April 14, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #9 - Don't Assume. Observe.

We are surrounded with people in our lives that do the things we do and think the way we think. Our common interests and beliefs are the foundation for our friendships. We find support for our way of thinking from our close circle of family and friends. So, what does this have to do with winning poker?

One of the great fallacies in life is that we tend to assume that others generally think the way that we think.  After all, most of the people around us do. Right? But, this is a particularly dangerous assumption at the poker tables. 

There are a lot of different poker philosophies and styles of play. Let’s assume that you approach Texas Holdem this way - when you have a good starting hand, you bet big before the flop. This is a sound principle and it has worked well for you. If another player places a large bet ahead of you pre-flop, you will likely assume that they have a strong hand because that’s the way you would play it. This can be hazardous to you bankroll.

We know that texas holdem is a game of patience. It is also a game of observation. Since we know that we will only be playing the best hands, most of the game we will be sitting and watching. This is the time during the game that separates the professionals from the amateurs. Professionals will watch and remember how you bet with the different hands that you show. This is one key to understanding what kind of poker player you really are.

Don’t assume that anyone plays poker the way that you do. Observe what they do and when they do it. Use this texas holdem tip to gain an advantage over your opponents.

See you at the tables … 

March 19, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #8 - Calculate Pot Odds And More . . .

“You’ve got to know when to hold’em. Know when to fold’em.” But how?

Unless you are bluffing, you make a bet when the pot odds are less than your actual probability of winning. This seems complicated, but it is just some simple math to figure it out. This is an extension of our previous texas holdem tip on knowing the odds and is especially important when you are facing bullies and other aggressive players.

First we need to know the number of “outs” that we have. “Outs” are the number of cards left that will give us the winning hand. For example, you have a hand with an 8 and 9. The flop has 7, 10, and king. You have a straight if a 6 or jack comes on the turn or river. There are 4 sixes and 4 jacks in the deck for a total of 8 outs.

After the flop comes the Rule of 4 -  To calculate the odds of winning multiply the number of outs by 4. In our example, 4 times 8 outs equals an approximate 32% chance of winning.

After the turn comes the Rule of 2 - To calculate the odds of winning multiply the number of outs by 2. In our example, 2 times 8 outs equals an approximate 16% chance of winning. 

Second, we need to calculate the pot odds. The pot odds are your bet divided by the pot plus your bet. Odds = B/(B+P).

For example, if the pot is $30 and you need to bet $10 to call then the pot odds are 10/(10+30) = 10/40 = 25%.

Now, lets apply this tip to a couple of texas holdem hands …

Scenario #1: You hold QH, 10H. The flop comes 2H, 3H, 9D. The pot is $30 and you need to bet $10 to call. Do you do it?

Yes, you make the call. You have 9 heart outs to make a flush. Using the rule of 4, we see that the odds of winning are 4 x 9 = 36%. The pot odds are 10/(10+30) = 10/40 = 25%. Since your odds of winning (36%) are greater than the pot odds (25%) you make the bet. Doing this is profitable in the long run.

Scenario #2: Using the same hand, the turn card is KS. The pot is $40 when your opponent makes a $20 bet to push the pot to $60. Do you call?

No, you should fold this poker hand. You may be excited to have a potential straight if a jack comes on the river. There are 4 jacks, but since one of them is a heart there are only 3 new outs. The odds of winning now are 2 x 12 outs = 24%. The pot odds are $20/(20+60) = 20/80 = 25%. Your odds of winning (24%) are less than the required odds (25%), so making the call is a losing proposition. You should fold the hand. 

In scenario #1, we were getting the right odds to call. In scenario #2, we improved the number of outs available to us but had a worse situation so we folded. Remember that in texas holdem all odds change as each additional card is dealt. Here is our texas holdem tip: always calculate the odds so that you recognize when you have the advantage. See you at the tables …

March 16, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #7 - How To Kill Bullies

Most poker players approach the game with more attitude than intelligence. They gamble wrecklessly, bluff too much, and always seem to be putting a lot of chips at risk. We love intelligent aggressive play, but this texas holdem tip is about how to kill these bullies.

We are going to characterize players in two dimensions: tight/loose and aggressive/passive. Tight players play only the best hands while loose players will play a very wide variety of hands. Aggressive refers to the betting style of a player. Aggressive players are not afraid to raise the pot significantly while passive players tend to check and call.

