pokernotes_09

8/3/2019 pokernotes_09

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How to Survive Learning Poker(Until you get good!!)

C. Alan Bester


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Disclaimer: I am NOT a really good poker player!!

Being really good at poker is all about reads; that is,figuring out what your opponent has (and actingaccordingly).

No one can teach you how to read people. It is a skillthat is developed with time and practice.

I will outline a strategy, called tight-aggressive by many

pros, that will allow you to survive (limit your losses andbeat weak players) while you learn the game.

Many of these slides are stats Ill just skip over. Theyreavailable on my website.


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Most of what I will talk about comes from these books.

They are listed from least to most complicated. Phils book is verybasic but also accessible to anybody. Harringtons is a greatbalance of theory and examples. Sklanskys books are awesomebut quite technical.Some examples in this talk are based on www.pokertips.org. Theyalso have some terrific videos of online play (under exclusives).
http://www.pokertips.org/http://www.pokertips.org/


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Outline

Preliminaries Tight-Aggressive Strategy

Betting and Pot Odds

Playing Premium Hands

Playing Marginal Hands

Tournament HoldEm and M Misc. Tips


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Preliminaries

Do not even thinkabout playing formoney until this stuff issecond nature!

Poker hand ranks areshown on the left fromhigh to low.

Pay attention totiebreakers; e.g., anace-high flush beatsany other flush.


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How Texas Hold em is played

You are dealt two cards, face-down, calledhole cards. Only you can play them.A round of betting occurs (pre-flop).

Five community cards are then dealt face-up in thefollowing sequence:

The first three community cards are the flop.The fourth card is the turn. The fifth card is the river.

Each of the flop, turn, and river is followed by a roundof betting. After the river round is the showdown.

9

9

7

4

6Round ofBetting

Round ofBetting

Round ofBetting

Round ofBetting


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9

9

7

4

6

Your hand is the best five-card hand made from anycombination of your hole cards and the five communitycards.

10

8

You have a straight (10-9-8-7-6);both hole cards play

A

8

You have a flush (five clubs). Only the

ace plays. (Still beats the hand above)

A

9

Three of a kind with an ace kicker. Theace is important-youd beat somebody

with K-9 (as long as its not K !)


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Rules of Texas Hold EmPre-flop betting

Directionof play or

action

The player(s) to the left of the dealer put out blinds, effectivelyforced minimum bets (or half if a small blind is used). Each player is dealt two hole cards, face down. Play (or action) proceeds clockwise, starting from left of the BigBlind. Since the BB is considered to have bet, you must call that bet inorder to stay in the hand. The Button, or dealer, acts last; future rounds start left of the dealer.

(So the small blind acts first.)

This player is under the gunand will act first.


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Rules of Texas Hold EmBetting rules and terminology

In each round of betting, when the action reaches you, you can call,raise, or fold. Before the flop, the Big Blind is considered to have bet,so you must call that bet (or raise) to stay in the hand.

All bets are collected at the center of the table and are called the pot.

If at any point everybody folds but one player, that player wins the pot.Otherwise the pot goes to the winner of the showdown.

In subsequent rounds, the first raise is simply called a bet. Ifnobody has bet yet, you have the option to check (i.e., call a bet ofzero). If someone checks behind you, you CAN still raise when the

action gets back to you (a check-raise).

In Limit poker, the betting increment is fixed. A $2/$4 limit gamemeans that before and after the flop, bets/raises must be $2 at a time.On the turn and river, bets/raises are $4 at a time. In No Limit, there isno maximum bet size on any round (though minimum bets still apply).


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Rules of Texas Hold EmEtiquette

Everybody has to learn sometime! Dont be afraid to ask questionsof more seasoned players (between hands), but be aware they may(politely) decline to answer.

(IMPORTANT) Verbal declarations call, raise, etc. are binding. If you are not playing the hand, DONT comment on it. Some people

at the table may not see a straight or flush possibility and theiropponents will notappreciate you pointing it out. Even if you are playing a hand, limit your comments on it. You will

often only be giving information away to a better player, and may beperceived as taunting a worse player.

