This is how you handle the big bluffer

This guy was quite a player to watch. I was quadtablin' NL100 and he sat at three of my tables, pushing his stack around all the time and making everyone fold. He was so obvious it was almost embarrassing to see him check/call and then check/min-raise his good stuff and then zealously overplay hiss lesser holdings and making these outrageous bluffs when he was empty as a cup. This is how I handled the situation...

***** Hand History for Game 3410706410 *****
$100 NL Texas Hold'em - Saturday, January 21, 14:28:26 EDT 2006
Table Table 65809 (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button

Total number of players : 10
Seat 1: Marmitekite ( $109.05 )
Seat 2: andvede ( $103.75 )
Seat 4: walnuts02 ( $94 )
Seat 5: JLOBSTER77 ( $168.45 )
Seat 6: allenbern ( $49 )
Seat 7: BPokey ( $251.40 )
Seat 8: monk04 ( $99 )
Seat 9: TX_XiPhe ( $103.15 )
Seat 10: Gridlock_ ( $81 )
Seat 3: Rpayto ( $100 )

walnuts02 posts small blind [$0.50].
JLOBSTER77 posts big blind [$1].

** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Gridlock_ [ 9d 9s ]

allenbern folds.
BPokey folds.
monk04 folds.
TX_XiPhe calls [$1].
Gridlock_ raises [$4].
Marmitekite folds.
andvede folds.
walnuts02 folds.
JLOBSTER77 calls [$3].
TX_XiPhe calls [$3].

** Dealing Flop ** [ Ts, Kh, 8d ]

JLOBSTER77 checks.
TX_XiPhe checks.
Gridlock_ checks.

** Dealing Turn ** [ 8c ]

JLOBSTER77 bets [$6].
TX_XiPhe folds.
Gridlock_ calls [$6].

** Dealing River ** [ Kc ]

JLOBSTER77 bets [$75].
Gridlock_ is all-In [$71]

JLOBSTER77 shows [ 6h, Qh ] two pairs, kings and eights.
Gridlock_ shows [ 9d, 9s ] two pairs, kings and nines.

JLOBSTER77 wins $4 from side pot #1 with two pairs, kings and eights.
Gridlock_ wins $163.50 from the main pot with two pairs, kings and nines.

What made you sure he didn't have an 8 or T? Shouldn't he have been betting hard if he didn't have anything?

When you have a player like that at your table you always want a full stack, even if you need to fill it up after every hand. You could have made $20 more dollars.

I am not 100 % SURE he doesn't have an 8 or an T but his betting strongly suggest he has neither. As I said I had watched this guy a lot and every time he betted that strong it was a complete bluff. You would think he could do so with strong hands also to mix it up, but the few times he was called down he showed stone cold bluffs only. When he bets to try to steal/value bet the pot on the turn I have a specific reason to just call him. He's bet on the turn COULD be a legitimate bet, but because he´s icredibly sore style of play I will know for sure at the river. The king at the river is a perfect card.

When he immedietaly bets all-in it follows his pattern. Why should I be afraid to call him down? Because it is a big bet? Because it is a "strong" move? As I said, following his usual pattern that bet means he is really really weak and just want to take the pot down. Desperately. While I seriously doubt a strong player would ever play like that, a better player would at least try to mix up pulling of this "desperation" bets with some legitimate hands. Theres a but here, and the put is that I by no means have the stone cold nut myself...

If my assumptions are incorrect and he tricked me to call him down, then I just lost 71 bucks. But I'd thought the odds of him betting a legitimate hand here was very very slim, and since I believed "I had the odds" to call him down. I think it´s really important to stick with your read when you believe you have the best of it. Players that are bullies are trying to do that all the time - Bully you! Don't let him do it... Regarding Les_Worm;s comment about the full stack, you are of course right. I always look to rebuy ASAP, even when Im only down a few dollars. I was quadtablin' though and after losing the previous hand I was involved in another and didn't make the rebuy before this hand came up.