Bullies tend to be loose aggressive players. They play most hands and make wild raises going all-in frequently to intimidate opponents into folding. As we’ve said before, this is not a good, disciplined texas holdem system. This style can be successful against passive players, but cannot be successful long term.

Bullies play a wide variety of hands. Intelligent poker players choose to play the best hands. So, beating bullies is simply a matter of waiting until you have a top hand and betting the heck out of it. We recommend that you slow play the hand, using a check raise. Bullies do not like to be raised and will frequently re-raise. At this time, push all-in. The odds are greatly in your favor and the bully will have a hard time backing down. (Bullies don’t like to be bullied.) After you have relieved your opponent of a pile of chips, they will likely come at you *very* aggressively. Just wait until you have a good hand and repeat the process. In this manner, you can knock all of the bullies out of the game!

Intelligent poker is about having a successful system and using it. Knowing how and when to use different strategies is a powerful key to success. This Texas holdem tip combines patience with aggression to eliminate the bullies at your table. Use it and win more often. See you at the tables …

March 13, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #6 - Position Can Be Negated

This texas holdem tip comes as a convergence from a number of poker hands that I have been analyzing recently. Many books will talk about the power of betting position in texas holdem. Basically it comes down to this … the last person to bet has the advantage of seeing what all the other players do before making a decision and putting your chips at risk. The later you are, the better your position. This is an incredible advantage to be exploited at the tables.

But, the advantage of position can be reduced or negated. Suppose that you are playing a hand heads up against an opponent with position. You have missed the flop, but you place a bet and your opponent calls. The turn card does not help you nor does it improve the table very much. You know that if you check, your opponent will take a stab at the pot possibly with a large bet. If they do that, then you are in the uncomfortable position of having to determine whether or not they are bluffing. Their position definitely puts you at a disadvantage. So what do you do?

Make a bet. In this situation, your opponent will likely fold or call with a weak hand and raise with a strong hand. Either way, you have found out cheaply what you are up against.

Here is the principle. Being the first one to bet has the power to negate positional strength. When you bet, it forces everyone else to make a decision and removes the option of seeing additional cards for free. Opponents must now react to the bet and *you* now have the advantage of being able to see what everyone else does before you must make another decision. Take some time and practice this aggressive strategy.

This is especially powerful when playing with tight players or those who like to check frequently to try and see cards for free. It forces them to fold and gives the positional advantage to you. Use the texas holdem tip to take the advantage away from your opponents. See you at the tables …

March 1, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #5 - Professionals Practice. Why Don't You?

They say that “practice makes perfect.” That’s a lie. Only perfect practice makes perfect.

Most skills that we learn (like playing solid texas holdem) are developed through repetition. We perform an action over and over improving until we can “do it in our sleep” without thinking about it. That is the beauty of practice and the problem with it. At some point, our actions become automatic reflexes rather than conscious choices.

Consider this … when was the last time you focused on tying your shoes? You don’t think about it any more, you just do it. It’s been practiced so much that it is now a habit. So if your habits are bad, you will continue to do them a-u-t-o-m-a-t-i-c-a-l-l-y. As you make the same mistakes over and over, they become more deeply ingrained habits and harder to break. You are practicing a bad habit and reinforcing it. That is why only perfect texas holdem practice makes perfect texas holdem play.

The opportunities to practice are all around us. Many popular internet sites like Facebook have texas holdem games to play. You can also take advantage of several top online poker sites where you can play against live opponents. Or, you can just set up a friendly poker night with some friends.

How do you practice? Focus on one small thing for several games. It must be only one thing, otherwise you will likely be practicing bad habits. It must be a small thing so that you can master it.

Here are some ideas:
* Betting correctly from your position at the table
* Playing the correct hands
* Identifying betting patterns
* Spotting tells
* Placing you opponent on a hand or range of hands
* Aggressively stealing blinds
* Etc.

Since you will fold most hands, make sure that you watch what your opponents are doing and learn from their play as well. Be patient. Every hand is an opportunity to learn and improve.

Many professional players will play in smaller games periodically to practice and sharpen a particular skill. Their action is a wonderful texas holdem tip for all of us. Practice and you will win more often.

See you at the tables …

February 23, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #4 - Winning Players Are Aggressive

A single hand of texas holdem may be won in only two ways: you either have the best cards or you get everyone else to fold. Today we are going to explore getting other players to fold.

Here is the important, but simple truth. You fold when you *believe* that the odds of winning do not justify the bet required or if you are uncomfortable betting “that much” on this hand. Generally speaking, poker players tend to equate the size of the bet with the strength of the hand. Consider what happens when you are sitting with a moderate hand and an opponent places a sizable bet. Most poker players think that their opponent has a better hand and will conclude that it is better to fold.

