What Does Cold Mean in Poker?
In poker, ‘cold’ refers to a situation where a player calls multiple bets in a single action without having previously contributed to the pot. This typically happens when a player calls both a raise and a re-raise, such as pre-flop.
When You Might Hear Or Use The Term Cold
You might hear the term ‘cold’ when discussing hands where a player enters the pot by calling more than one bet at once. It’s often mentioned in scenarios involving significant pre-flop action.
In-Game Example
Imagine you’re in a game, and a player raises to $10, another player re-raises to $30, and then you decide to call both bets ‘cold’ by putting in $30 without having put any chips in the pot previously.
Strategy / Tips
- Best Practice: Cold calling is most effective when you have a strong hand that plays well in multi-way pots, such as a pocket pair or suited connectors.
- Common Mistake: A frequent error is cold calling with weak hands that don’t justify the investment, leading to negative expected value.
- Pro Tips: Use cold calling strategically against aggressive opponents to keep the pot small with speculative hands that have potential to hit strong post-flop.
- Differences playing over the table vs online: In live games, cold calling can be more telling due to physical reads, while online requires a stronger understanding of player tendencies and bet sizing.
Alternative Names
There are no direct alternative names for ‘cold,’ but it may be referred to as ‘cold calling’ in discussions.
FAQs
- Q: Is cold calling always a bad strategy?
- A: Not necessarily. It can be a good strategy if used with the right hand against the right opponents.
