Adopting a balanced, selective aggressive strategy in poker will put opponents on tilt, win pots, and maximize value from strong hands against overly passive players.
If perceptive opponents notice you only enter pots with premium monster hands, they will accurately deduce those are your only holdings. When you do play, weaker hands fold, depriving you of crucial action for building pots. Injecting varied play is key to prevent predictability and exploitability.
Tournaments feature rising blinds that penalize passive play immensely. Just patiently waiting for premium pairs like Aces or Kings means hemorrhaging chips from escalating antes and blinds. To survive, mixing in play of more marginal hands is imperative based on position and opponents.
A conservative approach creates an image of a passive target for opponents. They will repeatedly punish and steal your blinds, knowing you'll likely only put up resistance holding premiums. This is not an intimidating presence. You want them apprehensive about tangling with you.
Blending aggression with caution is optimal. Reckless hyper-aggression bleeds chips. Instead, employ selective, calculated aggression. Despite seeming contradictory, these work synergistically. Smart aggression involves raising more pots than average to claim blinds or take down pots. But have disciplined fold equity if facing resistance without strong connected cards.
Aggressors create frustration for opponents by being inscrutable and applying constant pressure. Adopting this role maximizes fold equity. You're there to win chips, not make friends after all.
In essence, balanced aggression paired with perceptive hand selection exploits passive players while avoiding spewing off chips. If opponents see you relentlessly attacking, they'll be hesitant to mess with you without premium hands. That intimidation factor grants you greater leeway to steal pots. Aggression wins tournaments, but only when used intelligently.
