Many players love to see flops with suited connectors. I’ve seen, otherwise strong players, call early position raises with unimpressive hands like 65s more times than I can believe. Now, I know there is a time and place to make such a call. Maybe when the blinds are extremely small compared to the stacks and the raise came from a particularly weak player. I know a lot of top players will take flops with the medium suited connectors like 87s to see if they can flop a monster and bust someone. There is a time and there is a place for playing suited connectors. More over, however, the hands are overplayed by players who are unable to profit with them.
The first thing I want to note is the skill level that is required to effectively play these hands. I feel like beginner and intermediate players should leave them alone all together. Looking back on my first couple years of no limit hold ‘em play, I know I lost a lot of money messing with marginal hands like T9s. I think I’ve gone bust with QJs more than any other hand, and still find myself in really tricky spots playing it. The point I want to make here is that suited connectors are extremely difficult hands to play. You should leave them alone until you have a great handle on pot odds and counting outs. You also have to have a lot of table time under your belt to stay out of trouble with these hands. You should have a good read on the other players you’re up against and be comfortable playing flops with those players. Suited connectors get you into a lot of murky water that requires a lot of experience to effectively navigate.
There are two very important requirements that I look for before deciding to enter a pot with suited connectors. The first one is the size of the blinds in relation to my stack and the stacks of my opponents. The second is my position, both relative to the dealer, and relative to the raiser if the pot has been opened. If I’m playing in a cash game with blinds of say one and two dollars and all the players have around two hundred dollars in play, I will usually be willing to call a small raise if I’m on the dealer button or the cutt-off seat (one from the dealer.) with suited connectors JTs, T9s, and 98s only. I will limp in with these hands only from middle or late position.
I’d play the hands similarly in the early stages of a tournament with, say, 1000 in tournament chips and blinds of maybe 10- 20. In the middle stages of 1000 chip tournaments, when the blinds are around the 50-100 stage, I will rarely play suited connectors except when I can limp in on the button or complete the blind from the small blind. Of course I will often open with suited connectors T9s, JTs, and QJs from late position if the players in the blinds are fairly tight, just trying to steal the blinds.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Final Table Strategy
When playing tournament poker, the main goal is obviously to win, yet making the final table is an achievement in its own right. Making the final table means that you have outlasted everyone except nine other players and the final table payouts are usually a large jump from 11th -20th places. When making the final table there are several strategies that can be employed to help creep up some places and finish higher in the money.
There is a saying in competitive sports that states most players or teams who make the championship game for the first time do not usually win. The reason for this: They are just happy to be there. This is especially true in tournament hold em. I have experienced countless times playing at final tables where a player will be exited from the tournament in the first couple hands that are dealt at the final table. Many players will let their guard down once they have reached the final table, almost feeling that they have accomplished their goal. These are the types of players that you should be aware of as they will allow you to move up in the money without much effort on your part.
Making a final table of Multi table tournament is a combination of patience, luck and skill. There is definitely an aspect of luck that is true in these tournaments because you are rarely allowed to make multiple mistakes and still finish high. The aspect of luck is more associated with your big hands not running into other big hands along the way, such as your K-K playing against A-A. These are the hands that will make you go broke and you will need some luck to avoid these situations. I like to start out tournaments rather loose playing a wide array of hands and then tighten up more and more after every period of blinds, eventually being at the final table and being extremely tight and selective.
There are several reasons to play tight at the final table. You can make the case that playing aggressive will allow you steal lots of blinds and thus accumulate massive amounts of chips, yet I would not recommend it to players who are there for the first couple times. The first thing you should do when at the final table is to make note of every player’s chip stack size and relate it to the current blinds. You know that a player with 20,000 in chips with blinds at 5000/10000, has to make a move quickly to avoid being blinded out. The payouts at the final table generally jump substantially from place to place, so staying away from action and allowing the shorter stacks to make their moves early will usually benefit you in a large way, allowing you to move up in the money without having to be involved in the action and risk your chips. This also goes hand in hand with avoiding action when there are more than two people involved in a pot. Why get into a pot without a very strong hand, when other players are putting their stack at risk.
Say your holding 10-10 in middle position, usually this hand is a middle strength hand in NL hold em that is a good raising hand but not a good calling hand. A player in early position calls and the player to your right, who is the chip-leader, raises double the big blind. Normally you have the option of re-raising and hopefully making the action one on one. In this case I do not even consider reraising, due to the fact that you have a player in early position calling, and you have the chip-leader raising. With other players behind you, you might be looking at three or four way action, which then makes your 10-10 a very marginal hand. I would fold this hand and induce the player in early position to battle the chip leader.
Position at the final table is very important, as it will determine where your chips go. By playing hands in early position you are asking for trouble because you are putting substantial chips in the middle without forcing an opponent to make a decision. With the blinds usually very large and antes getting up there as well, the most important aspect at the final table is to hold onto your chips. This will give you more rounds to play the blinds and generally speaking, allow the players with fewer chips to go out around you. The worst feeling at a final table is getting eliminated when other players are running out of money and about to be blinded out. You must still play your big hands as you are trying to win the tournament, but should try to avoid playing marginal hands especially in bad position. Hands to avoid at the final table with other players in or pre-flop raises are Q-J, K-J, 6-6, A-9, just to name a few. Obviously every hand has its own circumstances, but these are hands that generally lead to trouble because you are unsure of where you are at in the hand.
In conclusion, the best way to move up in the money at the final table is to abide by what I call my NO CALL rule. This means that I try to avoid simply calling hands. I would prefer to either raise or fold as calling is a certain way to watch your chip stack deplete. With no regard to your hand strength, if you are raising you are forcing your opponent to make a decision rather than you, which is where tournaments are won and lost. Whoever makes the most sound decisions, especially at the ladder stages of the tournaments, are usually the players with the best results. Remember this strategy and always try to think through every move before you make it, as this will also help after the tournament as you will be less likely to beat yourself up over bad decisions.
There is a saying in competitive sports that states most players or teams who make the championship game for the first time do not usually win. The reason for this: They are just happy to be there. This is especially true in tournament hold em. I have experienced countless times playing at final tables where a player will be exited from the tournament in the first couple hands that are dealt at the final table. Many players will let their guard down once they have reached the final table, almost feeling that they have accomplished their goal. These are the types of players that you should be aware of as they will allow you to move up in the money without much effort on your part.
Making a final table of Multi table tournament is a combination of patience, luck and skill. There is definitely an aspect of luck that is true in these tournaments because you are rarely allowed to make multiple mistakes and still finish high. The aspect of luck is more associated with your big hands not running into other big hands along the way, such as your K-K playing against A-A. These are the hands that will make you go broke and you will need some luck to avoid these situations. I like to start out tournaments rather loose playing a wide array of hands and then tighten up more and more after every period of blinds, eventually being at the final table and being extremely tight and selective.
