Party Holdem Poker Com
Back to the Grind by Michael Mizrachi
Table bully Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi wants you to know he's a nice guy. Now hand over those chips.
People think I'm the gangster type because of the way I dress, but you don't know the way I am until you meet me. I think I have an intimidating look, but I'm actually a very nice guy; I get along with everybody. I have no foes and I'm probably one of the most likeable guys in poker if you get to know me. But sit with me at the poker table, and it might be a different story. But that's mostly at the table.
When it comes to playing poker, people always think I'm bluffing because I give that smile, that little smirk. Whether I'm bluffing or have a hand, I always make the same face, so it's pretty hard to get a read out of me. I know if I have a tell or not. If I feel that I'm doing something wrong or somebody picks up on something, I'll try to correct that mistake. It's hard to do, but I don't feel that I have any tells or any weaknesses, anyway. But, then again, you never know.
When I sit down at the table, I look for many different things. But I always look for tells first. The way other players handles their cards, how heavy they breathe, or even how hard they swallow. That's where I pick up on them and try to take advantage of those situations. I'm always aware of where I'm at and what my opponents have at all times. But somestimes I can figure them out the moment I see them.
With some players, I can pretty much tell how they're going to play and what kind of style they have by the way they look. I can tell if they're weak or strong or if they might be a little bit of trouble for me. But if I can't tell just by looking at them, I'll wait a few hands and test them out and see how they play back at me. For example, I might start re-raising to see if they come back over the top. Also, I like to start testing my opponents early so I'll know more about how they play later in the game.
Of course timing is everything. I play an aggressive style when it's called for, and I do it against the right players. I take advantage of them and try to bully the table at the right time. You can't always be aggressive at all stages. Sometimes you'll have to slow down and maybe go on the passive side. Not too passive, of course; but I'll just play a little smarter and start making a lot of calls.
Sometimes you need to raise a guy just to get him off a hand so he doesn't draw another card on you. But what you really want to do is induce a bluff. Call a guy so he bluffs all his chips on the street or the river.
Sure, I've made many bluffs. There are so many bluffs. But I'll make a lot of those bigger bluffs in deep-stack poker, because you can do that when you have an enormous amount of chips. With small stacks you can't bluff as much. If you do and you get caught, you're out. When I'm playing in deep stack-tournaments, those are my bluffing chips. The key is to be aware of how many chips I can bluff to take a shot to try and win a pot. There is a stop line to bluffing where I always leave myself that second chance in the tournament. But a good bluff isn't as convincing if you don't have the right table presence. And that is where people start worrying about my intimidating look.
In terms of my own personal look, I think wearing caps always helps. It gives away less. Your forehead may give a telt, and some people cover their eyes with their hat because they may squint. I think it's a great idea to always wear a hat when playing poker. If I don't wear one, a lot of times it gives me a headache. Sometimes I even have to sleep with my hat on.
