Cold call

Calling a raise without any prior investment in the pot

Definition

A cold call is calling a raise when you haven't voluntarily invested anything in the pot yet. CO opens, you call on the BTN: that's a cold call. The BB calling an open is not cold calling — her blind is already invested, that's a defend. Likewise, calling a 3-bet after opening yourself isn't a cold call: your open was already in the pot. Strategically, cold calling versus an open is a line to handle with precision. It lets the blinds in cheaply behind you, exposes you to squeezes, and gives up the fold equity of the 3-bet. Many modern strategies cut it down sharply outside the BB in favor of 3-bet-or-fold — but a cold-calling range does exist in position, made of hands too strong to fold and poorly suited to 3-betting: medium pairs, suited broadways. Cold calling a 3-bet is a special case: flat-calling two raises cold represents a very condensed range of strong hands (often hands like QQ, JJ or AK that don't want to turn the hand into a preflop all-in). It's one of the most readable lines in poker — use it knowingly.