Monday, 17 January 2005 How often when playing Texas Holdem poker do you say to yourself at the end of a hand, "boy I should have seen that one coming." Hopefully, not too often but probably more than you should. Many players will telegraph their holdings, and all you need to do is stay aware and you can learn what they have as the hand progresses.
At times, players betting patterns will be their biggest tell. Some players only bet a lot of money when they are extremely confident in their hand. This type of betting pattern indicates that my hand is best and I have no fear of being called. Other players will routinely make small bets when they have a monster because they are terrified that no one will call. These small bets will often entice players to stay in the hand because they may be getting decent odds for a drawing hand. But, when the drawing player catches their hand, the slow-betting player will consider it a bad beat when it wasn't that at all.
Conversely, some players will make large bets only when their hand is weak. This is done in an attempt to scare everyone out of the pot. Some players will even routinely try the all-in move to scare players away. This is a powerful move, because it says that "I am willing to showdown my hand if you call." If a player does this over and over again, smart players will wait for the perfect opportunity to call and knock the reckless player out of the tournament. The all-in bluff is not a tactic that you should routinely pull from your arsenal. Typically, when you move in with all your money, you want to be holding the best hand.
Another pattern you may find is players routinely making a bet on the flop, regardless of the cards that show up … high cards, low cards, a pair. However, when they are called, they show weakness by not betting again on the turn. Or, when raised, they throw their hand away. What does it mean if they call the raise? It again depends on the player, but often times they will be holding a real hand. The definition of a "real hand" is another question that varies from player to player, and can only be learned through observation.
One of the keys to Texas Holdem poker is learning how your competition plays. If you know they are bluffing at every pot, carefully choose your spots to pick them off. Just remember to not get too focused on a single player. When you do, you lose sight of the other people at the table and may find that you yourself are playing recklessly. In a tournament structure, you may not have sufficient time to learn what you need about everyone at the table. In these situations, play your "A Game" and let your poker skills do the rest. |
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Monday, 03 January 2005 | So, you have only played live Texas Holdem games. When playing in person, you know not every player is great, but it's easy to tell the good players from the bad. Very quickly you learn the players who like to play every hand, and which ones are just dying to give their money away. It's also easy to see which players know good poker strategy and which ones bluff at every chance they get. Well get ready for online play!!
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Saturday, 30 October 2004 Playing low limit Texas Holdem can be both exciting and frustrating. Low limit games give new players a chance to experience the thrill of the game without risking their bank rolls. In low limit games, you will often find players with limited knowledge of basic strategy. However, this limited knowledge of strategy means you will also routinely be facing 6 or 7 opponents who will not fold their hand before the river card, regardless of the betting that is taking place. For this reason, you will generally need to show the best hand at the end to take home the money.
Our recent survey asked:
Playing $3/$6 limit holdem, you hold QQ in the small blind. 4 players have limped in ahead of you. What do you do?
When we talk about low limit holdem, we are referring to $2/$4 and $3/$6 games. As the limits rise, the skill of the players generally improves. In the $3/$6 example above, you can assume that there will be 6 players in the hand to see the flop regardless of whether you call or raise.
Poker authorities differ on the best strategy to play in this situation. Some say that your best play would be to call and see how the flop develops. This way you can get out cheaply if an overcard appears. Likewise, when no overcard appears, a bet on the flop may win the hand because there is less money in the pot and players will have less reason to chase with their pocket Ace or King. The other school of thought is that you can assume you have the best hand and should get as much money in the pot as you can. You can reevaluate your hand as community cards are shown, but you should bet when your hand is best.
Of those responding to the survey, only 1 person said they would fold in this situation. For everyone else, the vote was 4 to 1 favor of raising. Although both calling and raising would be an acceptable strategy, I side with those that would raise. Get your money into the pot when your hand is best, and reevaluate as play progresses. |
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Tuesday, 19 October 2004 The first position in Texas Holdem (often referred to as "under the gun") brings with it additional challenges. First, and most important, is that every other player at the table has yet to act. This means you will have to wait for 9 or so additional players (depending on the number of players at the table) to see how your 2 hole cards will stack up.
Different poker authorities may have differing opinions as to quality of starting hands you should play in different positions. The one thing they do agree on, however, is that your starting hand in first position must be strong. In a limit game, limping in (calling the big blind) or raising from first position with a marginal hand could become costly if players acting after you raise or reraise with strong starting hands. By the time action is back to you, you could be forced with a decision to call additional bets with a hand that does not warrant it. In no-limit holdem, you could find yourself faced with a pot size raise if you limp in, or a larger raise if you entered the pot with the standard 3-4 times the size of the big blind raise. In either case, you would be forced to fold your hand.
We recently asked the question in a 4TexasHoldem.com survey:
If you are playing limit holdem and hold A9 offsuit in first position, what would you do?
54% of the responses indicated they would call the value of the big blind.
33% would raise.
13% would fold.
As previously indicated, poker authorities may disagree on their starting hands requirements, but they would agree that folding A9 offsuit in first position is the best option. There are just too many hands that would be in a dominating position over your A9. With this hand, you do not have the luxury of making a straight or a flush. And, even if you make top pair, your hand could be dominated by a player with a better kicker. Your best bet is to fold and wait for a better opportunity. On the other hand, if you hold A9 offsuit in late position and no one has entered the pot, feel free to make your move. |
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