Tilt: the customer is always right

Tilt. the customer is always right

Let's say we know that our opponent has experienced a hot tilt and wants to play a game of big variations. What tactics could we use against him? Do we just play our own style and let him eat his own porridge, or should we try to start minraising and force him to play in a low variation environment?

First of all, there is an important issue to consider. Why did your opponent bridge? If you can find the reason for the tilt, you can take full advantage of the situation. You need to realise that even if he has bridged, your opponent is still thinking quite rationally. He is still playing according to his values, only now his values have changed. Rational play and the desire to get the maximum possible +EV is now being superseded by the desire to maximize variance and maximize wins, or at least to vent his anger. You have to ask yourself, "What are my opponent's values now?" And once you find out, you have to give him the opportunity to get those values.

What does this mean? It is the simplest thing in the world. When you play against someone who is tilt, that someone starts to get splashed all over the place and eventually leaves the table. You might not even notice it, or you might think what difference does it make, but it does. It's a missed opportunity. When an opponent tilt, you want them to continue playing with you in that state. And to do that, you need to understand how and why he is tilt and how to keep him there.

For example, you know your opponent wants to maximize the variance, his bridge is hot, so he 3-bets 50% and you can see that he bets the pot or check-folds the flop. So the opponent's goal is to maximise variation. Most players would adjust to the situation and minraise if he keeps 3-betting into minraises. Such actions create deeper SPR (stack-to-pot-ratios) after the flop, and people assume that these will be the main advantages of this situation. This is a big mistake, because the opponent who has crossed the rail will leave the table very quickly if you start doing this. But because they are usually not sure if the opponent really went for it or if he would have just walked out anyway, most players will miss the opportunity to play the tilt player and think they did it right.

A wise player knows to give the tilter what he wants. The moment you play with a tilt player, you create a symbiotic relationship with him. Now you are exchanging values. You give him what he wants (variation, a chance to tie, a path to tie) and he gives you what you want - EV. Finally, he doesn't even have to tilt against you. He can go play at another table and bridge there, or go play roulette, or just smash the wall. If that's what your opponent wants, it's your job to be all those things - his roulette table, his fist-pumping wall, or whatever he wants. If you make his wishes come true, he will continue to play with you.

What does this look like in practice? If your opponent wants to maximize the variance by 3-betting you 50%, let the variance increase. Narrow your openings, play bigger pots and increase the speed of the game. Instead of minrais'intum 95% from the button, make a normal 3x raise of 75%, extend your 4-betting range and play faster. This will make your opponent think that the game is moving forward and that he can get the variation he wants faster. As the game speeds up, the increased number of folds will not annoy the opponent any more. Playing in this way makes it more likely that the opponent will continue, and if they do, you know that you have done all you can.

Remember, if a player has chosen a suboptimal strategy, there is more than one way to exploit it. You should start by measuring your choice against whether it will fulfil the wishes of your tilt opponent, and only then how much value it will give you. You certainly don't want to choose the most trivial tilt-feeding strategy. Face it, it would be foolish to raise 5x every time from the button just because the opponent wants more variation. But the point remains that you have to give the tilt what it wants. The customer is always right.

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