There are several reasons to play tight at the final table. You can make the case that playing aggressive will allow you steal lots of blinds and thus accumulate massive amounts of chips, yet I would not recommend it to players who are there for the first couple times. The first thing you should do when at the final table is to make note of every player’s chip stack size and relate it to the current blinds. You know that a player with 20,000 in chips with blinds at 5000/10000, has to make a move quickly to avoid being blinded out. The payouts at the final table generally jump substantially from place to place, so staying away from action and allowing the shorter stacks to make their moves early will usually benefit you in a large way, allowing you to move up in the money without having to be involved in the action and risk your chips. This also goes hand in hand with avoiding action when there are more than two people involved in a pot. Why get into a pot without a very strong hand, when other players are putting their stack at risk.
Say your holding 10-10 in middle position, usually this hand is a middle strength hand in NL hold em that is a good raising hand but not a good calling hand. A player in early position calls and the player to your right, who is the chip-leader, raises double the big blind. Normally you have the option of re-raising and hopefully making the action one on one. In this case I do not even consider reraising, due to the fact that you have a player in early position calling, and you have the chip-leader raising. With other players behind you, you might be looking at three or four way action, which then makes your 10-10 a very marginal hand. I would fold this hand and induce the player in early position to battle the chip leader.
Position at the final table is very important, as it will determine where your chips go. By playing hands in early position you are asking for trouble because you are putting substantial chips in the middle without forcing an opponent to make a decision. With the blinds usually very large and antes getting up there as well, the most important aspect at the final table is to hold onto your chips. This will give you more rounds to play the blinds and generally speaking, allow the players with fewer chips to go out around you. The worst feeling at a final table is getting eliminated when other players are running out of money and about to be blinded out. You must still play your big hands as you are trying to win the tournament, but should try to avoid playing marginal hands especially in bad position. Hands to avoid at the final table with other players in or pre-flop raises are Q-J, K-J, 6-6, A-9, just to name a few. Obviously every hand has its own circumstances, but these are hands that generally lead to trouble because you are unsure of where you are at in the hand.
In conclusion, the best way to move up in the money at the final table is to abide by what I call my NO CALL rule. This means that I try to avoid simply calling hands. I would prefer to either raise or fold as calling is a certain way to watch your chip stack deplete. With no regard to your hand strength, if you are raising you are forcing your opponent to make a decision rather than you, which is where tournaments are won and lost. Whoever makes the most sound decisions, especially at the ladder stages of the tournaments, are usually the players with the best results. Remember this strategy and always try to think through every move before you make it, as this will also help after the tournament as you will be less likely to beat yourself up over bad decisions.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Big Blind And Little Blind
There are many strategies one can incorporate when playing a game of poker. Though poker is a game of chance, and your game is only as good as your hand, there are ways you can learn to play those hands in order to optimize what you have and help increase your chances of winning the game. One such strategy is Big Blind vs Small Blind.
The big blind and small blind are the automatic bets that must be made in any single hand of a poker game. The higher the stakes you are playing, the higher the blinds. When you are on either one of the blinds, you aren’t in a positional advantage. Remember, acting last gives you positional advantage because it means you get to see what your opponents do before you act. This is why where you sit at the table during a poker game is very important to your game.
The big and little blind act first, (pre-flop), but since you are last to act after the flop, turn, and river, which puts you at a disadvantage.
Since the value of a small blind is half that of a big blind, you should see more flops as you already have chips in the pot. If no raises occur in the pot and the big blind is $10.00 the small blind will have to be $5.00 in order to see the flop.
In this scenario, the big blind will get to see a free flop. A trap that players sometimes fall into, especially beginners, is trying to aggressively defend their blinds. This is a very bad move because it is an automatic bet that you have no control over having to pay. Because of this, you should base the decision to put more chips into the pot on if the pot size and the cards you have warrant committing them.
Don’t feel that you have to defend anything. Only put more chips in the pot if the situation will be profitable for you.
Generally, if you are on the small blind and there has not been a raise, you should play the pot, since you have already put half that amount that you will need in order to see a flop. If a few players have limped into the pot, you should play suited connectors to suited aces, pocket pairs, and suited cards.
In this situation, you can loosen up a little, since it is costing you much to see a flop. In the big blind, you should play much the same, even with one raise. It does, of course, depend on the strength of your hand.
Once you understand how this works, you will be able to use it to your advantage when possible, which will, in turn, help improve your game.
The big blind and small blind are the automatic bets that must be made in any single hand of a poker game. The higher the stakes you are playing, the higher the blinds. When you are on either one of the blinds, you aren’t in a positional advantage. Remember, acting last gives you positional advantage because it means you get to see what your opponents do before you act. This is why where you sit at the table during a poker game is very important to your game.
The big and little blind act first, (pre-flop), but since you are last to act after the flop, turn, and river, which puts you at a disadvantage.
Since the value of a small blind is half that of a big blind, you should see more flops as you already have chips in the pot. If no raises occur in the pot and the big blind is $10.00 the small blind will have to be $5.00 in order to see the flop.
In this scenario, the big blind will get to see a free flop. A trap that players sometimes fall into, especially beginners, is trying to aggressively defend their blinds. This is a very bad move because it is an automatic bet that you have no control over having to pay. Because of this, you should base the decision to put more chips into the pot on if the pot size and the cards you have warrant committing them.
Don’t feel that you have to defend anything. Only put more chips in the pot if the situation will be profitable for you.
Generally, if you are on the small blind and there has not been a raise, you should play the pot, since you have already put half that amount that you will need in order to see a flop. If a few players have limped into the pot, you should play suited connectors to suited aces, pocket pairs, and suited cards.
In this situation, you can loosen up a little, since it is costing you much to see a flop. In the big blind, you should play much the same, even with one raise. It does, of course, depend on the strength of your hand.
Once you understand how this works, you will be able to use it to your advantage when possible, which will, in turn, help improve your game.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Bluffing
Bluffing From the Blind in Tournament Play
When the player is in a good chip position while playing in a tournament the player will occasionally attack from the blind position. The setting has to be right though. Usually, a player will only become very aggressive from this position when the player recently had to showdown a couple of big (winning) hands.
The player should set things up in advance. The player folds blinds to aggressive betting regularly unless the player has a really good hand.
The player will have played at least one dominant hand (in a similar fashion) to a showdown from the blind prior to making this move.
The player makes the decision to attack based on the action of the moment. The player should like a call and a raise ahead of him or her self. The pot has to be worth the gamble. The players starting cards should not matter but a decent hand is always nice.
If the raiser is an aggressive player, The player should make the move.
I re-raise at least twice the size of the pot. This maneuver usually takes the pot pre-flop but if I get a call I will fire again after the flop regardless of the cards on the table. The second raise will almost always win the pot. On the rare occasion when I get called again, I fire a third time after the turn. 99% of the time the third volley will force the fold. The opponent rarely credits you with the guts to fire three big bets on a flat out bluff.
The trick is to look strong. Post flop, your bets have to be the right amounts. An overbet after the turn will look like a desperation bluff and will undoubtedly entice a call. Pot sized bets, or a little less, are usually best to give the impression that you want a call.
Sure, I get caught once in a while but anyone who bluffs regularly gets trapped occasionally.
