Poker Tip - Keep Them Guessing

19 chips per stack?????? Here is what it means to me.

Most all commercial racks are sorted into 5 rows of 20 chips, that equates to 100 chips total. This makes it easy for everyone to count. And by everyone, I mean your competition too. When you first sit down at a cash table, the dealer will call for "chips on 5". This just means that we need some chips for player on table 5. You give them your money and they bring you a rack.

When I play, I try and keep my stacks of chips in direct contrast to the style of play that I plan to use that game. You will hear the professionals talk about how if a person looks sloppy, and their chips are all over, then you can expect them to be playing loose and fast. If the person is neatly dressed and their chips are in perfect stacks, then you could expect them to play tight. Why not gain a slight advantage by playing the opposite part. This ruse will only last as long as your play lets everyone know what you are up to. But once again, you need to milk every last advantage out you can when you are playing Texas Holdem or any other game of skill.

Another reason to keep your stacks varied is to keep your current balance hidden. A player might count your current amount in order to make a calculated play against your hand. Of course they can always ask for a count (in the games it applies to) but alot of times they just try to count on their own. If they have a little more trouble estimating your roll (and hence the odds), then you have gained a slight edge.

At the same time, when you know that a player has just taken a large pot, keep note of that and how many high value chips they have just taken. Do they leave their stack of $100 chips out in front to show their prowess, or do they hide it under their stack in the back. All of this information is meaningful and should be noted. If they bury that high value chip, most likely they are playing tight or wish they were playing tight.

So, the 19 chips per stack line is just a reminder to keep them guessing. Learn the tell tale signs of a player and their style. I am all for reading a book, but more importantly, take a look around, make mental notes, use a pad if necessary to start, (worked for Greg Raymer at 2005 WSOP) of how people looked, acted and stacked. Compare that with their style of play and see if the signs matched the play.

Keep them guessing with 19 or 22 or 31 chips per stack or even a messy pile of chips. No one said you "have" to stack them up.

Paul of Poker

19 chips per stack.