In movies, players will often turn over a winning hand in dramaticfashion. DONT do this in real life. Its called slow rolling and isvery poor form.

Also, in movies players will often throw their cards or chips arounddramatically. Dont do this, it just slows down the game.

This is a game like any otherbe a good sport!!


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Game Types and Difficulty

Limit Poker is generally easier than No Limit Limit Poker is a mathematical game; psychology is much less

important than in no limit. Very strong players have somewhatless of an advantage.

Strategies are simpler as you can only call, raise, or fold.

The possible gains and losses in one hand are much smaller! Cash games are generally easier than Tournaments

Skilled tournament play involves adjusting your strategy basedon the size of your stack (chips) and the number of players atthe table.

Tournament play forces you to be more aggressive and protectyour blinds.

That said, tournament No Limit is much more fun!And it can improve your game very quickly.


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Four Poker Principles

1) Play Tight-Aggressive Strategy.

2) Take Advantage of Position.

3) Call, Raise, or Fold based on Pot Odds.

4) Play your opponents hand, not just your own.


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Tight-Aggressive Strategy

Tight-Aggressive Play means that you:

1) Play only premium starting hands (tight)2) Bet/raise aggressively when you do play a hand3) Properly adjust 1+2 to take advantage of position

To do this, you need to know: (easiest to hardest)(i) What ARE premium hands?(ii) What is position and how to use it?(iii) How to bet once youre in a hand.

Lets tackle these one at a time.


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WINRATE

VPIP

Data from a major

poker site.

Observations are

players that have

participated in at

least 500 hands of

Texas HoldEm.

VPIP = Percentage of

hands player has

voluntarily put

money in pot

WINRATE = Bets won

per 100 handsI think by farthe most common mistakebeginning players make is playing too manyhands!


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The Big Ten

Large Pocket PairsA-AK-KQ-Q

J-JT-T

High Suited ConnectorsA-QsA-JsK-Qs

Big SlickA-Ks

A-K

These are premium hands that should always be played andRAISED with pre-flop.

If somebody else raises, you should almost ALWAYS RERAISEwith A-A, K-K, Q-Q, and A-K.

Large pocket pairs are the strongest, followed by A-K.

s refers to two cards of the SAME SUIT. Notice that A-Qs (Ace andQueen of the same suit) is a different hand than A-Q unsuited.


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Two overcards are a little less than even odds (about45% likely) to win against a smaller pair (e.g., A-Kagainst Q-Q).

If you are playing a pocket pair, you are a 4-1 favorite(about 83% likely to win) against a lower pocket pair

(e.g., playing K-K against J-J), about the same as if youwere facing two undercards (e.g. 9-7). This is part ofwhy you reraise with A-A, K-K, and Q-Q unless youreconvinced you are beat.

When neither are paired, two overcards win about 63%

of the time (e.g., A-K vs. Q-J). A dominated hand (e.g., A-J vs. A-K) will about 24% ofthe time. A severely dominated hand (e.g., A-T vs. A-A) will win about 7% of the time, 12% if suited.

Q-7 will win about 50% of the time against another

randomly dealt two cards.

Some Stats to RememberBefore the flop


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A decent startingstrategy at an 8-10person cash table is to play the Big

Ten and fold everything else.

This is playing super-tight. Keep in mind that if you dothis you will be folding 90% of your hands! Well talkabout modifying this strategy a bit, but keep in mind ifyou follow my advice you will not be playing more than20% of hands until you get very good or are sitting at ashort-handed table (6 or fewer opponents).


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J 10

9

Why Play Tight?An Example

Q

J

A lot of first-time players would absolutelyrefuse to fold this hand!! Why should youconsider it?

Suppose these cards come down on the

flop. You just flopped top pair (highestpossible pair on the table) with an openended straight draw (any K or 8). But

You are a pretty big underdog to anyone playing A-A, K-K, Q-Q, J-J,T-10, 9-9, J-10, J-9, or 10-9.

You are also an underdog to A-J and K-J (you get out-kicked).

You are basically drawing dead against K-Q (HIGHER straight!!)

There is a flush draw on the board: If another club hits, anybodyplaying two clubs basically has you beat.