Pulling off this bluff is a huge rush! Your stack will love it too!
Catching and Manipulating the Bluffer in Nickle and Dime No Limit
I never bluff in penny ante no limit cash games.
Well, that may be a stretch. While I rarely bluff in these games, I do semi-bluff once in a while.
However, at this level, the real money is won not by bluffing but by catching the bluff. Bluffers at this level are easy to catch and easy to trick.
Example;
I have J,J and raise 4X the BB. Mr LA (Loose Aggressive) calls. The flop is K,8,3 rainbow. I check. LA bets twice the pot, he’s obviously representing the King.
I know from watching him play that he likes A,X and would have bet hard with A,K. I haven’t seen him play many junk Kings and since he didn’t re-raise pre-flop he does not have a big pocket pair.
I put him on Ace, rag. He may have caught a middle pair with his rag, that would be nice. I come over the top with a big re-raise.
My check after the flop indicated I missed the flop and invited LA to bluff at the pot.
My post flop re-raise makes him pay dearly if he wants to try and hit his weak ace. If he has a piece of the flop (8’s or 3’s), he may call (putting me on a bluff too) and pay me off.
The best part of this deal is, LA will bluff again, soon. He isn’t even aware that I have a read on him!
When the player is in a good chip position while playing in a tournament the player will occasionally attack from the blind position. The setting has to be right though. Usually, a player will only become very aggressive from this position when the player recently had to showdown a couple of big (winning) hands.
The player should set things up in advance. The player folds blinds to aggressive betting regularly unless the player has a really good hand.
The player will have played at least one dominant hand (in a similar fashion) to a showdown from the blind prior to making this move.
The player makes the decision to attack based on the action of the moment. The player should like a call and a raise ahead of him or her self. The pot has to be worth the gamble. The players starting cards should not matter but a decent hand is always nice.
If the raiser is an aggressive player, The player should make the move.
I re-raise at least twice the size of the pot. This maneuver usually takes the pot pre-flop but if I get a call I will fire again after the flop regardless of the cards on the table. The second raise will almost always win the pot. On the rare occasion when I get called again, I fire a third time after the turn. 99% of the time the third volley will force the fold. The opponent rarely credits you with the guts to fire three big bets on a flat out bluff.
The trick is to look strong. Post flop, your bets have to be the right amounts. An overbet after the turn will look like a desperation bluff and will undoubtedly entice a call. Pot sized bets, or a little less, are usually best to give the impression that you want a call.
Sure, I get caught once in a while but anyone who bluffs regularly gets trapped occasionally.
Pulling off this bluff is a huge rush! Your stack will love it too!
Catching and Manipulating the Bluffer in Nickle and Dime No Limit
I never bluff in penny ante no limit cash games.
Well, that may be a stretch. While I rarely bluff in these games, I do semi-bluff once in a while.
However, at this level, the real money is won not by bluffing but by catching the bluff. Bluffers at this level are easy to catch and easy to trick.
Example;
I have J,J and raise 4X the BB. Mr LA (Loose Aggressive) calls. The flop is K,8,3 rainbow. I check. LA bets twice the pot, he’s obviously representing the King.
I know from watching him play that he likes A,X and would have bet hard with A,K. I haven’t seen him play many junk Kings and since he didn’t re-raise pre-flop he does not have a big pocket pair.
I put him on Ace, rag. He may have caught a middle pair with his rag, that would be nice. I come over the top with a big re-raise.
My check after the flop indicated I missed the flop and invited LA to bluff at the pot.
My post flop re-raise makes him pay dearly if he wants to try and hit his weak ace. If he has a piece of the flop (8’s or 3’s), he may call (putting me on a bluff too) and pay me off.
The best part of this deal is, LA will bluff again, soon. He isn’t even aware that I have a read on him!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Big Slick in a Vacuum
I’m going to address one of the most talked about and coveted starting hands in hold’em poker. I’m going to discuss it’s strengths and it’s weaknesses. I’ll also discuss, in some detail, what circumstances determine the relative power of the hand, and why. The hand in question, of is course, AK (Ace King) better known as “Big Slick”. Some players hold this hand in reverence, and even have a difficult time containing their poker faces as their eyes smile wide at the rare and beautiful holding. Other players seem to be in near torment by it’s arrival in their hand, sort of wondering “what trouble is it going to get me into this time? Is it a made hand? Is it a drawing hand? Is it a tier one hand? How does it rate against QQ? Well the answer to all these questions is, you guessed it….. It depends. But what does it depend on? I’m going to try to dissect this hand bit by bit over the next couple of pages and see if we can’t reach some sort of quantative understanding of one of the most talked about hands in poker, big slick.
It’s been said that in order to win a big no limit hold’em tournament you have to win with big slick when you have it, and beat it when you don’t. What is this saying alluding to? Maybe it refers to the sort of coin flip situations you often find yourself in when playing big slick for all your chips. The most common example is when all the money goes in before the flop and the players turn over AK vs QQ, nearly a fifty/fifty proposition. Maybe the point is that you need to be very lucky and win a lot of coin toss situations to survive in a tournament, maybe. Or maybe the saying means more than that. Maybe to more astute players it refers to being able to properly expose the weaknesses of AK while taking advantage of its strengths. Well, for the purpose of this discussion we’ll suppose the latter. It would be foolish to underestimate the helpfulness of getting really lucky, but let’s just admit we cannot control that and let’s try to move onto the things we can control.
What can you control in no limit hold’em poker? Quite a bit actually, that’s what makes it one of the most skill intensive poker games in existence. You get to make a lot of choices, and your choices actually do matter. The decisions you make at the felt will determine whether you are a profitable player. Before the flop, you can decide whether to raise with your AK, or call. You get to decide how much to bet when you do bet. You get to determine whether you believe your hand is beaten or boss. You decide whether or not the pot odds leave you “stuck” to the hand, and whether or not you should “get away from” the hand. These are all surface concepts, but there are more decisions to be made just under the surface. For instance, do you want to play this hand against a lot of players or a few? Are there specific players you would like to get involved with? Are there some you would prefer not to get involved with? Would you like to play the hand out to the flop and maybe further, or do you want to try to take the pot down now? Do you want to represent strength with your hand or weakness? The list goes on and on and on, and making these decisions effectively is what makes one player a losing player and the other a winner.
No limit hold ‘em is a very situational game, that’s why the answer to many of the questions people ask regarding specific hands is, well, it depends. There are a huge number of variables that must be considered before a player can determine the proper course of action in any given hand. Much of the skill in poker comes from being able to effectively weigh the plethora of available information and adjust accordingly. One of the most situation dependant starting hands in no limit hold ‘em poker is, without question, AK. You cannot just play the hand the same way every time you’re dealt it and expect long term success. The hand is so variable sensitive that, in my opinion, it rivals JJ as the most difficult hand to play in NLH.
