Poker Strategy

Avoid the Fancy Moves in Limit Poker

This is something that you see new player try quite a bit when they are first starting out in limit.  There really is nothing but television to blame for this one as the only poker that is televised is no limit.  Limit tournaments are few and far between because producers tend to think it is much less interesting, and the result is that newcomers try and make the same moves in limit as they do in no limit.

Why this does not work is because of the odds that are present in limit poker that you can eliminate in no limit.  For instance, if you make a pre-flop raise in limit, there are few draws that will not have odds in a multi-way pot.  Once the flop hits and that flush, straight or over card draw is present, you can only make a single bet. If the same thing were to happen in no limit, you could bet 3 times the pot and virtually take away any odds that a player was looking for.

That being the case, you are going to get called.  While you will want to keep the hammer down if the draw does not hit, you have to take a second look at how you are going to play when the board blanks you or the draw pops. If you bet, you are going to get called.  If you are behind the player, you may very well get check raised.

The issue with all of this is if you get check raised on the river, you pretty much still have to call because of the money that is in the pot.  If you are playing in a $20/$40 limit game and bet $40 into a $500 pot and then get raised, it is costing you $40 to see a pot that is worth $620 at that point.  Regardless of what you have, you are forced to make the call because of the 15:1 odds.

The entire thought process in limit needs to be straight forward.  When you don’t hit, play very cautiously and try to keep the pot to a minimum.  If you are the raiser, stay aggressive if nothing hits the board and you think you are still ahead.  If you hit, continue to pound the pot and give no mercy to anyone.  If the board hits a draw, you are better to back off and give up the pot if that is the hand that you put your opponent on.  You do this before you get into the 2 bets and you are forced to call and waste money on the river.

Limit is not a place for fancy moves.  Plain and simple, it is about crunching numbers and playing the odds.  The ONLY time that you can get away with a move is when you have the absolute nuts.  In that case, you can try a check-raise that may set up one bluff down the road, but for the most part, you need to play ABC poker and take the odds when they are there.

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ABC Poker, Limit Poker, Online Poker, Poker, Poker Tips, Pre Flop

Making the Most out of the ‘Nuts’

There is nothing like flopping the absolute nuts in poker.  Your eyes pop out of your head and all you can think of is how to get the most money out of the hand.  This is not often very easy to do, but when you are in late position, you can make some more sophisticated plays that will allow you to get a little more money out of your opponent.

For the sake of argument, we will assume that you are on the button and have a middle position raiser in front of you.  The flop comes out and it is all you.  There is no other draw or card that can hurt you unless the board was to pair and give someone a boat.  As your opponent will probably throw out a continuation bet regardless of whether or not he hit, you know there is going to be more money in the pot.

This is where most poker players will make an error.  They get a little excited and decide to throw out a raise.  If your opponent does not have a hand, they are going to get out cheap at this point.  Just make the call and see what the turn brings before you make a move.  Now the turn hits and you are still in no danger or getting beat regardless of the river (except of course if the board were to pair and the danger of the boat is brought in).  If your opponent throws out a check, this is the one time that you may want to give him the free card and let him think that you are on a draw.

What this does is induce him to make a bet on the river regardless of what card hits. He will more than likely put you on some type of a draw and throw out a decent bet in order to take down the pot.  If you are lucky, the river card will improve his hand just a bit and then you can drop the hammer.

Reading your opponent is the key to the success here as it is going to dictate how much of a raise that you put in.  If you want to get called, the raise is going to have to be perfect.  Some players will come right back at you when you simply double the bet and others will wait for an overly aggressive raise, such as 6 or 7 times the last bet, that evokes a feeling of you trying to be a bully.  Pay attention to how they are playing and you may just end up getting all of your chips in with the nuts.

Flopping the nuts and making money on poker sites is not an easy thing to do.  You sometimes have to be very patient and let things develop before you can try and get some money from playing poker on poker sites.  Evaluating your opponents and patience will be the key to your success when you are building a pot with the nuts.

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Chips, Flop, Nuts, Online Poker, Poker Game, Poker Sites, Poker Tips

When to put your chips in on a draw in a tournament

This is something you see quite a bit in tournament play, especially poker online. However, there are good times to do this and bad times. Remember, just because you won the hand does not mean that it was the right play. There are several situations when it is okay to get in there on a draw, you just need to know what they are.

