Dealing with Aggression in Online Poker

Poker can be a lonely place sometimes, and there are few lonelier spots than when you are getting battered by a very aggressive opponent on Poker. 

Sometimes, the pressure can leave you punch drunk, as they just always seem to have the goods when it matters. So, how do you develop strategies to deal with the aggressive players at your table?

The easiest strategy is to get up and leave. On the face of it, this seems like a move severely lacking in testosterone, but do not forget the point of principle here. 

It is all fine and dandy to get into a battle of machismo, but the point of poker is to win money and, to do this, you need to find players who you find it easier to extract said money from.

If you are playing against an aggressive player who is making your decisions tougher, then you should not be playing against him or her. Just sit the game out and find a new one with weaker, more passive, players.

But let’s imagine that you are involved in a short-handed game and you have to face this type of player. The first thing you need to show him or her is that you are not afraid. 

By staying out of their way you are inviting them to attack. So, you must play back at them. When playing back at an aggressive player, it is important to understand that their hand range is much wider than a normal player. 

This means that you can try to get the chips in the middle with a much lighter range yourself, or just wait for them to bluff off their chips to you.

 

Last Updated 12 May 2014
Dealing with Aggression in Online Poker