Now, lets simplify this even further. Assume that two players will ONLY play the top 50 texas holdem hands. Since they are playing the same pool of hands, when they are heads up each player has a 50% chance of winning if they both play to the showdown. But, if Player A is more aggressive in betting and Player B folds a little bit more often as a result then Player A will win more than 50% of the pots.

This is why aggressive betting works. It makes opponents fold because they believe that we have better cards or the bet puts them outside of their comfort zone. We systematically increase our odds of winning as more opponents fold.

Now there are some things that will limit the effectiveness of aggressive betting. First, if you get caught betting a weak hand aggressively, opponents will think you are bluffing and stop folding when playing against you. Second, if you play too many hands, opponents will think you are just aggressive with *any* cards. They will call you with strong hand which is something that will cost you a lot of chips. Third, if you tend to back down when facing another aggressive player your bet is wasted.

So, how should we apply this texas holdem tip to our next game? Base your level of aggression on your opponents style of play. If they are timid, be aggressive with a lot of hands. You will pick up a lot of pots uncontested. If you have a number of aggressive players, be tight-aggressive. Since other players will match your aggression you need to play top hands aggressively to eliminate them and sit out the rest when the odds are not in our favor.

Remember, timid players donate their chips to smart aggressive players. See you at the tables …
February 17, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #3 - Poker Is A Game Of Patience

Just about every poker player loves to be in the middle of the action. This is one of the things that we love about the game and one of the biggest causes of losing poker. Let me explain …

When you are playing with 9 other players, your chance of winning any hand is 1 out of 10. Let me repeat that. Your odds of winning any random hand at a full table is 10%. If you play every hand, you will lose 9 out of 10.

Poker is a game of patience and proper hand selection. Most poker players do not have the discipline to play ONLY the right hands in the right situations. They do not want to fold most hands and be out of the action. Television coverage of poker only adds to the illusion that you should play most hands. WSOP coverage shows the best hands with lots of “all-in moments”. Why? Showing a professional poker player folding hand after hand is boring.

Folding is the most underutilized weapon in an amateur poker player’s arsenal. They play too many hands and donate too many chips to their more disciplined opponents. Now that you know the odds, it’s time to actually fold’em when the odds are against us.

Today’s Texas Holdem tip is to add patience to your poker system and watch you chip stack grow. 

February 14, 2008

Texas Holdem Tip #2 - Know Your Odds

Here is a great texas holdem tip … know your odds.

Have you ever wondered how you could have gotten beat in a particular hand? Or whether a beat was *really* a bad beat or a bad play? Knowing the odds in these situations is very helpful.

Poker Stove is a wonderful texas holdem odds calculator that lets you play with the starting hands and determine the odds of winning. It is something that you can use while studying from a poker book, watching poker on TV, or replaying hands in your head from last night’s game.

The software is FREE and contains no ads or spyware … just software to allow you to know your odds. This valuable addition to your arsenal will help you to achieve systematic success in poker. Put this texas holdem tip to work right now. Get Poker Stove today and start analyzing your game.

Texas Holdem Tip #1 - Tips Won't Work Unless . . .

Beginning poker players are constantly looking for new texas holdem tips in hopes that they will find the *one* thing that will take their winnings over the top. Unless you are at the top of the texas holdem world, it is silly to think that one tip will take you where you want to go.

All of the top poker professionals play systematically. Their style of play may look different ranging from the quiet, studious approach of some to the wild, unpredictable antics of others and everything in between. However lying underneath all of this is a foundation created by a solid poker system.

To be on top of your game, you don’t need poker tips. You need a system! (I guess this counts as poker tip #1.) Why?

1) Poker is an emotional game. We can all be affected by winning a big pot, feeling the crushing blow of a bad beat, or the fight we had with our significant other before sitting down to play. Systems provide rules that limit the damage caused by betting with our emotions.

2) Systems put the odds in your favor by outlining what hands to play and how to play them in different stages of the game.

3) Poker requires discipline that VERY few people have. Systems provide boundries to keep your game disciplined and focused on the right stuff.

Tips are only helpful when they are a part of a complete poker system that guides you in your play. Changing strategies each time you uncover a new tip is a recipe for consistently losing your chips.

Go find yourself a system and keep coming back here for more texas holdem tips. See you at the tables …