Sun Tzu's Art of War Applied to Poker

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The clever combatant imposes his will on the enemy, but does not allow the enemy's will to be imposed on him.

Go against your opponents on your terms; do not acquiesce to your opponents' terms. This is to say, pull your opponents into your trap, do not be pulled into theirs.

To accomplish this, you must always be mindful and alert; every single action at the poker table has intent behind it: it is your job to figure out what that intent is! A slowplay may be designed to pull you in, a large bet may be designed to scare you away. Even if a player is just going through the motions (i.e. his or her head is not in the game) there is still rhyme and reason behind each call, bet, and fold. Find out how their minds work and use that information to your advantage.
 
Love your thread, please continue!

Dear Punctual,

I just found your thread and read all of it with so much enjoyment, that I had to register simply so I could let you know my deep appreciation and the hope to encourage you to continue this beautiful endeavor.

I'm sure, there will be many people who would share those feelings when reminding them of this great ancient book and its implications for poker at this day and age!

I hope you are doing well!

Fackeltraeger
 
Exerpt No. 5

This is my favorite part of Sun Tzu's art of war. Deception.
Truly applicable to poker
 
punctual said:
1. Moral Law: you must be obedient to your strategy: do not change because you are on tilt or for any other reason not related to securing the best outcome. Have a plan, stick to it for better (win) or worse (bust out).

2. Heaven: these are the conditions which are there but which you can not change or control. For example, you can not change or control what cards you are dealt: you can only decide how you will play them.

3. Earth: the consequences of the decisions you make. A single bad decision can cost you the game. A few correct decisions can secure your win. In the real-world, a single bad decision can take your life, many good decisions can preserve it.

4. Commander: to be supreme in your poker conquests you must possess virtues of wisdom, sincerity, benevolence, courage, and strictness. You must be wise in your decision making, sincere in your persistence, benevolent in humbly taking wins and losses , courageous in pushing all your chips in when necessary, and strict in staying the course and keeping to your strategic plan.

5. Method & Discipline: in poker you must cater to your strengths when devising a strategy and do a lot of off the table preparation like reading books and constantly thinking about the hands you've played poorly in the past and how you will play them differently in the future. In poker, you are your own one-man army. You must be able to switch gears from tight to aggressive on a whim so as to assume the various positions required at the various times during warfare. There are times during war when you engage the enemy and times when you lay in wait. There are times when you pursue the enemy and times when you allow the enemy to pursue you so as to draw him into a trap. Preparation and the ability to switch gears is of vital importance.
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Amazing !! You are right. When you can interpret every word written in this book you will change your way how you are playing poker.
 
punctual said:
The Art of War is of vital importance...It is a matter of life and death, a road to either safety or to ruin. Hence, it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected.

In poker, a strategy for your session is of vital importance: how you plan to tackle a tournament or a cash game on a particular day will lead you to either success or failure. Never go into a tournament or cash game without a plan of attack.
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I disagree. You should never go into a poker hand with a premeditated strategy. You adapt according to how the hand is played out.

With that being said, you should go into a game with an arsenal of "tricks" in your bag. The less inhibited you are (fear of losing or bluffing or calling doesn't weigh on you one bit), the more you understand board texture and the more creative bluffs you can pull off, and the more self awareness you have thus allowing you to constant readjust to your image, the better you position yourself to WIN.
 
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