The Best Way to Play from Any Poker Table Position

March 9th, 2010  |  Published in Casino Tips

Where you are seated at the poker table makes a huge difference in most games. In a poker game like Texas Hold ‘Em, having a good spot at the table can lead you to making bigger bets and winning more hands. Unfortunately, you will not always get your choice of seats. Rather then hope for the best seat in the house, learn how to play each to your advantage.

The Best Way to Play According to your Poker Spot

Any good player knows the importance of strategy in a poker match, but a great poker player knows that you must be ready to adjust your strategy to suit the game. One of the best adjustments you can make in strategy is to play according to your position.

How to Play From an Early Position

An early position is often considered the worse seat in the house. When you are betting in the early position, you typically have nine players coming in after you. This serves as a huge disadvantage because you are not able to gauge the other players or control the pot raises as well as a player farther down the line. When you are playing in the early position the best strategy is to limit the hands you play. Only play the hands you feel confident about and fold on the others.

How to Play from a Middle Position

If you are seated in the middle position, you have the advantage of knowing what the players before you dead and the disadvantage of not knowing what the players after you will do. The best strategy for the middle position is to play a mixture of conservative and aggressive play depending on what the players before you did. For example, if the players in front of you fold, it is a good idea to raise since you only have a few players left to beat.

How to Play from a Late Position

The late position is often considered the best place to be in Texas Hold ‘Em. This position gives you a chance to see the actions of all of your opponents. The best strategy to use in the late position is to play aggressively after careful observation of your opponents. Watch what your opponents do carefully, they will show you how to hedge your bet and whether you should fold or call.

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Top Three Texas Hold ‘Em Mistakes

February 11th, 2010  |  Published in Casino Tips

Texas Hold ‘Em is the most popular game at the casino lately. Almost every casino has a special Texas Hold ‘Em table set and many casinos host Hold ‘Em tournaments through out the year. One of the reasons Texas Hold ‘Em is so popular is the high level of strategy involved in the game. Hold ‘Em is not a game of chance and luck so much as it is a game of skill, and that draws experienced poker players in to the game. Unfortunately, this also means that mistakes in Texas Hold ‘Em can be extremely costly for players.

The Three Biggest Texas Hold ‘Em Mistakes

1. Playing too Many Hands: This one is especially true of newcomers to Texas Hold ‘Em. Playing too many hands, or every hand in some instances, is a costly mistake. It is much better to play the hands you are sure about, after all, playing any hand in Texas Hold ‘Em requires a bet to be placed, and loosing those bets add up over time. Learning when to fold and when to play is a skill that takes practice, but with time, any player can master the technique.

2. Playing Two High Suited Cards: The odds of being dealt to high suit cards are high, around 24%. However, the odds of turning though two cards in to a flush in Texas Hold ‘Em is much lower, around 6%. Many new players get excited when they see two high suit cards and immediately try to turn them in to a flush. However, it is better to play low cards where you odds are much higher.

3. Calling when it is Better to Fold: It is invaluable to learn when to fold in Texas Hold ‘Em. Once the round starts going, if your once high hand turns out to be less then expected you have to know when to fold. Often, players will try to ride out a less then perfect hand by calling. This is a costly mistake, especially when you are playing a table of ten or more players. The odds are far greater that one of those players can beat out your hand, then of your lower hand winning the round.

Texas Hold ‘Em is a challenging game and Hold ‘Em pros take years to reach their level of playing. However, by avoiding the three most common pitfalls you can greatly increase your odds of winning.

Tags: , , , , , ,