Dont always fold this hand; just be aware it can be beaten!


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The Big Reason to Play Tight

There are too many situations where youmake a hand only to lose to a better one!

This hurts you in two ways:1. If there are many players in the pot, even unskilled

ones, there are simply a lot of hands that can beat you.2. A skilled opponent with a good hand (maybe better than

yours, maybe not) will put you on Q-J and make a bigraise, forcing you into a difficult decision.

Well talk later about second best hands.


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Other Benefits of Playing Tight

You will crush unskilled loose opponents. Low-limit games are often called No-fold-em Hold Embecause beginners tend to play lots of hands and rarelyfold. If you are playing better cards against an equal orworse player, over time, you will win! (Its that simple.)

In low limit games you are unlikely to be able to bluffanyone out of a pot. You will usually have to show thebest hand to win, and thats more likely with good cards.

You are less likely to have to make difficult decisions for

high stakes against skilled players. You have more time to observeother players. This isessential both in figuring out who is playing what types ofhands, practicing your reads, and observing skilledplayers.


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Lets suppose you are dealt:(A-Ts)

A

10

X

Y

Where would you rather be sitting?

Sitting in seat X, you must decide what to do immediately.

Suppose that Zwas going to make a big raise

Z

Position and How to Use It


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Importance of Position

In HoldEm the dealer (button)acts last in all betting roundsafter the flop.

The chart on the right shows theEV (avg. bets won over a large# of hands) by position.

Data is from PokerRoom.composted on the Two Plus Twopoker forums.

SB and BB are the blinds, EP =early position, etc.

Data suggests players are ableto exploit positional advantagevia good strategy (?)
http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/15/poker-theory/positional-success-data-texas-holdem-408905/http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/15/poker-theory/positional-success-data-texas-holdem-408905/http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/15/poker-theory/positional-success-data-texas-holdem-408905/http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/15/poker-theory/positional-success-data-texas-holdem-408905/


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In poker, acting last is a big advantage.

You get to see what your opponents do, and actaccordingly. Therefore

You should be more willing to play marginal hands likeJ-10s in late position (close to the button).

You should be more likely to call a small bet with adrawing hand (e.g., possible straight or flush) that you

would have to fold to a large raise. Well incorporate position when we talk about betting


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Betting and Pot Odds

Q

J Lets say were playing this hand.

A 8 7

Flop #1: The flop misses you

entirely. You have nothing andcant even make a very good handon the turn. Check and fold.

K

10

9

Flop #2: You hit the flop, andin fact hold the nuts. This is a nobrainer: Bet or raise. Keep in mind,though, youre not unbeatable, andthat you wantto be called.


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Q

J Lets say were playing this hand.

Flop #3: You have a drawing hand.Any Ace or Nine gives you a straight.Should you call, raise, or fold?

K

10

2

Answer: It depends. You have 8 outs remaining out of47 cards, or about a 17% chance of making your straight.

Say there is $10 in the pot and you have to call a $5 bet to

stay in the hand. You should probably FOLD. Wouldyou pay $5 for a 17% chance to win $15?

If there is $90 in the pot you face a $10 bet, CALL.You are paying $10 for a 17% chance to win $100!


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Pot Odds are a useful guideline in making decisions.You should NOTuse them as a hard and fast rule.

Pot Odds ignore action behind you or in futurerounds. Even if you miss your straight on the turn, youcould make it on the river and win an even bigger pot.

They also ignore the possibility of you making yourhand and still losing. Your straight could easily lose toa flush (note that the flop had two diamonds!!) or amonster hand like a full house.

Skilled players modify pot odds to take these andmany other factors into account. I would be more

likely to call if the last card had been 2, if I were in lateposition with other callers in front of me, or if there hadbeen multiple raises beforethe flop.

POSITION MATTERS. I am more likely to call in latepositionno worries about a big raise behind me.


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You have a 17% chance to make your straight.

What would you pay for a 17% chance of winning $100?(Probably $17).

BUT we need to recognize that our bet will become partof the pot. So our expected winnings if we bet is

Prob(win)*( POT + BET )

Poker people like to state this result in terms of pot odds:if we define Pot Odds = BET / (POT + BET)

we can say CALL if Prob(win) > Pot Odds.

