Poker Term
Cold Call from CO
Cold Call from CO
Term: Cold Call from CO In the CO position, without having posted any blinds, directly calling a raise from an earlier player.
Definition
A Cold Call from CO refers to a player in the Cut Off position (immediately to the right of the button) who, without having posted any blind in the current hand, elects to call (Call) a raise (Raise) from an earlier position player (typically UTG or MP), rather than re-raising or folding. This action qualifies as a “cold call” because the caller has not yet invested any chips in the current betting round.
Position and Strategy
The CO position offers significant preflop informational advantage (second only to the button), yet cold calling here is generally considered a weaker strategy. The main reasons are:
- Range and Playability: The cold-calling range often includes medium pocket pairs, suited connectors, or suited Ax (Ace-high) hands, aiming to leverage postflop positional advantage.
- Risk: Cold calling builds the pot passively and makes the caller vulnerable to a squeeze (Squeeze) from later positions (BTN, SB, BB). If a re-raise occurs, the cold caller may be forced to fold, losing the invested chips.
- Balance: In modern GTO strategy, cold calling from CO is used at a low frequency, with raise or fold being the preferred actions. However, in lower stakes games, cold calling can exploit tight-passive raisers or generate value through superior postflop play.
Common Scenarios
- When the raiser has a tight range and tends to fold postflop, cold calling allows seeing the flop cheaply and using position to steal the pot.
- Holding pocket pairs (e.g., 22-66) hoping to flop a set, cold calling keeps the pot smaller and reduces the risk of being re-raised compared to raising.
- As a balancing tool: occasionally cold calling against strong raisers to protect one’s own raising range from being overly exploited.
Notes
- Avoid frequent cold calling, especially when players behind are aggressive.
- Against small bet sizings, cold calling offers better pot odds.
- Postflop, the cold caller should possess the ability to execute multi-street bluffs or value bets; otherwise, folding or raising is recommended.