Poker is a game of skill, strategy and luck. In order to succeed at the game, players must know when to call and when to raise, as well as how to read other players. A cold call is a type of calling that is done when an opponent’s raise is met with a fold. It can be done preflop or postflop and is usually used as a bluff to disguise the strength of your hand.
In poker, the term “cold call” is used to describe a player who calls a raise when they don’t have any money/chips invested in the pot. This is commonly seen in low-stakes tournaments and cash games. For example, in a $1/$2 NLHE cash game, Player A raises to $6 from early position and then Player B three-bets from middle position. If you call both bets, this is a cold call.
Cold calling is often viewed as a bad move, especially when you’re playing at a table with tight players. However, it can be a useful tool in certain situations. Cold calling can be used to protect your advantage in the game, as it prevents your opponents from taking a free ride to the river with strong hands like AK. It can also be used to balance your range, so that your opponents don’t always assume you have a good hand. For example, if you’re always raising with ace-king, they’ll be able to read you as a big stack and put you on Big Slick every time.
When you decide to call a raise, you should always consider your opponent’s stack size and position. If you’re in early position and your opponent has a short stack, calling a raise with a weak hand will be a mistake. This is because you’ll be forced to raise your own hand more often than necessary and you’ll likely lose a lot of chips in the process.
Another important factor when deciding to call is the amount of money that’s already in the pot. For instance, if you’re in the SB and an opponent opens for a 3bet, it’s best to only call with a strong pocket pair like KK or AQ. These hands have decent set value and can easily win against an opponent’s weaker pairs.
If you’re in the BB, it’s sometimes okay to call a preflop raise with a pocket pair as long as you’re getting at least 3:1 pot odds. This is because you’ll have a stronger hand than your opponent and can easily dominate their pair. This isn’t the case for all pockets, however, and you should only call with your best hands when you have a clear edge over your opponent. For example, you should never call a preflop raise with KK when your opponent is in the BB with KQ. This is a big mistake that can cost you a lot of money.