CALL if BET < Prob(win)*( POT + BET )


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Common Poker Probabilities

You need to know how many outs you have (cards in thedeck that can improve your hand). Count them up anddivide by the number of cards remaining. Examples:

Q

J

Our Cards

K

10

2

4 Aces + 4 Nines = 8 outs / 47 = 17%

A 4 2

9 spades = 9 outs / 47 = 19%

10 9 2

9 spades + 3 Kings + 3 Eights= 15 outs / 47 = 32%


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Two-Card Probabilities

Of course if you dont make your hand on the turn, youcould make it on the river.

Q

J

Our Cards

K

10

2

Prob(Make hand on turn) = 17%

Prob(Miss the turn, Make hand on river) = (39/47)*(8/46) = 14.5%

An open-ended straight draw has a 31.5% chance ofmaking a straight by the river. But this assumesyouwould call a raise of any amount on the turn (BAD!!!).


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Pot Odds and Bet Amounts

No Limit doesnt mean you go all-in with every decenthand. Yes, it looks cool on ESPN, but its often bad poker.

A bet is an investment. You are buying equity in the pot.Why push 1000 chips into a 20 chip pot? Anything but amonster hand folds, and a monster takes all your chips.

Bet or raise with authority. Think about pot odds. Whybet 20 into a 200 chip pot? Your opponent will then be

betting 20 for a chance at 240 (pot odds say call ifProb(win) > 8%). This bet can also give a lotof info to agood player. Good bets are usually 30%-100% of thepot. Good raises are usually ~3-4x the original bet. If

you wont bet/raise this much, CHECK OR FOLD.


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More on Betting

Be the agressor. Betting is much more profitable thancalling. It forces your opponent to make decisions, givingyou information. Rarely he may fold the best hand!

Have a plan. Decide how you will handle a raise or betson later streets BEFORE you bet the flop (ideally at thevery beginning of the hand, examples of this later). Thiscan help a lot, as you dont fear raises and can more easilyget away from a losing hand. Speaking of which

Dont chase chips. Once you have put chips into the pot,theyre not yours anymore. They are also not going to getlonely. So dont throw good money after bad! (But be

sure to make a note of people who do!!!)


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One Last (Important) Thing

Be aware of action in earlier rounds. What hashappened in the hand so far is absolutely essentialtodeciding whether to bet, call or fold.

For example, a bet on the flop from someone who justcalled (limped in) preflop almost always means the flophelped his hand somehow.

A bet on the flop from a preflop-raiser may be a C-bet. Acheck usually means he either hit a hugehand or missedcompletely. If a preflop raiser is behind (after) you,betting is riskier. Should you call a raise from someone

who showed a lot of strength preflop?


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Which is a better flop?

A K A 9 8(1)

or

7

2(2)

KAnswer: probably (2)(top pair, top kicker)

(1): J-T, T-7, 7-6, and/or two diamonds has outs to beatyou. You are also behind A-A, 9-9, 8-8, A-9, A-8, etc.

(2): You ahead of everybody except A-A, K-K, 7-7, 2-2.K-7, etc. are much more likely to have been foldedpre-flop. No straight/flush draws on the board. You will

usually beat K-Q, K-J, etc. with your ace kicker!

Playing Premium Hands


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Your goal is not to have the highest possiblehand. It is to have the best hand at the table!

With premium hands, you need to make it expensiveto draw against you. This is the other side of potodds. This generally means putting in a sizable raisebeforethe flop and being aggressive afterward. Peopleoften refer to a round with no betting as a free card.

You generally want to be playing these handsagainst few opponents, ideally with hands only slightlyweaker than yours (K-Q, K-J). The more people you let

stay in, the more chance somebody gets lucky. This is why you bet/raise aggressively! In the second

hand, if you get beat by K-2, it is your own fault. You didnot raise enough pre-flop to make that hand fold. A-Awins only 35% of showdowns against 8 opponents!!


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You always need to be aware of hands thatcan beat you.

