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Action -
1. The poker play you make when you act on your hand.
2. The intensity of the betting and raising on a particular betting round, or in a particular hand or game.
When you act in a poker game, the resulting play is called “action.” Action can include the following:
check, bet, raise, fold,
bring-In,
completion, all-in, etc. Alternatively, the word
“action” can also be used to describe your betting position, relative to that of the other players in the game. “First action” indicates
a player’s obligation to act ahead of all other players on a particular betting round. “Last action” indicates the privilege of acting
last on that betting round.
“Action” is also used to describe the intensity of the betting and raising in a poker game. A game with a lot of betting and raising
would have “a lot of action,” or “good action.” Conversely, a game without much betting or raising would have “not much action.” Action
can also be used as an adjective to describe a game with a lot of betting and raising: "It was an action game."
An “action player” is a player who gives a lot of action, the polar opposite of a “rock.” This type of player is constantly betting and
raising, and is prone to big bankroll swings, both up and down. Many players who fit this category play a lot of hands because they
enjoy playing and don’t much care if they win or lose. This is a great player to have in the game, because not only will they give good
action, they also will generate action from the other players.
While an action player can be a fish, it is not always the case. Some action players can be very tough. They will
check-raise a lot, make numerous plays at you, and
force you to make some very tough calls. So, the term “action player” refers to a style of play (loose aggressive or LAG) rather than
playing ability. Regardless of whether an action player plays well or poorly, it is often a good idea to sit on their left. That way you
will be able to see what they are going to do before you get your chips involved, and you can punish them they are out of line.
Alternatively, if you are a tight, solid player playing pot limit or no limit poker, it may be a good idea to sit to the immediate right
of an action player, especially if you are both deep. The reason for this is it is ideal trapping position. If the action player is
giving action with a lot of weak and medium strength hands, the other players in the game will be more prone to call him or make a play
at him. This will assist you in springing the trap. If you check a big hand and the action player on your immediate left bets, all the
other players in the game will get a chance to respond to his bet before you do. This may give you the opportunity to trap not only the
action player, but the players responding to him as well. The down side to this strategy is that it requires you to check your big
hands. This means you will win smaller pots and even lose some hands that you would have won had you bet. This brings us to the crux of
why this strategy works best when both you and the action player are deep. By checking big hands to trap, you are taking on additional
risk. To justify this there needs to be a large potential reward, which will only exist if both of you are deep.
An action card is a card that triggers substantial action. This term is usually used in the context of flop games. This is because, in
Stud and Draw games, each player receives their own cards, so it is rare for one card delivered to one player to trigger action from
multiple players.
Usage: I’ll Give You Action, Action Game, Good Action, Get Action on Your Hand, Action Table, First Action, Last Action, Flop Action,
Turn Action, River Action, Action Player
Previous Poker Term: Act
Next Poker Term: Active Player
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