But why should this be? Well the main reason that slick is such a difficult hand to play is it’s unwillingness to fall into a hierarchy of hand strengths. It is a huge favorite against a number of good hands, but does not play nearly as well against many hands that are not particularly powerful, or even playable for that matter. Some hands that AK seems so much better than, such as 5-4 off- suit, are close to 40% to win in a showdown. That’s right; five- four off suit will beat AK more than three times in ten if all five community cards are revealed. AK is also a small dog to any pocket pair at all. Even pocket two’s are a favorite to beat AK by the river.
So, why is big slick considered by many to be a powerful starting hand? There are many reasons; we’re going to discuss a few of them. We’ve already stated that many, otherwise unremarkable hands are not that far behind AK. We should also understand that AK is not very far behind any starting hands at all, with only two exceptions; AA and KK. The fact that there are only two hands that consistently beat AK in a showdown gives us allot of pre-flop betting leverage. Let’s consider the fold equity we have when we raise a pot.
When we make a stiff raise before the flop it makes it hard for someone to call with many of the hands that we really aren’t that favored to beat. It’s interesting to note though, that many of the hands that we have dominated and are beating badly such as AQ are more likely to call our raise, that’s one of the hidden strengths of big slick. That’s why it is usually very important to raise before the flop with AK. It’s usually a mistake to not open with big slick from any position, under almost any circumstances. In fact, when we take into account the inherent edge that comes from being the first player to move his chips into the center there aren’t enough hands that will beat AK consistently to make pushing all of your chips in an exceptionally bad play. The second noteworthy strength about AK is the oodles and oodles of implied value that the hand often offers us. When playing big slick against hands that may call our raise, we sometimes find pretty good opportunities to bust our opponents.
The most frequent example is when they are unfortunate enough to find themselves holding the second best hand with an ace and a lower kicker. That’s what I mean by implied value. I’ll use the example of AQ again; the reason AK plays so well against AQ is not just that it’s about a 4 to 1 favorite to win in a showdown, the real reason slick runs so well against AQ is that there will be a certain number of times that you will both flop top pair making it difficult for your opponent to think he is beaten. When that situation arises you will usually take a good chunk of his chips, and sometimes all of them.
Big slick also has great post- flop playability. Playability refers to how difficult or easy a hand is to play after the flop. Hands like JT and 98s are easier to play than, say, A3. When you flop a pair with a hand like A3, it’s difficult to know for sure whether you’re ahead or behind. That’s why playing hands like ace small is so dangerous. When playing AK, you usually have a pretty good idea where you’re at after the flop assuming you played it correctly before the flop. When you hit the flop with AK by pairing either card, you know you have the highest pair with the highest possible kicker. You won’t have to worry about you and your opponent both catching top pair but being out kicked. When you pair either of your cards on the flop there is a high probability that you have the best hand and you can play as though you do until you have strong evidence to the contrary.
Big slick has at least one other hidden strength. Players as a whole, especially low stakes players, internet players, and casual home game players have a tenancy to over value the presence of an ace in their starting hand. Some of them also over value and over play KQ and KJ. Therefore, you will often have your opponents hands dominated. You will find schools of internet fish and casual home game players who will call raises before the flop with KQ, KJ, or any AX combination, often they will also be willing to commit all there chips on the flop when you both hit top pair. Typically, it’s a pretty profitable hand when you can get all the money in after the flop with your opponent drawing at three cards in the deck that can save him.
To put this all simply, big slick does not play impressively well against random two card combinations and pairs, and it does play impressively well against many of the hands most players are willing to call raises with. If that seems almost paradoxical, then you’re starting to understand the point of this article. Now that we’re beginning to look big slick in the eye, and see her for what she really is, we need to learn to utilize this understanding? We need to realize how this hand morphs in its optimal application based on the situation. .
Hopefully I’ve made it clear that it is usually a big mistake to just call with big slick from any position unless you have a very specific reason. There are many other decisions to be made when playing big slick, and several factors that will govern them. Among those factors there are three that are of particular importance 1) the number of players at the table. 2) The blinds relative to the stack sizes in play. 3) The experience level of your opposition.
The first factor, the number of players at the table, is pretty simple to understand. The fewer players at the table the less likely it is that someone has a big pair and the more likely an opponent is to think there Ace high hand might be good. The more players at your table the more likely it is that someone has made one of the big pairs, meaning you may sometimes find yourself in positions where you should fold AK. If there are players calling your big raises at a five handed table it is much more likely they are chasing you with two high cards, they are looking at a flop with a medium or small pair, or they are dominated with a holding such as AJ or KQ. None of these situations are bad for you. Before the flop at a short table it is very likely that AK is the best hand.
The high likelihood that AK is the best starting hand before any given flop, combined with the fact that the blinds will come around relatively quickly means that you will have to play big slick very aggressively when short handed. If you’ve been playing a tournament format that started with multiple full tables but are now playing short handed, the blinds have probably escalated to the point that you don’t have time to wait around for AA. At a table of five you will need to take the blinds down and aggressively attack pots just to keep from being blinded out. If your table is short handed you should be raising and re-raising fiercely with AK. If you do get called, you should usually bet again after the flop regardless of its texture. If the flop comes out all low cards it is pretty unlikely it helped your opponent (assuming you raised or re-raised pre-flop), so your aggression pre-flop coupled with your aggression on the flop is likely to win you the pot. Even if your opponent held onto a pair of sevens and the flop comes out 2d Js Td, if you bet it will be difficult for your opponent to call while staring at two over cards and the possibility that you have a bigger pair.
If there are many players at the table you should still raise pre-flop with AK most of the time but be prepared to muck it following a string of calls and re-raises, at a full table you should play it more like a drawing hand. Remember, you need to see all five cards to give you a coin flip to hit a pair. So, at a full table it is usually correct to see the flop without calling large amounts, or get all the money in before the flop so that you can see all five cards without having to make any tough decisions, leave those to your opponents. Again, you’re about even money to pair you AK by the river. You really want to avoid getting over committed to the hand before the flop, unless all the money goes in. One of the keys to Hold’em is the ability to avoid having to make difficult decisions after the flop. I think at a full table you should raise, from any position, with slick, but try to either see a relatively cheap flop or try to get all the money in before the flop. The in-between ground seems better suited for hands like TT or JJ.
The second factor that determines how you should play AK requires a bit more explanation. The stack sizes relative to the blinds should have a very large influence on the way you play AK. With large stacks and small blinds you should definitely want to raise pre-flop for two main reasons. The first is to limit the field, AK is much easier to play against one or two players than three or more. The other reason you need to raise before the flop with AK is to charge inferior hands to draw against you. Your main objective when the blinds are small is to look for low risk situations that offer you a chance to double up. It is good to look at AK as a drawing hand when the blinds are small. Ideally you want to play your AK against one or two players and you’d like to make bets that will be called by hands such as AQ or KQs and pray for that perfect flop that pairs you and your opponent, and then proceed to bust him.