A

9

8

Flush draw: Any two cards on theboard of the same suit. Here anyonewith two diamonds is about 35% likelyto make a flush by the showdown.

Straight draw: Any two consecutive cards, like 9-8. Anyone with J-T, 7-6, or T-7 is about 31.5% likely to make a straight by theshowdown. Gap straight draws (9-7 on the board) are lessimportant as apart from A-Q, K-J, etc, these hands are often folded.

Pairs on the board: Anytime the board pairs, there is a possible fullhouse. When the board pairs, be aware!

This does not mean you should fearthese hands; theright play is very often to bet moreaggressively!!


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What do you do with

theseflops?

A K 9 9 8

or

7

2

Q

I bet around 30-50% of pot.This is a continuation bet or c-bet; one of the veryfewbluffs I recommend to beginners.

You showed strength pre-flop by raising. Its hard tocall here with, say, 6-6 or below. Even if youre called,you often still have draws (this is actually a semi-

bluff). If you are raised, I would almost always fold.

Important: The Continuation Bet


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Example: Protecting Premium Hands

K K Q 10 2

Our Hand Flop

Q

J

A K

Opponent A

Opponent B

Both opponents, and anyone with two clubs,will be tempted to see another card.

J Q

Turn River

If the turn and river look like this, you wouldseriously consider foldingto a large raiseLOTS of hands have you beat.

You absolutely must put in a largebet/raise on the flop (if not also pre-flop).This makes it so that opponents have togo against pot odds to draw against you.


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J

10

6

6or

You will usually only play these hands in late

position, particularly with no raises in front of you. Youwill typically need help from the board to win with thesecards, so you want to limit your pre-flop investment.

Hit Big or Get Out. You should be looking to pick up astraight or flush draw, or two pair with the first hand, or

(ideally) a set with the second on the flop. Bewareofhitting one pair with the first, you often get out-kicked.

You want to play these hands in big pots againstmultiple opponents. Remember Pot OddsWhen youhit these hands, you want to get paid off bigtime!!!

SuitedConnectors

SmallPocket Pair

Playing Marginal Hands


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Examples: Suited Connectors

J

10

Q

10

2(1)

K

Q

3

(2)

Nota great flop for this hand. You have second pair

(Qs unlikely to be folded) and need to be aware of boththe flush draw andthe gap straight draw.

An ideal flop. High

straight and flush draws(only an ace worries you)

andthe K, Q is likely to have hit someone else to betagainst you. Play this like a premium handit is!!(some would call this a semi-bluff)


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Examples: Low Pocket Pair

Q

4

3(1)

A Q 6(2)

Not a great flop. With 8 opponents, it is about 50% likely

someone was dealt a Q. The straight draw isnt a big deal(6-5 is usually folded); the flush draw is worrisome. I stillmightplay this, particularlyshort-handed.

A greatflop. Lots ofpossibilities for high pairsthat will generate action.

6

6

Remember that the value of marginal hands isdeception. You wantan opponent holding A-Q here!!


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Suited hands flop a flush draw about 11% of the time.

Pocket pairs flop a set or quads about 12% of the time.

I think of it as: When I hit a big hand, do I believe I canwin about 8-9x what I have to invest to see a flop?

(Note: Short stacked opponents cant pay you off!!) When playing a mid-level pocket pair (e.g. 8-8) against 8

opponents, there is a 21% chance someone has ahigher pocket pair!!

When playing 9-9, the flop will contain at least oneovercard about 80% of the time.

When facing an overcard, with 8 opponents it is about50% likely that someone was dealt that card.

Some Stats to RememberPlaying Marginal Hands


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Example: Second-best hands

K Q K 10 7

Our Hand (Big Blind) Flop

Two opponents, A and B, who raised pre-

flop. On the flop, A bets around a third ofthe pot. You and B call.

4

Q

J

A K

Opponent A (Small Blind)

Opponent B (Button;raised pre-flop)

Turn

The turn: A checks. You bet the pot. Breraises you most of his stack. A folds(probably on a draw).

You are in a really difficult position. Whatdoes B have? What do you do?

Consider raising on the flop in thissituation. If B has A-K, K-K, or 10-10, he will

often make a big reraise.

