What is a hero call?: Making hero calls (Part 1)

As I’m sure you are well aware, a hero call is a call, generally made on the river, in which a player has a very marginal hand but one that’s narrowly better than the player making the bet. The ‘hero’ phrase is used to describe the guts (or stupidity) of a call made where generally all the caller can beat is a bluff. The term has been popularised in recent years after players such as Kenny ‘Sick-call Kenny’ Tran have shown what is possible when you have the courage to trust your reads implicitly.

However, while successful hero calls do make you feel like Superman, in general they are a symptom of Fancy Play Syndrome and require an accuracy of decision that is incredibly tough to deliver with any consistency. In the long run, you will most likely lose a LOT of money if you make hero calls a regular part of your game.

The problem is that hero calls are, like true acts of heroism, exceptionally tough to pull off. Without having a really good grounding in some of the finer technical aspects on no-limit hold’ em, attempts at heroism will generally only hurt you and your hourly rate. Nevertheless, there are some spots in which a hero call might be the most +EV line. But there are a wide variety of factors to be considered and weighed up before you proceed.

Hero call or zero call?

Obviously, before even contemplating such a high variance call, you need a tonne of information about your opponent. You need to have a good grasp of their hand ranges and know they are capable of bluffing in this spot – and, perhaps more importantly, that they think you are capable of folding.

You also need to be confident that other, less risky lines will not yield a better result. This is the main reason hero calls are such a dirty example of fancy play syndrome – there is almost always a much more +EV line to exploit. Usually, when you have little to no hand, but fancy your opponent to be weak, there are all sorts of lines you could take to win the pot. The hallmark of a true hero call is to check-call out of position, but this is perhaps the weakest and most passive of your options.

Any line that involves a lot of calling or check-calling should generally be seen as a mistake.
Of course, no angle should ever be dismissed entirely. In certain situations and against certain opponents allowing someone to bluff into your marginal holding is the best way to get paid. But in most circumstances, so-called ‘hero calls’ are just an excuse for bad play.
 

'Sick call' Kenny Tran in action