Big slick is a difficult hand to release before the flop but you must learn to do so when necessary. With small blinds and large stacks there is usually no reason to go bust when you have AK and you are facing an open and a significant re-raise that would commit allot of your chips. With large stacks and small blinds you will often need to muck AK before the flop, which can be difficult for beginners, but for veterans it is a common play. For instance, if an early position player puts in a large re-raise and then another player re-raises the rest of his chips. When you look at the types of hands that would move all-in against an EP (early position) open it is very likely you would be in any better than a coin flip or “race” situation if you called all-in with the AK.
When the blinds are relatively large you might be more than happy to gamble in a spot like that, but not when you have plenty of time to find better spots to get your money in. Also, when the blinds are relatively small compared to the stack sizes it will be difficult to limit the field substantially without committing a large portion of your chips to the pot. When the blinds are small it is best to play slick hard from late position. Your big cards give you allot of leverage over the medium pairs on the flop, fourth street, and fifth street play. With the blinds small I tend to tread very cautiously with AK from the first few positions. That’s not to say you shouldn’t open from early position with AK, surely you should. You should, however, usually avoid creating extremely large pots to play for from early position; the exceptions to this rule of course are the nut and second nut pre-flop hands, AA and KK. When opening from early position with AK, I think you should only raise to three times the big blind, from middle and late you might use four times the blind as your standard raise.
Remember, with small blinds and a lot of players you will usually need to connect on the flop to win with slick. Otherwise you run the risk of being taken out of the pot. With large stacks/small blinds it is rarely correct to raise specifically to get more money in the pot with AK. If your raise cannot limit the field and you do not have position on the other players, it is often correct to wait until after the flop to commit allot of chips. The ability to fold AK before the flop should be considered a milestone in your NLH development. A string of raises and re-raises should be a red flag that your AK is in dire straights. Many raising hands contain an Ace, others contain pairs. When faced with an early position open and a re-raise, especially with other callers, you have to suspect one or more of your aces is out and running into a pair could be disastrous. With small blinds, the need to gamble is just not present, you have time to wait for a better opportunity and capitalize on the mistakes of less experienced players.
The third and final factor we’ll discuss is the experience level of your opponents. This is the one that is least understood by NLH players. AK is such a great hand against a field of helpless fish that it almost deserves a seat next to AA. I can’t stress enough how well this hand plays at small stakes games, especially online. Against very poor players AK is an exceptionally profitable hand. The main reason for this is that poor players will play any hand that contains an ace in it even against an early position raise. If a very bad player holds A7o and you raise with AK in first position he will usually call you and be more than happy to commit all his chips to the pot if an ace flops. Likewise, many poor players will play hands like KJ like the pre-flop nuts. So when you flop the K, look out, someone is getting busted. Most of the time it won’t be you, because you don’t call EP opens with KJ, right?
Against more experienced players I feel there is a need to add variation to your play with big slick. You’ll have to mix it up a bit to keep them guessing. In rare instances it may be OK to just call with big slick, but the situation has to be perfect. You will only ever consider that strategy when the table is especially aggressive and reasonably poker savvy. When the situation is exactly right I especially enjoy limping in early with slick and then re-raising against the first opener. Experienced players will often be very suspicious of this move and fold hands like, JJ, and TT that you really didn’t want to race against anyway. I use this play often and never reveal it unless it goes to show down, and I do sometimes show the times I make the play with Kings or Aces. Remember, people remember what they see much more clearly than they remember what they may suspect.
To summarize, big slick is a hand that you cannot really afford to let speculative hands take cheap flops against, and one that actually plays better against the types of hands that are likely to call raises. It is better to raise and re-raise with AK than to call with it. One of AK’s best attributes is that it isn’t a significant dog to any hand other than AA or KK. Remember though, it isn’t as far ahead of many random hands your opponent may be bluff raising with. It just loses some of its power when you call with it instead of raise. Big slick is very situation dependant and you absolutely must learn to adjust to the exact situation based on a wide array of variability. Is big slick a tier one hand, a made hand or a drawing hand, is it better than QQ? Well, I guess at the end of the day; big slick is just big slick. I hope I’ve helped to shed some light on what that means. The short answer again though is, well, it depends. Good luck.
It’s been said that in order to win a big no limit hold’em tournament you have to win with big slick when you have it, and beat it when you don’t. What is this saying alluding to? Maybe it refers to the sort of coin flip situations you often find yourself in when playing big slick for all your chips. The most common example is when all the money goes in before the flop and the players turn over AK vs QQ, nearly a fifty/fifty proposition. Maybe the point is that you need to be very lucky and win a lot of coin toss situations to survive in a tournament, maybe. Or maybe the saying means more than that. Maybe to more astute players it refers to being able to properly expose the weaknesses of AK while taking advantage of its strengths. Well, for the purpose of this discussion we’ll suppose the latter. It would be foolish to underestimate the helpfulness of getting really lucky, but let’s just admit we cannot control that and let’s try to move onto the things we can control.
What can you control in no limit hold’em poker? Quite a bit actually, that’s what makes it one of the most skill intensive poker games in existence. You get to make a lot of choices, and your choices actually do matter. The decisions you make at the felt will determine whether you are a profitable player. Before the flop, you can decide whether to raise with your AK, or call. You get to decide how much to bet when you do bet. You get to determine whether you believe your hand is beaten or boss. You decide whether or not the pot odds leave you “stuck” to the hand, and whether or not you should “get away from” the hand. These are all surface concepts, but there are more decisions to be made just under the surface. For instance, do you want to play this hand against a lot of players or a few? Are there specific players you would like to get involved with? Are there some you would prefer not to get involved with? Would you like to play the hand out to the flop and maybe further, or do you want to try to take the pot down now? Do you want to represent strength with your hand or weakness? The list goes on and on and on, and making these decisions effectively is what makes one player a losing player and the other a winner.
No limit hold ‘em is a very situational game, that’s why the answer to many of the questions people ask regarding specific hands is, well, it depends. There are a huge number of variables that must be considered before a player can determine the proper course of action in any given hand. Much of the skill in poker comes from being able to effectively weigh the plethora of available information and adjust accordingly. One of the most situation dependant starting hands in no limit hold ‘em poker is, without question, AK. You cannot just play the hand the same way every time you’re dealt it and expect long term success. The hand is so variable sensitive that, in my opinion, it rivals JJ as the most difficult hand to play in NLH.
But why should this be? Well the main reason that slick is such a difficult hand to play is it’s unwillingness to fall into a hierarchy of hand strengths. It is a huge favorite against a number of good hands, but does not play nearly as well against many hands that are not particularly powerful, or even playable for that matter. Some hands that AK seems so much better than, such as 5-4 off- suit, are close to 40% to win in a showdown. That’s right; five- four off suit will beat AK more than three times in ten if all five community cards are revealed. AK is also a small dog to any pocket pair at all. Even pocket two’s are a favorite to beat AK by the river.
So, why is big slick considered by many to be a powerful starting hand? There are many reasons; we’re going to discuss a few of them. We’ve already stated that many, otherwise unremarkable hands are not that far behind AK. We should also understand that AK is not very far behind any starting hands at all, with only two exceptions; AA and KK. The fact that there are only two hands that consistently beat AK in a showdown gives us allot of pre-flop betting leverage. Let’s consider the fold equity we have when we raise a pot.