??


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Limit vs. No-Limit

The example on the previous page is why No-Limit poker

is so challenging. It only takes one second best handto lose your entire stack. Folding a good hand is thehardest thing to do in poker.

Aggression early in the hand is very important. If you

had raised on the flop, B might have raised bothof you,which would tell you he had a very strong hand.

But what if B bluff reraises? Fine, let him. Eventuallyhell do it when Ihave K-K.

In No-Limit, big cards like A-Q, A-J, K-Q, and K-J are

relatively less valuable than in limitthey tend to make alot of second best hands.

Top Pair tends to pay off less in No-Limit. The betsoften get large enough that only very strong hands stayin (often everyone folds).


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No Limit Tournament play is (in my opinion) the mostdifficult type of Hold Em. BUT it offers beginners thechance to improve quickly at very reasonable stakes.

The biggest difference in tournaments is that blinds areincreasing(by one hour in, blinds are often 10% of yourstarting stack). This forces you to play more hands.

Strategically, the biggest difference is:

Stack size becomes extremely important.

In other words, you play differently depending on howmany chips you have relative to your opponent(s).

Tournament Poker and M


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Your M (or M-ratio, named after Paul Magriel) is the ratioof your stack to the totalof the small blind + big blind (andantes, if applicable).

Example: If blinds are 50/100 and you have $1500 inchips, you have an M of 10.

Importantly, M is the number of laps around the tableyou can survive without having to play a hand.

The hardest part of tournament poker is adjusting playbased on your M (and other players).

M


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Dan Harringtons excellent books Harrington on HoldEmbreak M down into zones:

Green Zone (M20): Play good solid poker as usual.

Yellow Zone(10M


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YOU hand:stack = $3000(M=20)

Its not just your M that matters! Blinds are 50/100.

Example: M and Strategy

A

K

UTGstack = $500(M=3.33)

Action:

All In.

FoldFold

Buttonstack = $1200

(M=9)

SBstack = $300(M=2)

Call

Fold

Your action?

Note: Stack sizes afterblinds have been paid.

These players have$2k and $4k in chips.


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Observations YOU hand:stack = $3000(M=20)

A

K

UTGstack = $500(M=3.33)

Action:All In.

FoldFold

Buttonstack = $1200(M=9)

SBstack = $300(M=2)

Call

Fold

1) I like UTGsmove. The blindsare about to chewup >1/3 of her stack,and $500 is still arespectable raise(from early position,

shows strength). Ifshes good shecould be playing averywide range ofhands.

2) Buttons play is iffy. Think about the Pot Odds you are offering tothe SB and BB players. The SB is almostguaranteed to call. By thatpoint the BB, who is large stacked, will only need to put in $350 for ashot at an $1800 pot. With only $700 left, veryhard to fold post-flop.

3) The SB is either playing verybadly or thinks he is very goodand has total junk. As we said above, the Buttons call makes itattractive for the BB to call. Even with a bad hand, 5 hands to go tillthe blinds eat 50% of his stack. You must take chances like this to

triple (or quadruple!) up. Anything else is capitulation.

Questions:

How have UTG andButton been playing?

Have they been usingposition? Have theyshown down many losinghands?


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Analysis YOU hand:stack = $3000(M=20)

A

K

UTGstack = $500(M=3.33)

Action:All In.

FoldFold

Buttonstack = $1200(M=9)

SBstack = $300(M=2)

Call

Fold

1) I am more likelyto call if I think UTGis a strong player. AStrong player knowsshe must beaggressive in thissituation. If the SB is

bad, many times araise here takes theblinds, buyingvaluable time. Weakplayers wait for amonster.

2) I am less likelyto call if I think Button is a very strong player.

A call from a very strong player here is muchscarier than an all-in. Ifhe wants2 more callers, look out.

That said, I am usually pushing all-in here. This is just too good a hand. Youll be surprised howoften the button will look disgusted and fold. You then have $550 of dead money in the pot and arelikely at worstin a race with UTG. At worst, Button wins and youre down to $1800, which is stillenough to compete with.


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In these situations, newer players are usually overly

passive. The call by Button and fold by SB are probablyawful plays.

