Imagine a grainy black-and-white movie.  It’s one from Driver Ed class.  The movie puts us inside an automobile,  driving on the highway.  There is some really lame soundtrack playing.  The narrator,  a grade B actor with a deep,  made-for-radio voice provides helpful hints as the car moves along the interstate.

He says:  “Aim high in steering.  Get the big picture.  And always leave yourself an out!”

Do you know,  to this day I hear his voice when I am on the highway.  And I do exactly what he said to do.  I look toward the horizon,  not toward the front of my car  --  aiming high in steering.  I take in everything on the road,  not just the road itself or the car right in front of me,  getting the big picture.  And I always think about where I would steer if there were some accident or interference in the road ahead of me  --  leaving myself an out.

But here’s the weird part.  I heard these voices the other day at Foxwoods at the $5/5 No Limit holdem table.

Too often,  players consider only the action immediately before them:  their cards and the betting action that they must make.  So they think,  “I have a pair of 5s.   Should I fold, call or raise the Big Blind?”  They often think that a pair of 5s isn’t very strong  --  so they fold.  Or they think that they’ve been running really good,  have recently hit trips on the flop,  feel lucky,  and so they call.

But this isn’t  “aiming high in steering.”  They’re not looking properly down the road,  anticipating what they’re eventually going to be facing.  Their decisions are often too simplistic,  short-sighted and myopic.

They should be thinking about what is likely to happen after they call.  Are the players who remain after them especially loose and passive?  If so,  then a call might well be in order,  as they are unlikely to get raised;  and they are likely to have a number of folks in the hand to see the Flop and pay them off if they flop Trips or a Full House.  On the other hand,  if the players yet to act are especially aggressive,  and likely to raise the Big Blind by a large amount if they have any hand at all,  then it probably doesn’t make sense to call.  Staying in will be expensive by the time the bet comes back to them.  Looking down the road,  so to speak,  at the poker table means thinking about these things and acting accordingly.  The good players do this,  the bad ones don’t.

Similarly,  it’s critical that the good player  “get the big picture”  of what’s going on.  This means noticing everything there is to notice about the game before making a decision about what to do with your hand.  Did you notice the player two to your left looking at his chips after he looked at his hand?  This probably means he’s planning to play and maybe raise.  Are most of the players looking to their right,  waiting for your betting action,  and maybe already grabbing their cards together in a nice neat little stack of two cards?  This is probably a sign that they’re waiting to fold.  Or are they actors feigning indifference?  Have they looked away as if they were disinterested before,  only to raise the size of the pot in similar situations?  Could be they’re trying to encourage you to bet so they can then come in over the top for a significant raise.

The successful no limit holdem poker player will take all of this into consideration before deciding.  It’s not enough to get the small picture of the hole cards.  You need the big picture  --  taking in every piece of information that’s available to you before you act.

“And always leave yourself an out.”  You making a big play at the pot?  You don’t really have the cards?  Even if you’re bluffing you generally want to have a backup plan,  some way to improve your hand if your opponent decides to call you.  Let’s say,  for example,  that it’s the Turn.  You have Ah Jh,  and raised in early position before the Flop.  You got one caller.  The Flop was Jd 7h 6h.  You bet the pot and got a call.  The turn is the 5c.  You check.  Your opponent bets what you bet on the Flop.  You decide to try to blow him off his hand and check-raise him all in.  You’re hoping that he will fold  --  convinced that you somehow made a straight or trips.  But even if he doesn’t fold,  you have left yourself with some outs to improve to the best hand.  A heart gives you the nut Flush.  A Jack gives you Trips.  An Ace gives you top pair,  top kicker.  You’ve left yourself an out.  That’s usually the best way to make large plays like this.