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Poker Calling Station - What Is A Calling Station In Poker?

Poker Calling Station - What Is A Calling Station In Poker?

A calling station in poker is someone that frequently calls bets regardless of the strength of their hand, in the hope of improving as more cards hit the table.

If you want to try your hand at beating calling stations next time you play a game of poker, read this Wizard Slots blog post and put some of our suggestions on how to play against calling stations to practice! 

What Is A Calling Station In Poker? 

A calling station is someone who continues to call in poker, no matter what hand they have. These casino game players regularly avoid folding cards and tend not to act aggressively.

Before we tell you more about how you can potentially play against calling stations, let’s talk a bit about how you can spot them when playing poker. When trying to spot a calling station, there are a couple of characteristics and actions you can look out for.

Some of these actions include calling many raises, rarely folding pre-flop to a raise, and rarely folding to re-raises. Calling stations also tend to limp into many pots, calling almost any two cards and only raising when they have premium hands.

How To Play Against Calling Stations 

Calling stations can sometimes be tricky opponents at the poker table. They rarely act aggressively but often put a significant amount of money into the pot through calling. As they often play a lot of hands, it can be difficult to guess what they might be holding.

Now that you know how to spot a calling station when you play poker, let’s talk about the potential ways you can play against them. If you spot calling stations at the table, you can try to reduce how often you bluff. This is because calling stations often make astonishingly wide calls.

Another tip to use when playing against calling stations is to value bet as often as possible. As bluffing isn’t an option, you can bet thin instead. 

It may also be beneficial to use larger bet sizes when you have a stronger hand. Your aim is always to get as much value as you can for a particular hand, so if that means taking some chances with bet sizing, so be it.