Cowboys

  Cowboys - and we are not speaking about a starting hand of two kings now - hold a special place for most Holdem players. Afterall, we don't call it just "Holdem," we call it "Texas Holdem" - and there are images of cowboys, smoking cigars, drinking cheap whiskey or tequila, and cheating each other out of massive sums of money. Sometimes, we might imagine a gunfight breaking out, and thank our lucky stars for living in more civilized, less bullet filled times.  Cowboys have also become a code word for people who think the rules don't apply to them, or people who never calculate their risks and ignore the consequences of their actions. These are the kind of people who operate on the razor's edge, swinging freely between great success and great failure because they never think ahead of their actions.  There's another name for these people, specific to Holdem, maniacs. Cowboys are maniacs, and they need to be watched out for.  Recognizing who is and who isn't a cowboy is a good thing because it allows you to look out for the maniacs before they start to act at the table. You can see the personality traits that will lead to wild, loose play, and you can prepare to react accordingly.  Keep on the watch for cowboys: they're the ones who'll be maniacs at the table.