When we make a stiff raise before the flop it makes it hard for someone to call with many of the hands that we really aren’t that favored to beat. It’s interesting to note though, that many of the hands that we have dominated and are beating badly such as AQ are more likely to call our raise, that’s one of the hidden strengths of big slick. That’s why it is usually very important to raise before the flop with AK. It’s usually a mistake to not open with big slick from any position, under almost any circumstances. In fact, when we take into account the inherent edge that comes from being the first player to move his chips into the center there aren’t enough hands that will beat AK consistently to make pushing all of your chips in an exceptionally bad play. The second noteworthy strength about AK is the oodles and oodles of implied value that the hand often offers us. When playing big slick against hands that may call our raise, we sometimes find pretty good opportunities to bust our opponents.
The most frequent example is when they are unfortunate enough to find themselves holding the second best hand with an ace and a lower kicker. That’s what I mean by implied value. I’ll use the example of AQ again; the reason AK plays so well against AQ is not just that it’s about a 4 to 1 favorite to win in a showdown, the real reason slick runs so well against AQ is that there will be a certain number of times that you will both flop top pair making it difficult for your opponent to think he is beaten. When that situation arises you will usually take a good chunk of his chips, and sometimes all of them.
Big slick also has great post- flop playability. Playability refers to how difficult or easy a hand is to play after the flop. Hands like JT and 98s are easier to play than, say, A3. When you flop a pair with a hand like A3, it’s difficult to know for sure whether you’re ahead or behind. That’s why playing hands like ace small is so dangerous. When playing AK, you usually have a pretty good idea where you’re at after the flop assuming you played it correctly before the flop. When you hit the flop with AK by pairing either card, you know you have the highest pair with the highest possible kicker. You won’t have to worry about you and your opponent both catching top pair but being out kicked. When you pair either of your cards on the flop there is a high probability that you have the best hand and you can play as though you do until you have strong evidence to the contrary.
Big slick has at least one other hidden strength. Players as a whole, especially low stakes players, internet players, and casual home game players have a tenancy to over value the presence of an ace in their starting hand. Some of them also over value and over play KQ and KJ. Therefore, you will often have your opponents hands dominated. You will find schools of internet fish and casual home game players who will call raises before the flop with KQ, KJ, or any AX combination, often they will also be willing to commit all there chips on the flop when you both hit top pair. Typically, it’s a pretty profitable hand when you can get all the money in after the flop with your opponent drawing at three cards in the deck that can save him.
To put this all simply, big slick does not play impressively well against random two card combinations and pairs, and it does play impressively well against many of the hands most players are willing to call raises with. If that seems almost paradoxical, then you’re starting to understand the point of this article. Now that we’re beginning to look big slick in the eye, and see her for what she really is, we need to learn to utilize this understanding? We need to realize how this hand morphs in its optimal application based on the situation. .
Hopefully I’ve made it clear that it is usually a big mistake to just call with big slick from any position unless you have a very specific reason. There are many other decisions to be made when playing big slick, and several factors that will govern them. Among those factors there are three that are of particular importance 1) the number of players at the table. 2) The blinds relative to the stack sizes in play. 3) The experience level of your opposition.
The first factor, the number of players at the table, is pretty simple to understand. The fewer players at the table the less likely it is that someone has a big pair and the more likely an opponent is to think there Ace high hand might be good. The more players at your table the more likely it is that someone has made one of the big pairs, meaning you may sometimes find yourself in positions where you should fold AK. If there are players calling your big raises at a five handed table it is much more likely they are chasing you with two high cards, they are looking at a flop with a medium or small pair, or they are dominated with a holding such as AJ or KQ. None of these situations are bad for you. Before the flop at a short table it is very likely that AK is the best hand.
The high likelihood that AK is the best starting hand before any given flop, combined with the fact that the blinds will come around relatively quickly means that you will have to play big slick very aggressively when short handed. If you’ve been playing a tournament format that started with multiple full tables but are now playing short handed, the blinds have probably escalated to the point that you don’t have time to wait around for AA. At a table of five you will need to take the blinds down and aggressively attack pots just to keep from being blinded out. If your table is short handed you should be raising and re-raising fiercely with AK. If you do get called, you should usually bet again after the flop regardless of its texture. If the flop comes out all low cards it is pretty unlikely it helped your opponent (assuming you raised or re-raised pre-flop), so your aggression pre-flop coupled with your aggression on the flop is likely to win you the pot. Even if your opponent held onto a pair of sevens and the flop comes out 2d Js Td, if you bet it will be difficult for your opponent to call while staring at two over cards and the possibility that you have a bigger pair.
If there are many players at the table you should still raise pre-flop with AK most of the time but be prepared to muck it following a string of calls and re-raises, at a full table you should play it more like a drawing hand. Remember, you need to see all five cards to give you a coin flip to hit a pair. So, at a full table it is usually correct to see the flop without calling large amounts, or get all the money in before the flop so that you can see all five cards without having to make any tough decisions, leave those to your opponents. Again, you’re about even money to pair you AK by the river. You really want to avoid getting over committed to the hand before the flop, unless all the money goes in. One of the keys to Hold’em is the ability to avoid having to make difficult decisions after the flop. I think at a full table you should raise, from any position, with slick, but try to either see a relatively cheap flop or try to get all the money in before the flop. The in-between ground seems better suited for hands like TT or JJ.
The second factor that determines how you should play AK requires a bit more explanation. The stack sizes relative to the blinds should have a very large influence on the way you play AK. With large stacks and small blinds you should definitely want to raise pre-flop for two main reasons. The first is to limit the field, AK is much easier to play against one or two players than three or more. The other reason you need to raise before the flop with AK is to charge inferior hands to draw against you. Your main objective when the blinds are small is to look for low risk situations that offer you a chance to double up. It is good to look at AK as a drawing hand when the blinds are small. Ideally you want to play your AK against one or two players and you’d like to make bets that will be called by hands such as AQ or KQs and pray for that perfect flop that pairs you and your opponent, and then proceed to bust him.
Big slick is a difficult hand to release before the flop but you must learn to do so when necessary. With small blinds and large stacks there is usually no reason to go bust when you have AK and you are facing an open and a significant re-raise that would commit allot of your chips. With large stacks and small blinds you will often need to muck AK before the flop, which can be difficult for beginners, but for veterans it is a common play. For instance, if an early position player puts in a large re-raise and then another player re-raises the rest of his chips. When you look at the types of hands that would move all-in against an EP (early position) open it is very likely you would be in any better than a coin flip or “race” situation if you called all-in with the AK.
When the blinds are relatively large you might be more than happy to gamble in a spot like that, but not when you have plenty of time to find better spots to get your money in. Also, when the blinds are relatively small compared to the stack sizes it will be difficult to limit the field substantially without committing a large portion of your chips to the pot. When the blinds are small it is best to play slick hard from late position. Your big cards give you allot of leverage over the medium pairs on the flop, fourth street, and fifth street play. With the blinds small I tend to tread very cautiously with AK from the first few positions. That’s not to say you shouldn’t open from early position with AK, surely you should. You should, however, usually avoid creating extremely large pots to play for from early position; the exceptions to this rule of course are the nut and second nut pre-flop hands, AA and KK. When opening from early position with AK, I think you should only raise to three times the big blind, from middle and late you might use four times the blind as your standard raise.
