Consider this: you are in a ring game and you happen to be almost entirely surrounded by overly-aggressive players. You seem to have the best hand in the house and you go through rounds of betting – continuously calling and raising together with the other players. Suddenly, Mr. Super Aggressive bets almost all of his chips. What do you do? Do you play with Mr. Super Aggressive or do you fold?

Better Be Reasonable than Broke

Aggressive players have something right. They know that playing aggressively can be the death of short-stacked players with good hands. However, it’s still better to play reasonable poker. Even if you’re sorely tempted to join the maniacs’ party and raise and re-raise often, it is better to act with the odds in mind.

Yes, it could be quite frustrating – especially for tight players – to play with those aggressive players because one does not know if they are actually betting because they have the best hand or if they are betting just for the sake of it. However, you don’t want to be holding trash when the showdown takes place. You don’t want to waste your money on bad cards, do you?

It Should Be Their Loss, Not Yours

Aggressive players have one weakness: they just don’t know when to quit. They’ll continue to rise to the challenge. Thus, they make good catch when the time is right. You should just make sure that the time is right before you set your bait.

Thus, if you are playing with maniacs, play as reasonably tight as always. When you get good starting hands, provoke the maniac with a raise and then continue to re-raise. Aggressive players tend to tilt and they will rise admirably to the occasion. You can therefore be assured of a good pot at the end of that hand.

In a nutshell, aggressive players are a good source of chips – as long as you play them right. And here’s just the way to play them right:

Bait them before the flop

You fight when you have great starting hands (say a big pair) and you raise fast and furious before the flop. Maniacs are not raising and re-raising so they could stay in the hand. They often just want to have the upper hand and perhaps steal the blinds before the flop.

Thus, make your move before the flop. Wrest the control away from the maniacs before the board is revealed. This way, you may be able to walk away with a big pot (from the blinds and succeeding bets) before the board spells trouble for you and your cards.

Reel them in

After the flop and your greatest hopes are realized (you have a milking hand) you should slowly reel in your catch (if maniacs persisted after the flop). You should try to slow the game down. Sensing victory, the maniacs will be as aggressive as ever, adding value to your sure pot.