Let’s get the time that it is not good to throw your chips in on a draw. Let’s say you see a flop that has 2 cards to a flush and your hole cards are suited. You fire out a bet and someone comes right back over top of you to put you all in on a call. What do you do here? Odds aside, you have to let the hand go. You are going to see arguments for both sides of this, but the bottom line is that this is not a cash game. You cannot re-buy and you are risking everything pretty much knowing that you must improve or you are gone.

On the flip side of that, you get the same flop but hold position on the other player. He fires out and you are short stacked and decide to come over the top of him and go all in on a draw. This is actually a good play. You have two ways to win this hand. Your opponent could fold thinking you already have the made hand and of course if he calls, you are still alive with a 35% draw. The difference in the two situations is that you are being the aggressor and putting someone else on a decision.

Finally, you can also make this call when you are stacked and not in danger of putting yourself at risk by covering the bet for the all in. In most cases, you don’t want to risk any more than about 25% of your stack and you have to make sure you are getting odds for the play. You are going to need to see about 2:1 to make the call off of the flop and about 5:1 to make the play on the river. If the odds are there, make the play.

Draws are great when you catch them, but they are way to overrated and lead to a lot of early deaths in tournaments. A good way to keep your head straight about it is to remember that you can always push on a draw, but you should never call on one. You only need a chip and a chair to stay alive. Putting your money in on a hope and a prayer will more than likely get you to the rail rather than to the final table.

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Chips, Online Poker, Poker Tips

Put On Your Aggressive Suit

It’s pre-river and the flop is before you, all the cards look good and so does your hand. Everyone else has folded except one opponent, and there is no way that he/she can have a better hand. So, you hastily throw down a little cash out of what you’ve got in your stack and smile; you’re thinking bet little so the opponent stays in. Your opponent calls and then the dealer throws’ down the last card in the round. Your smile grows a little wider as you glance quickly at the table; your opponent certainly has nothing in their hand so you toss down a substantial bet. The opponent smiles back, raises the bet and then throws down his/her cards. Your smile fades as you realize they’ve got you beat, and what’s worse…you realize they never even had a playable hand until the river. Ouch; the same situation has happened to everyone at least once and it sure does hurt.

The big problem in this situation is that the player mentioned above was not aggressive enough. Had they made a larger bet pre-river or even sooner than chances are the opponent would not have made a choice to stay in. While it is certainly true that you always want to play a good hand as far as you can to get the most money out of it; winning some money is always better than none. In this instance above the player was not aggressive enough, therefore the opponent pulled ahead. When you are playing veterans, and professionals there is no way to win unless you play aggressively; they will always pull ahead of you when given the chance.

Every poker pro out there plays very aggressively; even the stingy players who love to moderate their betting. They pick the right times to throw out their chips, and when they do they usually put most of it on the line. The main point to keep in mind however is that being aggressive is not the same as being reckless; and this point is what separates the poker duds from the poker studs. Poker pros are always aggressive, and they always use aggressive play styles and strategies, but they are anything but reckless. They never throw down too many chips on a hand they know is weak; even at time when it may seem strong and they never go all-in unless they are completely sure of a win. Course, unfortunately in the game of poker sometimes there is almost no way to tell if you’re holding an absolute hand or not but that is exactly what drives the game and makes it exciting. Even the pros sometimes miscalculate and go all-in on a play where their opponents certainly have them beat. The main difference between those pros and the novices is that they rarely do make those mistakes.

Don’t be reckless and throw out all your chips with every good hand you have. Chances are that if you’re opponents are keeping up, or are even betting than they have you beat. On the same note you can’t be considered aggressive if you attack with a bet every turn of the flop and then fold pre-river because you get a whiff of danger. The key is giving your opponents the appearance of recklessness while you remain reserved and careful.

Poker is all about deception; it’s been said before and will be mentioned many times more. Learn it, and use it to your advantage. When you sit down at a poker table put on a costume; what I mean by this is that you should become something you’re not. If you act like you’re one type of player, than no opponents will be able to guess how your hands are actually being played. Trick all those opponents into thinking you’re the player that throws down chips recklessly with every hand you’ve got. They’ll never expect a winning hand when you throw one down, and even when you do they’ll attribute it to luck because they really won’t be able to tell that you’re a skilled player. Consider it the same as hustling while playing a game of pool. You never want the opponent to know you’re excellent; until it’s too late that is.

