Teasing Tight Players into the Action
Though aggressive poker players know how to scare tight players with big bets, tight players are typically not profitable for aggressive types. You can steal the blinds from them, and scare them off pots to create some dead money, but rarely will they pay you off. Is there any way to exploit these players?
First of all recognize that there are two types of tight - aggressive and passive. Each are easy to identify -passive tight players play very few poker hands, rarely call pre-flop raises, and happily check. They are afraid of losing and taking the initiative. When they are in the action, they have strong hands. With these types you can open up your hand range against them and use scary bet sizes to chase them away. Mix more bluffing into your game, but remember to get out when they call a raise. These folks don’t fool around, they’ve got the goods.
Tight aggressive players on the other hand can be more profitable. They don’t play many poker hands and usually come in with a raise when they do. There will be bigger pots with these players, but you are going up against strong hands. They are not easily bluffed because they only play strength and avoid speculative play. Look for raggy flops when they are in a pot because most likely they bet with premium face cards or an Ace, and the flop has missed the TAG’s hand.