Remember, with small blinds and a lot of players you will usually need to connect on the flop to win with slick. Otherwise you run the risk of being taken out of the pot. With large stacks/small blinds it is rarely correct to raise specifically to get more money in the pot with AK. If your raise cannot limit the field and you do not have position on the other players, it is often correct to wait until after the flop to commit allot of chips. The ability to fold AK before the flop should be considered a milestone in your NLH development. A string of raises and re-raises should be a red flag that your AK is in dire straights. Many raising hands contain an Ace, others contain pairs. When faced with an early position open and a re-raise, especially with other callers, you have to suspect one or more of your aces is out and running into a pair could be disastrous. With small blinds, the need to gamble is just not present, you have time to wait for a better opportunity and capitalize on the mistakes of less experienced players.
The third and final factor we’ll discuss is the experience level of your opponents. This is the one that is least understood by NLH players. AK is such a great hand against a field of helpless fish that it almost deserves a seat next to AA. I can’t stress enough how well this hand plays at small stakes games, especially online. Against very poor players AK is an exceptionally profitable hand. The main reason for this is that poor players will play any hand that contains an ace in it even against an early position raise. If a very bad player holds A7o and you raise with AK in first position he will usually call you and be more than happy to commit all his chips to the pot if an ace flops. Likewise, many poor players will play hands like KJ like the pre-flop nuts. So when you flop the K, look out, someone is getting busted. Most of the time it won’t be you, because you don’t call EP opens with KJ, right?
Against more experienced players I feel there is a need to add variation to your play with big slick. You’ll have to mix it up a bit to keep them guessing. In rare instances it may be OK to just call with big slick, but the situation has to be perfect. You will only ever consider that strategy when the table is especially aggressive and reasonably poker savvy. When the situation is exactly right I especially enjoy limping in early with slick and then re-raising against the first opener. Experienced players will often be very suspicious of this move and fold hands like, JJ, and TT that you really didn’t want to race against anyway. I use this play often and never reveal it unless it goes to show down, and I do sometimes show the times I make the play with Kings or Aces. Remember, people remember what they see much more clearly than they remember what they may suspect.
To summarize, big slick is a hand that you cannot really afford to let speculative hands take cheap flops against, and one that actually plays better against the types of hands that are likely to call raises. It is better to raise and re-raise with AK than to call with it. One of AK’s best attributes is that it isn’t a significant dog to any hand other than AA or KK. Remember though, it isn’t as far ahead of many random hands your opponent may be bluff raising with. It just loses some of its power when you call with it instead of raise. Big slick is very situation dependant and you absolutely must learn to adjust to the exact situation based on a wide array of variability. Is big slick a tier one hand, a made hand or a drawing hand, is it better than QQ? Well, I guess at the end of the day; big slick is just big slick. I hope I’ve helped to shed some light on what that means. The short answer again though is, well, it depends. Good luck.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Poker Pot Odds
Pot Odds Is Very Important In My Opinion
Pot odds defined
The idea of pot odds is crucial when deciding actions in poker play. Pot odds refer to the relationship between the pot size compared to bet size. If there is a $10 pot and, in order to call, you have to put in a $2 bet, you are getting pot odds of 5:1. If you have to call a $5 bet in the same $10 pot, you are getting pot odds of 2:1.
The size of the pot
Always be conscious of pot size. When in a Limit poker game, count the number of bets in the pot rather than counting the amount of money. When bets double, for example in Hold’em, count the big bets as two small bets. When Pot-Limit or No-Limit is the game, it is a more difficult to count the pot and the odds will probably not be as exact. Nevertheless, you must still do it.
How to use pot odds
Once you determine the pot odds, use the information appropriately. To do this, connect the pot odds to the value of your hand. Then means you must be able to put your opponents on likely hands and consider your chances of holding a better hand than theirs. Let’s say, you have a flush draw on the flop in hold’em and are up against an opponent you believe has, at a minimum, a top pair. There are nine cards, called outs, which will give you a flush when you have flopped a four flush. The below table indicates that nine outs gives a 35% change, or 2:1 against, of making the flush on the turn and river combined. This means you need to have pot odds of at least 2:1 to call any bet on the flop.
Implied odds
Implied odds refers to the relationship between the size of the current pot and the pot you expect to win. This means that sometimes the pot does not lay the right odds, when you decided to play expecting to get further action and win more when you hit the hand. For example, in Limit Hold’em your opponent bets $20 into an $80 pot, your call gives you pot odds of 5:1 since you are risking $20 to win $120. But, if you expect your opponent to call a bet or raise on the river if you make your hand, your implied odds are 6:1 or 7:1.
A rule of thumb for Texas Hold’em and Omaha
Every out gives you an approximate 4% chance of hitting on the turn and river combined. For example, 5 outs gives you about a 20% chance of improving, 6 outs about 24%, etc.
Pot odds defined
The idea of pot odds is crucial when deciding actions in poker play. Pot odds refer to the relationship between the pot size compared to bet size. If there is a $10 pot and, in order to call, you have to put in a $2 bet, you are getting pot odds of 5:1. If you have to call a $5 bet in the same $10 pot, you are getting pot odds of 2:1.
The size of the pot
Always be conscious of pot size. When in a Limit poker game, count the number of bets in the pot rather than counting the amount of money. When bets double, for example in Hold’em, count the big bets as two small bets. When Pot-Limit or No-Limit is the game, it is a more difficult to count the pot and the odds will probably not be as exact. Nevertheless, you must still do it.
How to use pot odds
Once you determine the pot odds, use the information appropriately. To do this, connect the pot odds to the value of your hand. Then means you must be able to put your opponents on likely hands and consider your chances of holding a better hand than theirs. Let’s say, you have a flush draw on the flop in hold’em and are up against an opponent you believe has, at a minimum, a top pair. There are nine cards, called outs, which will give you a flush when you have flopped a four flush. The below table indicates that nine outs gives a 35% change, or 2:1 against, of making the flush on the turn and river combined. This means you need to have pot odds of at least 2:1 to call any bet on the flop.
Implied odds
Implied odds refers to the relationship between the size of the current pot and the pot you expect to win. This means that sometimes the pot does not lay the right odds, when you decided to play expecting to get further action and win more when you hit the hand. For example, in Limit Hold’em your opponent bets $20 into an $80 pot, your call gives you pot odds of 5:1 since you are risking $20 to win $120. But, if you expect your opponent to call a bet or raise on the river if you make your hand, your implied odds are 6:1 or 7:1.
