decide whether you are already beaten – against multiple opponents on a very draw heavy board this will often be the case.

There are times when slowplaying becomes not just desirable, but necessary. These are the cases where you flop such a strong hand that the flop is unlikely to have hit any of your opponents. Examples include the nut flush, a full house or even quads. In this case it can be more profitable to check the flop in the hope that one of your opponents will improve their hands on the turn. Even if they do not improve, your show of weakness may encourage a bluff from an opponent on a later betting round.

How you slowplay a monster hand will often depend on the tendencies of your opponents. For example, against a particularly aggressive opponent you may call bets on early betting rounds with the intention of building a big pot by the river. Against a timid opponent slowplaying may not work at all. Your check will often be met with a check, resulting in a very small pot. Against this type of opponent betting small amounts to gradually build a pot can be the better tactic.

Finally, when considering the best time to slowplay you should consider how your opponents see you. For example, if you are naturally an aggressive player who regularly continuation bets then a check on the flop may be seen as suspicious! Instead making your usual flop bet then checking the turn (appearing to give up) may be more profitable.

To summarize, picking the right times to slowplay involves a number of interacting factors. The number and tendencies of your opponents is critical before the flop. Once the flop comes, the availability of any draws, the nature of opponents still in the hand and your opponent’s perception of you are all critical factors.