Your POSITION Of Power In Holdem
In Hold'em poker, the importance of your position in relation to the dealer can not be stressed enough. The reason for learning position is that the later your position is the more information you will have about the other players. If you are in the last, or dealer position, you have the most information of all the other players, because they all have to act before you have to make a decision. There are hands that you would throw away, without a second thought, in one position and raise with in another. The problem is learning which position is best for each action. The first point that you must learn is where the positions are at the table.
- Early position: any one of the first four places to the left of the dealer button;
- Middle position: any one of the next three places to the left of the dealer; and
- Late position: any one of the next two or three positions including the dealer position.
The starting hand requirements for each position are quite different - Early position: You want to play only premium hands such as high pairs, high suited connectors, or high cards. This is because you don't know what is going to happen after you have bet or called. For this reason only cards that can stand a raise should be played.
- Middle position: You still need quality hands. Because the chances of raises are less, you can play more marginal cards. In this position you can start to play drawing hands and medium pairs.
- Late position: You can play lower pairs and smaller drawing hands, if the conditions are right.
Play before the flop
- Early position: Play only high pairs such as AA, KK, QQ, and JJ. Play high cards such as AK, AQ, AJ, KQ, and KJ suited or unsuited. With AA, KK, QQ, AK, and AQ you need to raise or reraise to drive out drawing hands that may beat you later.
- Middle position: In this location you can start to play weaker hands like medium pairs such as 10's thru 7's and drawing hands such as A10, K10, QJ, Q10, Q9, J10, and J9, suited or unsuited.
- Late position: Here you can play small pairs and suited high cards such as Ax, Kx, Qx, even Jx if there hasn't been a raise before you. If there has been a raise, before the action gets to you, you should fold all of these hands. High cards (AK, AQ) should be played without raising, in this position, because you aren't likely to drive anyone out and they are still drawing hands after all.
Play after the flop When you have seen the flop, you have seen over 70% of your hand. This means that you must decide whether to bet your hand or to fold.
- Early position: If you do not have a strong hand, and you are pretty sure that the other players will call, it is best to check and see what the others are going to do. If you have top pair, it is best to bet or raise to take away the drawing odds (covered in another article) for those players on a draw. Also this is the time to consider a check raise if you are sure someone will bet and you have a very strong hand.
- Middle position: Here you should think about being more aggressive with your marginal hands, if no one has bet before you. A bet here may drive out hands that could beat you later on or may already have you beat. Again bet your top pairs and made hands. This is not a position to go for a check raise as you may end up giving someone a free card.
- Late position: This is where you want to play your middle pairs and semi bluffs aggressively. If no one has bet or raised before you, the chances are that no one has a hand they are that proud of, and you may be able to take the pot right now.
By the time you have reached the turn and the river you should know how strong your hand is in relation to the other players. With a little study and experience you will know how to play your hand. For the most part, try studying your opponents and act in ways they don't expect. In the beginning try to concentrate on what position you are in at all times. As you gain more experience at the tables, you will find that knowing your position will become automatic and you won't even have to think about it. Good Luck Authored by: Robert Myer, Webmaster of Beginner's Online Poker Guide,
as well as a poker player for over 20 years.
Related News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Playing Online Poker For A Living
Playing online poker for a living is absolutely doable, but it takes a combination of talent, dedication, patience, discipline and disposition to succeed.
Texas Holdem Tournament Poker Strategy - Betting Is Communicating
The "Language" of Poker Bets
How to Avoid the Common Slot Machine Playing Mistakes
Understanding how slots work is important in maximizing your gains and dispelling some common myths that have grown up around slots. Once you know how slot machines work you will avoid the common pitfalls made by uninformed players.
Betting Options For Football
It is in one's best interest to know all your options before making a bet. The straight bet is more of a long haul type of bet. You are not going to rack up the big dough right away but over time, it will add up. The parlay bet is more of hope for bigger payouts quicker. These are more of a weekly bet. The teaser bet can be used in several ways. You won't make a ton on teasers because the payouts are lower but they are a good way of "hedging" your bet. "Hedging" will be explained in more detail later. Finally, the round robin bet is a mix of straight bet payouts and parlay payouts. They can keep you in it for the long haul or can be a real quick payout. The following explanations should help you make the right choice and hopefully you will find a betting option you really enjoy.