This is often called an isolation play (driving Button out).

Part of the value in our bet is the chance Button folds.

Note the role of position. Short stacked, UTG is a halfdecent place for an all-in move. The BB is a pretty goodspot when most/all of the action is pre-flop.

Note how we took our own stack size as well asouropponents stacks and play styles into account. Betterquestion: what do you do with Q-J suited here?

Lessons from this Example


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Lets say you are the Button in this hand and have called

(bad idea, but go with it).

Lets say the BB pushes all in (as Ive argued). What doyou do? What if he had only raised you $700 chips?

A Quick Word on All-In Bets

Any raise over $700 puts you ALL-IN if you call!

But it still might matter. Many players, particularly under

stress, forget this basic fact. More important, manyplayers forget to take their opponents stack size intoaccount. If your opponent only raise $700, did he realizehe was putting you all in? Did he think youmight view thetwo raises differently?


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Know Your OpponentsA lot of beginning players will say I had K-Qs and the flopand turn were Kc-10d-7c-4s, should I call an all-in raise?Wrong.

Misc. Tips

What did your opponents bet before and after theflop? What did that tell you about their hands?

How have they bet previous hands? Did they check

(slowplay) strong hands? Did they raise with weakones? Have they been using position and if so, how?

Play the hand, not just your cards!!


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Misc. Tips: Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda

Your goal playing poker is to always make the rightdecision given the info you have at the time.

A lot of people will fold Q-9 in early position then bereally mad when the flop comes K-J-10. Or be upsetwhen they folded a draw and the next card is an out.

NO. If you had a 17% chance of making your straight onthe river and folded to a pot-sized bet, you almostcertainly made the right decision!

Dont let miracle cards change the way you play! Do

you really want to BET that lightning is going to striketwice?! Dont be mad when people call you with trashand get lucky. You WANT them to play that way!!

By same logic, avoid rabbit hunting (asking to see thenext card after you folded) or showing cards after folding.


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Misc Tips: The Turn and River, and Bluffing

Weve talked mostly about the flop. What about the turn and river?

Playing Tight-Aggressive makes it more likely you get to thelater rounds with strong hands and have an idea what youropponents have as your aggression forced them to make decisions.

It rarely makes sense to fold on the river. At this point, you willhave pot odds to call all but very large bets.

Checking/Calling on the turn and river is often good strategy. Ifyouve been aggressive, the weak hands are already gone! Ifyouve made a big draw, make a value bet you think will be called.

Bluffing in Hold-em is usually a poor play if you literally havenothing. Particularly at low stakes, somebody usually calls you.

The semi-bluff, however, is a very important tactic. Making adecent-sized raise on the flop with a flush or straight draw(representing top pair) can keep your opponents off balance.

Eventually you will need to vary your betting and strategy tokeep from becoming predictable. Dont worry about this at lowerstakes as your opponents wont pick up on it anyway.


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Misc Tips: Tournament and Short-Handed Play

Tournament play generally forces you to be more

aggressive. In cash games, you can reload anytime. Intournaments, blinds are typically increasing!

Stack size becomes extremely important. How manyBBs you have in your stack determines how you play.

When you are short stacked (8x the BB or less), youneed to pick a hand and make a stand. You dont wantto get stuck in the BB with a random hand. You cannotafford to limp in here, its all or nothing.

Raises in late position(stealing) is often a good tactic,

particularly late or when the blind player is short-stacked. As the number of players goes down, you need to play

more hands and play them allaggressively.

Heads up (1 on 1) or three-way play is challenging.You MUST make sizable raises when you have position.


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Misc. Tips: Common Tells

Watch a players hand when he bets. Shaking handsindicate nervousness, which generally means he has avery weak OR very strong hand.

Beginning players often overcompensate; they stareyou down when they are bluffing and act deferential

when they have a good hand. Watch your opponents eyes on the flop. A player that

looks at his chips usually has made a hand and iscalculating how much to bet.

There are lots more tips on Poker tells. Be careful withthis stuff; a better player will pick up on what you areresponding to and send you false tells.

My rule of thumb: Fixed behavior, Variable bets

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