Are you curious what is a hero call in poker? Well, there are very few feelings in poker that are against “soul reading” your opponent and looking them up on the river with a low hand. However, all of this is more in a region of the metagame.
From a strict point of view, making hero calls in conditions where everything suggests you are beaten, can be very risky. Then, you will not find much in terms of strategic tips on when to hero call someone. It sometimes boils down to the reads you have, table dynamics, and other non-tangible things.
Understanding What is a Hero Call in Poker
To understand what is a hero call in poker, it is call made on the river despite the fact that winning seems almost impossible. At the very least our opponent would require bluffing, and we may not even beat all of his bluffing range. For instance, we can call Queen-high and find out that the villain is turning King-high into a bluff.
However, this is different from “bluff catching” which is where we at the very least beat all of our opponent’s bluffs. Bluff catching itself is a standard part of theoretically correct poker strategy whereas hero calling is not. For a hero call to be correct, it suggests that we should have an extremely robust read on the type of hand that our opponent is holding.
Well, in other words, an example of what is a hero call in poker, it is like we made the heroic decision to call the river all-in with our King high, confident that the villain had the busted gutshot.
How to Use Hero Call as Part of Poker Strategy
After knowing what is a hero call in poker, let’s learn how to use it in your strategy. Hero call is not a part of correct poker play. It is also not correct in practice in the big majority of situations. Just because a hand might sometimes win when calling doesn’t guarantee that the expectation of the call is positive overall.
Calling with weak hands (like bluff catching), is theoretically correct on the other hand. It is crucial that our bluff catching range will be selected carefully to make sure that it doesn’t lose to any of the bluffs in our opponent’s range.
Bluff catching and hero calling might occur the same. A standard bluff catch might be referred to as a “hero call” when it is in fact a theoretically correct bluff catch.
Moreover, hero calls will only be correct in practice with a very specific read on our opponent. For instance, when a specific bet-sizing indicates that our opponent is always bluffing we can often create the hero call even if we sometimes lose to some of his bluffs.
The frequency with which we have to be good to have a profitable call described simply by the pot-odds we are provided.
Top Hero Call Poker
In the history of what is a hero call in poker, there have been a lot of hero calls. Yes, the most interesting are those that have been played between titans, and definitely, in which the amount of chips and money at stake was much higher. Below, we will show you what we consider the best hero calls.
1. Davidi Kitai vs Andrew Chen
David Kitai is one of the most famous poker players. The Belgian card professional has won titles in all 3 major poker events. To understand more what is a hero call in poker, Kitbul played one of the most interesting games in the history of poker.
It took place in the EPT Berlin Heads-Up in 2012, when Andrew Chen bluffed. Kitai, as if he was allowed to predict the future, took part in Chen’s bluff by reading his hand, his expressions and with one of the strongest strategies ever seen in this existing card game.
2. Sam Trickett vs Devilfish
In the case of Sam Trickett, he was the one who called the bet and Devilfish was the one who saw it wrongly. It was undoubtedly a grave error because Trickett dominated Devilfish, David Ulliot, for most of the game.
Do’s and Don’ts of Hero Calls in Poker
So, now you know what is a hero call in poker. Of course, there is not a clear strategy for this play since it is very situational and player-dependent, however, some of the tips in this article should obviously help. In addition, to help you even further with these sports, here is a quick and simple overview of some do’s and don’ts when it comes to hero calling.
Do:
- Prepare to make tough calls when the situation guarantees it
- Consider about all important aspects of the hand before making the decision
- Think how big the best is in relation to the pot
- Review your and your opponents likely ranges
- Stick to your gut feeling when you are confident you are ahead
Then, the list of things you should do when thinking about what is a hero call in poker, when calling someone is not that long and complicated. It all will make sense, and if you stick to it, you should do just fine.
Don’t:
- Ever hero call someone just because you don’t like them or want to reveal them who is the boss
- Make it a habit to call big bets on the river chasing the “high”
- Intentionally of what is a hero call in poker, you can seek hero call spots and force things. Let these spots will come naturally
- Be afraid to stick to your guns when you have a solid read
Conclusion
As you know what is a hero call in poker, the sinking expression on your opponent’s face as you drag the pot after calling a bet that you just should not have called hardly be defined using words.
If you make a good hero call depending on your read of the situation, you will be entitled to be happy about it, however, don’t make it out to be more than it is. Otherwise, when your hero call doesn’t work, don’t sweat it when you know it made sense, given the information you had.