While your costume is on however it is important to remain aggressive. When you have a good hand, go for it; don’t hold back. Chances are you probably will pull in more cash going at it with all you’ve got than if you were to limp it along after every turn of the cards. Don’t be afraid to throw down enough in order to push your opponents out of the round; thus using their fear as an advantage. In many cases you’ll still get a good amount of their money and chances are, the longer they stay in the more of a chance they have of throwing down a hand that beats yours.

Remember that a 25%, 50% or even 75% stack bet however is still aggressive and an all-in call is not always needed to scare off opponents. That small amount of chips left in your stack keeps you distanced from being too reckless. Always leave an exit route while being aggressive; just in case. If you’re too aggressive and you lose a hand at least you’ll still have cash to go on instead of being knocked out completely; unless of course, you throw it all out.; and it’s safe to say, never do so unless you are absolutely sure of a win; never.

Playing aggressively like the pros and vets of the sport is certainly the way to go; just remember to check your reckless alter ego at the door. While you’re at it, toss on that silly pimp costume you’ve been meaning to try on and trick all your opponents into thinking you’re something that you’re not.

Tags:
Aggressive Poker Skills, All-in help, Poker Tips

Stemming the Debt Flow of an Addiction

Poker is addictive. Much like alcohol, cigarettes or even some serious drugs it can totally screw with your life if you let it consume you. I’ll even admit myself one of the hardest moves you make in the game is quitting or walking away; especially when you’re winning hand after hand. But, just like the famous saying goes, “quitting while you’re ahead is not the same as quitting”.

There are hundreds upon thousands of poker junkies out there who scrape around to find enough money just to jump into their next game. It may sound ridiculously silly, but it’s unfortunately very true. They bet their lives away until they completely run out of money, and eventually they begin borrowing it or stealing it from the wrong sources. Some of these men even have families to support, and other mouths to feed, as with most of us who love the game. It is highly possible for anyone to become addicted to the game of poker; therefore it is very important that all players learn to make their poker trips a privilege and not a necessity.

The most important thing to remember is that you are no poker pro like Chris Ferguson; as much as you’d like to be, you don’t make a living off of poker. Even if you do in rare circumstances, then you need to follow this tip as well. Winning a large stack of money in a game can get your heart-racing and your adrenaline pumping; the excitement of the moment is always fulfilling. This spur of the moment ecstasy of sorts can alter your thinking and push you to bet more and more. The best decision to make especially if your luck has been terrible all night, is to grab your nice big stack and walk away while you have money. A lot of players get lost in the game and let their winnings go to their head, and eventually they throw away everything they won, plus the money they put in, and wind up leaving with nothing. Plenty of people talk about how much they hate quitters, and they may even give you nasty glances when you collect your stack but none of that should matter. Quitting with a large stack of money you just won, or collected over time is much better than being forced out with nothing left. Even if you don’t win the game, you are still considered a winner for walking away with a good amount of money; after all that is what poker is about.

Another point that needs to be established for many players, especially aggressive ones, is that everyone should set a personal limit for themselves before they even enter the casino, poker rooms, or hop online. It is very easy to run to the cashier and pump more personal money into the game when your emotions are running high. It’s this type of tendency that spawns a terrible addiction to the game. As aforementioned above it can even cloud your judgment so much that you forget you have a family back home, or even in some cases ignore the fact, and all your money winds up sinking down the drain. For those players who are already there, with very little money left to gamble, the important move you need to make requires you to understand that poker is not always as important as you think it is. Poker can always be set aside for later, and even for those who have a terrible addiction sometimes poker needs to be set aside permanently. Never endanger your own life or the lives of others just to play a game.

Beginners’ of the sport can also become easily addicted; often it happens without them knowing. For those who are first starting, to remain safe novices’ should only play low-limit tables to keep their losing streaks to a bare minimum. You never want to hop in at a table with a $1,000,000 limit and find yourself face to face with nothing but veterans and pros that squander your stack and leave you nothing.

Remember to stay focused even after losing and not let your emotions gain control of your actions. If you have lost, and you have run out of the extra money you brought with you to play with. Don’t add in more and drop yourself into debt; just walk away for the night and go home.

Poker is fun and time-consuming but there is no reason it should be life-consuming. Don’t let the game pull you in and get you addicted. Stay ahead of your emotions and desires and plan everything out before you take a trip to the casino. Really, casinos don’t care about your life they just want your money and the same holds true for online poker venues. They’ll keep taking it if you give it to them no matter what your debt ratio is. If you’re losing terribly and your money is slipping away, then pick up what you have and get the hell out of there before you dig yourself a grave.

Tags:
Poker Addiction, Poker Tips