Take Your Online Poker Game to the Next Level
Playing Poker online can be quite satisfying, and financially rewarding, if one uses the best possible online poker strategies. Some online poker players simply rush into games and hands without thinking about their options. This usually leaves the unsuspecting online poker player with a lot less money than he or she started with. With these four easy tips, you can help yourself avoid the pitfalls of many poker players.
How to Succeed in the Poker Freerolls Part 2
How to Succeed in the Poker Freerolls Part 1 looked mostly at what cards to play and when to play them, in Part 2 we take a look at other factors that you need to be aware of in order to succeed in the freerolls.
A Teenagers Vegas Vacation
This, a true story about a Vegas vacation involving casino gambling and... a little more, that must be told now that I am an adult and making my own decisions in life - whether gambling, casinos or whatever - and with a need to share this story in hopes that it brings a smile to the reader of these words.
Video Poker - Should You Play Maximim Coins?
The arguments are almost endless about whether or not to play the maximum number of
coins on each hand in video poker. We'll attempt to make some sense of it for you.
Oh the Thrill and Despair of Gambling
I do not know of many people who LIKE to work hard and just receive a salary at the end of the month. There is a dream in most of us that somewhere along the line, Lady luck will be in our favour and we will receive
Roulette System: Confession of the Roulette Dealer on Dealers Signature
Roulette System: Confession of the Roulette Dealer on Dealer's signature
Top 5 Reasons - Should You be Gambling Online?
Why is online gambling the latest craze to hit the Internet? Let's face it the casino business is big bucks. Games played for money have found their way into any permitting city across the world. The epicenter has always tended to be Vegas but now a new variety is on the increase and it is called online gambling. So why will online gambling eventually overtake the glitzy world of concrete Vegas?
Craps
There is no longer a need to fly all the way out to Las Vegas or Atlantic City to play craps. In fact, you can play your favorite casino games, including craps in the comfort of your home. Can you imagine? If your bored and have nothing to do, you can simply open up your web browser and play a game of craps!
Las Vegas Interesting Facts
Many have had their days of glory in the state of Nevada. But these three step out of the crowd, as they gave the name of the game.
Frank Rosenthal
The Eternal Allure of Gambling
I just spent three days in the land of milk and money - Las Vegas. There is something refreshingly honest about the place: it's all about money and it knows it. It doesn't pretend to be anything else.
Virtual Casino Gambling
You might be wondering how virtual casino gambling started and how or why this virtual gambling phenomenon has grown so rapidly.
How to Beat Roulette with A Simple 3 Point System
Many players try to beat roulette by buying a "sure fire" roulette system for money. These systems promise consistent gains and to make the buyer rich and beat roulette consistently. Of course, the reality does not match the hype and these systems are ALL doomed to failure.
The History of Roulette
The term "Roulette" is derived from a French word meaning small wheel. The origin of Roulette is not very clear. while some sources state that Blaise Pascal, a 17th Century French mathematician invented the roulette wheel, other sources state that the game originated in China and was brought to Europe by Dominican monks who were trading with the Chinese.
Pai Gow Poker Basics
Using the standard poker hand ranking methods (see below), the players must organize their cards so that the five card hand is of higher value than the two card hand. If both hands beat the banker's two hands, the player wins. If both hands lose, the player loses. If one hand is higher and the other lower, the hand is a draw or push. Finally, if both hands are exactly equal in value to the banker's two hands, the banker wins.
Three Ways to Play Free Online Poker
Getting to play poker online for free is the holy grail for a lot of poker players. You get to play your favourite poker games and it doesn't cost you anything. What could be better!
Hitting the Jackpot with Progressive Slot Machines
Going For the Million plus Payback
|