A rule of thumb for Texas Hold’em and Omaha
Every out gives you an approximate 4% chance of hitting on the turn and river combined. For example, 5 outs gives you about a 20% chance of improving, 6 outs about 24%, etc.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Poker Hints
Playing poker can be one of the most rewarding hobbies, even if you just play for free. The best way to learn to play any type of poker is to PLAY, PLAY, PLAY! Join a free poker league, set up a friendly game with friends, sit down with someone you know who plays (well, hopefully) and learn from them.
There is never a place where you will know everything about poker, so you should always have your eyes and ears alert to learn something new.
Talk to people while you are playing. There are lots of excellent players that are always willing to give newbies a tip. But remember, just because they say something doesn’t mean it will work for YOU. Ask players why they folded, why they raised, why they raised what they raised. Were they trying to scare everyone off, or were they hoping for a caller? Sometimes, people may not answer you, or worse, may not answer you truthfully, but it never hurts to ask.
One of my favorite ways to work on my game is to play with my husband who is a much better player than me (Texas Hold ‘Em is our game). What we do is play two hands a piece, cards up for a while and talk about how to play those starting hands. Then, for a while we will play two hands a piece face down, but after each hand show hands and then talk about how we played it and what we could have done to be more successful.
Again, I go back to PLAY, PLAY, PLAY! One thing that has definitely made me a stronger player is having joined a free poker league – Snowman Poker League – in Houston. We play six nights a week, and each night is 2 tournaments. I have learned so much by playing. Poker terms, how to deal, legal rules, etiquette, and most importantly, how other people play.
Don’t be fooled. Most people do no have any cut and dry “tell.” But there are lots of little things you can learn about how people play and little tells. For example, if the flop is a flush draw, and your opponent checks his cards, he is probably looking at what suits his card are. Realistically, they are probably not suited, because when you play a suited hand, you tend to remember what that suit is. Obviously, that is not a sure thing, but it is something to keep in mind. A lot of times when that happens and I check my hand, it’s because one of my cards is an ace and I want to know what it’s suit is. Or, I have a pocket pair and want to know if either of my cards matches that particular suit.
When you play with the same people frequently, as I do in my poker league, you learn about how people play. For instance, according to my husband, if I am playing and betting, then you better have some good cards because I only play when I have got something very good, and I don’t bet on mid or low pairs. Obviously, I need to bluff some (AND GET CAUGHT) so maybe I can change my reputation. Another player that we play with frequently loves fours. So, if he’s playing and there are fours on the board, watch out. Another poker friend of mine’s favorite hand is nine – ten (he gets mad at me when I fold this hand), as well as pocket nines, tens, and also jacks.
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People are also rather dumb sometimes. They will say things like “oooh, I got my favorite hand” and think that you don’t know what their favorite hand is. When you can, REMEMBER what other people’s favorite hands are. I got caught one time when I said “This is one of my favorite hands” (and I have like ten), and the owner of the league called me remembering that I said that about ace – ten. Sure, I have a lot of favorite hands, but that happened to be the one I was talking about. Ouch! Fortunately, I change favorite hands about once a week!
There is a lot of psychology involved in poker. This is where I thrive having both a masters and a bachelor’s degree in psychology (and, of course, a psychologist just won the main event at the World Series of Poker!). The psychology of poker is some of knowing how other people play, but also figuring out what people have based on how they bet. If there is a flush draw out there and someone bets the minimum bet, they probably don’t have the flush. Maybe top pair. Knowing that, if you have something better, you can feel much better about calling or raising or even folding! Of course, there is always the fact that someone COULD be bluffing. What I have found is that bluffs more often are what we refer to as “semi-bluffs.” Meaning you have SOMETHING, but you are betting like you have something BETTER.
When playing, always remember to never regret the hand that you folded that WOULD of won. Instead, regret the hand you played and SHOULDN’T have. And, most importantly, HAVE FUN!
There is never a place where you will know everything about poker, so you should always have your eyes and ears alert to learn something new.
Talk to people while you are playing. There are lots of excellent players that are always willing to give newbies a tip. But remember, just because they say something doesn’t mean it will work for YOU. Ask players why they folded, why they raised, why they raised what they raised. Were they trying to scare everyone off, or were they hoping for a caller? Sometimes, people may not answer you, or worse, may not answer you truthfully, but it never hurts to ask.
One of my favorite ways to work on my game is to play with my husband who is a much better player than me (Texas Hold ‘Em is our game). What we do is play two hands a piece, cards up for a while and talk about how to play those starting hands. Then, for a while we will play two hands a piece face down, but after each hand show hands and then talk about how we played it and what we could have done to be more successful.
Again, I go back to PLAY, PLAY, PLAY! One thing that has definitely made me a stronger player is having joined a free poker league – Snowman Poker League – in Houston. We play six nights a week, and each night is 2 tournaments. I have learned so much by playing. Poker terms, how to deal, legal rules, etiquette, and most importantly, how other people play.
Don’t be fooled. Most people do no have any cut and dry “tell.” But there are lots of little things you can learn about how people play and little tells. For example, if the flop is a flush draw, and your opponent checks his cards, he is probably looking at what suits his card are. Realistically, they are probably not suited, because when you play a suited hand, you tend to remember what that suit is. Obviously, that is not a sure thing, but it is something to keep in mind. A lot of times when that happens and I check my hand, it’s because one of my cards is an ace and I want to know what it’s suit is. Or, I have a pocket pair and want to know if either of my cards matches that particular suit.
When you play with the same people frequently, as I do in my poker league, you learn about how people play. For instance, according to my husband, if I am playing and betting, then you better have some good cards because I only play when I have got something very good, and I don’t bet on mid or low pairs. Obviously, I need to bluff some (AND GET CAUGHT) so maybe I can change my reputation. Another player that we play with frequently loves fours. So, if he’s playing and there are fours on the board, watch out. Another poker friend of mine’s favorite hand is nine – ten (he gets mad at me when I fold this hand), as well as pocket nines, tens, and also jacks.
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People are also rather dumb sometimes. They will say things like “oooh, I got my favorite hand” and think that you don’t know what their favorite hand is. When you can, REMEMBER what other people’s favorite hands are. I got caught one time when I said “This is one of my favorite hands” (and I have like ten), and the owner of the league called me remembering that I said that about ace – ten. Sure, I have a lot of favorite hands, but that happened to be the one I was talking about. Ouch! Fortunately, I change favorite hands about once a week!
There is a lot of psychology involved in poker. This is where I thrive having both a masters and a bachelor’s degree in psychology (and, of course, a psychologist just won the main event at the World Series of Poker!). The psychology of poker is some of knowing how other people play, but also figuring out what people have based on how they bet. If there is a flush draw out there and someone bets the minimum bet, they probably don’t have the flush. Maybe top pair. Knowing that, if you have something better, you can feel much better about calling or raising or even folding! Of course, there is always the fact that someone COULD be bluffing. What I have found is that bluffs more often are what we refer to as “semi-bluffs.” Meaning you have SOMETHING, but you are betting like you have something BETTER.
When playing, always remember to never regret the hand that you folded that WOULD of won. Instead, regret the hand you played and SHOULDN’T have. And, most importantly, HAVE FUN!
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