Gus on WPT

[Stork]

For people who've been watching the WPT on the travel channel,

Is it just me or does Gus, who came on 1st on one of the tourney's,don't remember which one, suck at poker?

[RiverMel]

Gus Hansen? No.

[microlimitaddict]

Gus Hansen actually came in first at two seperate WPT events. I'm not certain but I believe he was also at the final table at a different event. Very good at getting into opponents' heads who can never seem to figure out whether he is proceeding with another insane bluff or not.
Proof to all the Sklansky disciples (I consider myself to be in this group) that there is more than just one winning strategy to this game.

[Stork]

Maybe I'm wrong then /forums/images/icons/grin.gif
Just from what I've seen, he seems to play way too loose, playing poor openers yet he seems to get very lucky on the flop alot. I saw him call an all in bet with a QTo. He was up against AKo, but managed to flop QQT. Maybe I haven't watched him enough /forums/images/icons/tongue.gif

[dj_jazzyjeff]

Gus Hansen is a BOLD risk taker. If you noticed in the championship at Bellagio, he called big bets w/ marginal hands to outdraw his opponents.

Whether this is "good poker" or a "winning strategy(in the long-run)", who knows.

But after Hasem Kabeeb (a well-respected pro) went all-in on Hansen, I think Hansen Had like A9o and called him, only to catch an A; Kabeeb stated

"He's not a good player. I wish I could play against him every single day. His loose play would not hold up in the long run"

[Stork]

That hand where Gus knocked out Kabeeb is the hand I'm talking about. Didn't Gus have QTo vs Kabeeb's AKo? Maybe my memory is fuzzy... /forums/images/icons/tongue.gif
I guess I agree w/ Kabeeb's statement though

[dj_jazzyjeff]

I think you're right on what he had. I know he flopped a set 3 times, when he was the pre-flop dogg.

Even though Hansen plays loose and got lucky at Bellagio, that controlled-maniac style of play keeps everyone guessing. He throws everyone off and steals a lot of pots at the final table, which gives him an advantage over the tight players who will surrender their blinds and opening bets if they don't have the best of it.

I'm going to the Ameristar right now here in K.C.

Wish me good Hansen....er Luck /forums/images/icons/smirk.gif

[bernie]

maybe you havent watched tournies enough. this is how it goes. many times, if one goes on a rush late in the tourney, theyll win. there is no longrun in a tourney. you have to take chances. which is why you will rarely see a grinder on the final 3-5 players in a n/l tourney.

however, i think gus's style is great for n/l tourney. unpredictable. and nary a tell on him.

granted, this type of play is much different than in a ring game.

he's still fun to watch, and watch the reactions of his opponents.

b

[bernie]

are you talking about 'deeb'.


im wondering who says he's a respected pro? after watching him, i certainly wasnt impressed. at all. he could sit at my table anytime. he's also a classless poor loser. his line about the longrun shows his ignorance of tourney play.

btw...he wasnt bitching about hansen, it was the guy to hansens right he was complaining about.

b

[Ed Miller]

I think Hansen generally plays quite well given the situation... short-handed NL tournament final table. He will sometimes commit too much of his stack on a marginal hand preflop, but otherwise his loose-aggressive style is very well suited to his environment. I would definitely not want Gus Hansen at my final table with real money on the line.

[Ed Miller]

he seems to play way too loose, playing poor openers

Correct preflop strategy for limit ring games and for shorthanded no limit tournament final tables is like night and day. Playing Hansen's style in a limit ring game would get you broke real fast. Playing his style at a shorthanded final no limit table will put you in solid contention for first prize.

[Sooga]

Personally, I love Gus's play. I would definitely NOT want to be at a no-limit table with him. Sure, he plays questionable hands preflop, but if you watch him, he plays extremely well postflop, which makes his preflop plays profitable. I love watching Gus play.

[Lee Jones]

I agree. He calls with all kinds of trash preflop, but his opponents, it seemed, don't make it expensive enough for him to those calls. And he does play extremely well postflop, after they've left a lot of dough in play.

The exception I saw was Andy Bloch, who seemed to give him quite a headache in L.A. Mike/VVP made a deal about Andy's calling Gus's jam with A8 preflop, but the way Gus was playing, Andy was almost sure to have the best hand, and he did. But throughout the show, I thought Andy did a better job of handling him than anybody else.

Regards, Lee

[Kurn, son of Mogh]

I saw him call an all in bet with a QTo

If I remember that specific hand, the all-in from the other player was less than 20% of Gus' chips, so he chose to gamble to knock out the other player, not an unusual decision in a tournament.

A NL tournament is more about stack size, aggression, and your opponent's uncertainy as to how strong his hand is, than it is about the cards you actually hold. Good cards help, but in tournaments you often have to make moves *without* a good hand to win.

[Greg (FossilMan)]

No surprise there. Andy is one of the most intelligent poker players in the world. Give him a set of facts, and he can tell you the best decision to make. The only reason he will be wrong is because you didn't give him the right facts.

Later, Greg Raymer (FossilMan)

[slogger]

I totally agree.

I could never pull it off, but there's no player I wish I could play like more than Gus Hansen.

Probably the most entertaining player to watch (based on style of play rather than personality - although I love the contrast between his demeanor and his style of play).

[cferejohn]

There was one guy in the finals who was just about as insane. Ted Forrest. I don't think I could play like that, but it sure is fun to watch.

I imagine these players probably do not play this way in the early going.

Actually, I think that the biggest thing these players do that I have trouble with is to make a big bluff on the river when I feel no one has anything. I'll bluff pre-flop and I'll bluff on the flop, but if I'm called in both places, I am done bluffing 90% of the time.

[ACBob]

There are different views of Gus. I see him as a thinking maniac wwo could be dangerous to himself and the rest of the table.

Bob Lewis

[TimTimSalabim]

"Gus Hansen -- the Thinking Poker Player's Maniac"

I have to qualify this by saying I've only seen him play in the two WPT events, but I think Gus is sort of a throwback to the old days of poker, when the top pros played the person more than the cards, with only minor regard to the mathematics of the situation. This is certainly a viable strategy in no-limit if one is skilled at it, as he is. He definitely got lucky, too, at critical times in both WPT events.