Pro Thoughts On Texas Hold'em
LOU KRIEGER
This is the first in a series of articles aimed
squarely at beginning hold’em players. My goal is to introduce new players
to this exciting game and give them enough background to make them feel
comfortable playing casino poker.
Texas hold’em is among the most popular game played
in casino poker rooms. Although playing expertly requires a great deal of
skill, hold’em is easily learned and deceptively simple. It is a subtle
and complex game, typically played with nine or ten players to a table, and
is a faster, more action-filled game than stud. Texas hold’em is also the
fastest growing poker game in the world, and is the game used to determine
the world champion at the World Series of Poker.
In
the next few issues, we’ll present a short course in Texas hold’em,
designed for beginning players. You won’t be an expert when at this
series’ conclusion, but you’ll have enough information to allow you to hold
your own in most lower-limit games.
If You’ve Never Played
Hold’em Before
While hold'em may look like
seven-card stud, it is a different game altogether. Because hold’em
players form the best poker hand by combining exposed communal cards in the
center of the table with two hidden cards that are theirs alone, it is more
difficult for an opponent to draw-out on you than is in a game like
7-card stud. For example, if you were dealt a pair of jacks and your
opponent held a pair of nines, the presence of a pair of fives among the
communal cards gives each of you two pair. But you still have the best
hand. Unless one of those fives helped an opponent complete a straight,
the only player helped by that pair of fives would be an opponent fortunate
enough to have another five in his hand.
Blind bets
Before cards are dealt, the
first two players to the left of the “dealer” position are required to post
blind bets, which are used instead of antes to stimulate action.
In a $10-$20 hold'em game
blinds are usually $5 and $10. Each blind is considered live.
Because blinds represent a forced, first bet, each of the two blinds can
raise (but only on the first round) once the betting has gone around the
table and it is their turn to act again.
Unlike stud, where position
is determined by the cards showing on the board, the player with the dealer
button acts last in every round of betting — with the exception of the
first one.
The deal and betting
structure
Two cards are dealt face
down to each player, and a round of betting takes place. On the first
round players may either call or raise the blind bet, or else they must
fold their hand. Most casinos allow a bet and three or four raises per
betting round, with one exception. When only two players contest the pot
there is no limit on the number of raises permitted.
When the first round of
betting is complete, three communal cards, called the flop, are
turned face up in the center of the table. That’s followed by another
round of betting. On this and each succeeding round, players may check or
bet if no one has bet when it is their turn to act. If there is a bet,
however, players may no longer check. Once confronted by a bet, players
may fold, call, raise, or reraise.
A fourth communal card
called the turn
is then exposed. Another round of betting takes place. Then the fifth and
final community card
known as the river
is placed in the center of the table followed by the last round of
betting. The best five-card poker hand using any combination of a player's
two private cards and the five communal cards is the winner.
That’s all there is to the
play of the game. Yet within this simplicity lies an elegance and
sophistication that makes Texas hold’em the most popular form of poker in
the world.
Knowing When to Hold’em and
When to Fold ‘em
While hold’em is exciting, exhilarating, and
enjoyable, you ought to know something before diving in and plunking
your money down — even if it’s the lowest limit game in the house. Here
are a few of those somethings I wish I had known when first making
the transition from 7-card stud to Texas hold’em.
Hold’em only looks like stud. It plays
differently
With a
total of seven cards, some of which are turned face up and others down,
hold’em bears a resemblance to 7-card stud. But this furtive similarity is
only a “tastes like chicken” analogy.
One major difference is that 71% of your hand is
defined on the flop. As a result, your best values in hold’em are found up
front; you get to see seventy-one percent of your hand for a single round
of betting.
Staying for the turn and river demands that you either
have a strong hand, a draw to a potentially winning hand, or good reason to
believe that betting on a future round may cause your opponents to fold.
Because there are only two additional cards dealt after the flop, along
with the fact that the five communal cards play in everyone’s hand, there
are fewer draw-outs in hold’em than stud.
The first two cards are critical
You’ll frequently hear players say that any two cards
can win. While that’s true as far as it goes, it doesn’t go far enough.
The whole truth is this: While any two cards can win, they won’t win enough
to warrant playing them. Like all forms of poker, you need starting
standards. Players who lack starting standards take the worst of it
far too often.
Position, position, and position
There’s an old real estate bromide that says the three
most important features of any property are “…location, location, and
location.” In hold’em, it’s position, position, and position. It’s so
important that some two-card holdings, which can’t be profitably played
from early position, are cards you might raise with when you’re last to
act.
In a typical nine-handed game, early position includes
both blinds and the two players to their left. The fifth, sixth, and
seventh players to act are in middle position, and the eighth and ninth
players are in late position.
The flop should fit your hand
No matter how sweet your first two cards may appear,
an unfavorable flop can render them nearly worthless. A key concept is
that the flop must fit your hand. If the flop doesn’t strengthen your hand
or offer a draw to a very strong hand, you should probably release it.
Suppose you called on the first round of betting with
Ad-Jd and the flop is Qd-5d-3c. You don’t have a strong hand at this
point. What you do have, however, is a hand with extremely strong
potential. If another diamond falls on the turn or the river, you’ll make
a flush. Not any flush, mind you, but the best possible flush, since your
ace precludes any of your opponents from making a higher one.
Even if you don’t make a flush but were to catch a
jack or an ace instead, that might be enough to win the pot.
Beyond the flop
As a general rule, you shouldn’t continue beyond the
flop without a strong pair and a decent side-card or kicker, or a
straight or flush draw with at least two opponents to ensure that the pot
is big enough to make it worthwhile.
Game texture — the relative aggressiveness or
passivity exhibited by the players is also important in determining whether
to call bets or raises. But a feeling for the game’s texture and how it
should influence your play can only be obtained with experience. In the
absence of that experience, err on the side of caution. It costs less.
Success at hold'em demands that you be patient, pay
close attention to position, and take comfort in the knowledge that good
hands are run down less often than the best seven-card stud hands.
PHIL GORDON
(Taken from his book, "The little green book", which you can find
HERE)
Hand Selection
It may seem obvious, but when I have a big
hand, I try to play a very big pot. When I have a small hand I try
to play a small pot. When an opponent is looking to build a big pot,
i.e., makes a large raise, I am willing to throw away most of my
smaller hands so that I have a better chance of sticking around long
enough get into a big pot with a big hand. I will rarely play a big
pot without a big hand.
JENNIFER HARMAN
It is important to be aware of your table image
at all times. Your table image will allow you to control to some
degree the action that you get.
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