[W. Deranged]

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First of all, thanks for the great reply. I was hoping you would answer it, and you did.

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Results: Maniac showed K[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] J[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] and MHIG!

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Un-[censored]-able! That's great.

I guess this isn't really a bluff, but rather calling a bluff, right? It seems the few times this has happened to me, Villian ended up pairing at least, and sometimes actually had a hand at the end. Maybe I'm being too results-oriented for the few times I've been burned.

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It's not really a bluff in the truest sense. It's more of a promotion play, or what might be termed a "value-bluff."

The idea is that I can beat one guy but maybe not the other two; so I use him to improve the relative standing of my hand.

The major points in considering this play:

1. The maniac. We need a REAL crazy here. I needed to be pretty sure not only that he'd often have a worse hand than mine, but that he'd often raise with it to improve my equity.

2. Board texture. This doesn't make sense if the board had a K, Q, or even T. The fact that ever card was so low and that the board was paired gave me some confidence that most of the players in the hand probably missed the board, meaning either my hand was often pretty good or that they had hands that wouldn't likely continue with.

3. Relative position. The fact that I'm next to the maniac is key here. I'd actually prefer to be on his left, so I could raise/check-raise him and have more control over the outcome, but this guy was such a lag that I could bet into him knowing he'd raise a good majority of the time.