Poker Strategy

Poker Strategy. Online strategy and poker rules. how to use strategy playing poker.

Personalities to Look For

Your poker game online will bring several types of players to the table. You want to know the different styles of players you might run into so that you can identify them and adjust your poker game accordingly. In general, there are players you want to attack, and those you want to leave alone.

Loose

Watch out for the loose player. They are usually inexperienced and they play a lot of hands. You’ll find that the loose player always seems to be in the poker game. He will play all the way to the river with a poor hand, just hoping to catch lucky cards. Exploit this player by playing very aggressive when you have good cards. The loose player is likely to pay you for your efforts.

Aggressive loose

An aggressive loose player is a loose player on steroids. He will raise the pot with nothing and bet like crazy no matter what he holds. He loves to bluff and is probably very chatty and over-confident. Check your ego at the door when you find an aggressive-loose player at your poker game. Do not try to be the hero and call this person's bets just to expose their game. Do go at them strong when you have the cards to do so.

Tight

A tight player is the polar opposite of the aggressive player. You'll find this person folding every hand, waiting for pocket Aces. When this person is in the game, you can bet he has something strong. Tight players are easy to bluff. They will usually fold at any sign of force. If they don't fold, however, beware.

Aggressive tight

Aggressive tight players are very dangerous. The aggressive tight player will patiently fold and fold again until he gets a respectable hand. When he does play, he plays his hand like a loose player. He knows how to get the most money for his good cards. He also knows how to sit back and let the rest of the table fight it out when his cards aren't so great. If you can steal an aggressive tight player's blinds, or bluff him out of a hand consider yourself lucky. Do your best not to let this player play you.

These are just a few basic general classifications of the type of player you will find at your online poker table. When you play poker, you play the personalities of your opponents more than you are playing your cards. Get to know these styles and learn to quickly identify who's who at your poker game.

Poker Hands: Starting Hands & Position

Starting poker hands in Texas Hold'em number a whopping 169 different possible combinations. There are 5 main types: a pair, connecting (consecutive), suited connector, gapped (non-consecutive), or suited gapped.

It's important to know the value of your cards with relation to your position in the round of betting. When you are in early position, you must only play good hands, as the knowledge of your opponent's actions is very limited. If your hand is mediocre and you call or bet in early position, you will most likely be forced out if any one of the players behind you chooses to bet.

There are some poker hands that are strong enough to play in early position. You can play your gut and take chances with less, but try to limit your early position hands to those indicated below.

Playable poker hands in early position:

• Pairs seven and higher
• Suited
• Aces with king through ten
• Jack with ten or nine
• Ten and nine
• Unsuited
• Aces with king through ten
• King with queen or jack

If you are in middle position (fifth, sixth, or seventh player to act) you can loosen up the starting cards you might call with. In this position it is more feasible to play smaller pairs and suited hands or unsuited connectors. In addition to the starting hands indicated in early position, you can play those indicated below.

Playable poker hands in middle position:

• Pairs five and six
• Suited
• Aces with nine through six
• Kings with nine
• Queens with nine or eight
• Jack with eight
• Ten with eight
• Nine with eight
• Unsuited
• King with ten
• Queen with jack or ten
• Jack with ten

When you are in late position (last or next-to-last) there is a much wider array of starting cards to play. Late position players have the advantage of seeing how every other player's action before making a move. Last position can play all combinations listed above and those listed below. It is not recommended to play poor cards just because of prime positioning if the pot has been raised significantly.

Playable poker hands in late position:

• Any pair
• Suited
• Aces with five through two
• Kings with eight through two
• Jack with seven
• Ten with seven
• Eight with seven
• Seven with six or five
• Six with five
• Five with four
• Unsuited
• King with nine
• Queen with nine
• Jack with nine or eight
• Ten with nine or eight
• Nine with eight or seven
• Eight with seven

By following the above guidelines you should be able to make the most of your starting poker hands.