Texas Hold 'Em Tip - Taking Control of the Hand
Today's Texas hold 'em tip is about how to take control of the hand you are currently playing in. Most professional poker players tell new players that they should play less hands when starting out to maximize their winning potential. This is only part of the story. Once you enter into the hand you have to know how to control it, when to bet, and when to fold. We'll be examining a variety of situations and betting patterns. Let's get started.
Most passive players, both loose and tight fall victim to this style of betting pattern. They raise pre-flop with a hand like Ace King, then bet regardless of what happens on the flop. For the tight player this bet comes out of both frustration and desperation as they've waited so patiently to finally pick up a hand and can't believe that they didn't catch or they're hoping no one else has anything and will just go away. The mindset of the loose passive player would be similar as they finally picked up a strong hand and are hoping their opponents still think they're playing a trash hand.
Now this action can backfire depending on what type of opponent you're up against. In some cases a strong player may have picked up on what cards you're holding and is now going to re-raise your bet to put you to the test. This leaves you with two options, move over the top of him and hope he either folds or you catch, or fold giving all the chips you just bet to the aggressor.
A better option here would be to base your play off of the types of opponents you currently have in the pot. If you have a loose aggressor in the hand your best option if you don't hit is simply to check as loose aggressors play such a variety of hands you may be losing at this point to a pair of threes. In the case of a tight aggressor in the hand, they may have a small pocket pair, trips, or are simply trying to bluff you out of the pot. Looking through previous hand histories should give you an idea of which three categories your tight aggressor currently fits into.
When it comes to chasing a straight or a flush most passive players fall into this style of play - call pre-flop, check-call the flop, check-call the turn, and either fold, check-call, or bet on the river depending on whether or not they hit. The river bet could also be applied to the turn bet if they hit on the turn, minus the fold. Now this style of betting pattern only gives you one option to really win the hand - you have to hit your draw or hold a stronger pair than your opponent. There really are no opportunities to try and take away the hand from your opponent, and a bluff on the river will result in an immediate call.
Instead of check-calling all the way to the river, you would be better off either betting on the flop or check-raising on the flop. Both betting strategies would put your opponent on the defensive in the hand as opposed to the offensive. At this point he would be left with two options - fold to your bet or check-raise or call. There is a third option of a re-raise, which would signal to you that there is no way a semi-bluff at the pot will work, which tells you exactly where you stand in relation to your opponents cards. Assuming your opponent doesn't re-raise your bet or check-raise he will be left wondering what exactly you're holding. If you originally check-raised the flop you should come out with a strong bet on the turn. Once again he's left to either call or fold to your bet. On the river, regardless of if you hit or not your actions throughout the hand dictate a strong hand, which means in most cases your opponent will fold his middle pair, draw, or whatever he was holding.
In some cases this Texas hold 'em tip won't work - if your opponent is new or is a calling station he'll continue to call along with you to the river. In this case you're increasing the pot size and if he doesn't hit you're looking at a nice pay day. If he does somehow catch, you've lost some chips, which is why I suggest playing against calling stations with slightly smaller bets than you would against someone who actually knows what they're doing. You could also be up against an opponent who loves to trap or slow-play. A quick glance through previous hand histories should tell you whether or not you're up against this type of opponent, in which case you know you shouldn't bet at them to keep their winnings small. The third case would consist of a tight passive player who is calling along with you. Tight passives are less inclined to bet, as they lack confidence in both their hand and playing ability. If a tight passive is calling along, you should probably stop betting.
Today's Texas hold 'em tip is about how to take control of the hand you are currently playing in. Most professional poker players tell new players that they should play less hands when starting out to maximize their winning potential. This is only part of the story. Once you enter into the hand you have to know how to control it, when to bet, and when to fold. We'll be examining a variety of situations and betting patterns. Let's get started.
Most passive players, both loose and tight fall victim to this style of betting pattern. They raise pre-flop with a hand like Ace King, then bet regardless of what happens on the flop. For the tight player this bet comes out of both frustration and desperation as they've waited so patiently to finally pick up a hand and can't believe that they didn't catch or they're hoping no one else has anything and will just go away. The mindset of the loose passive player would be similar as they finally picked up a strong hand and are hoping their opponents still think they're playing a trash hand.
Now this action can backfire depending on what type of opponent you're up against. In some cases a strong player may have picked up on what cards you're holding and is now going to re-raise your bet to put you to the test. This leaves you with two options, move over the top of him and hope he either folds or you catch, or fold giving all the chips you just bet to the aggressor.
A better option here would be to base your play off of the types of opponents you currently have in the pot. If you have a loose aggressor in the hand your best option if you don't hit is simply to check as loose aggressors play such a variety of hands you may be losing at this point to a pair of threes. In the case of a tight aggressor in the hand, they may have a small pocket pair, trips, or are simply trying to bluff you out of the pot. Looking through previous hand histories should give you an idea of which three categories your tight aggressor currently fits into.
When it comes to chasing a straight or a flush most passive players fall into this style of play - call pre-flop, check-call the flop, check-call the turn, and either fold, check-call, or bet on the river depending on whether or not they hit. The river bet could also be applied to the turn bet if they hit on the turn, minus the fold. Now this style of betting pattern only gives you one option to really win the hand - you have to hit your draw or hold a stronger pair than your opponent. There really are no opportunities to try and take away the hand from your opponent, and a bluff on the river will result in an immediate call.
Instead of check-calling all the way to the river, you would be better off either betting on the flop or check-raising on the flop. Both betting strategies would put your opponent on the defensive in the hand as opposed to the offensive. At this point he would be left with two options - fold to your bet or check-raise or call. There is a third option of a re-raise, which would signal to you that there is no way a semi-bluff at the pot will work, which tells you exactly where you stand in relation to your opponents cards. Assuming your opponent doesn't re-raise your bet or check-raise he will be left wondering what exactly you're holding. If you originally check-raised the flop you should come out with a strong bet on the turn. Once again he's left to either call or fold to your bet. On the river, regardless of if you hit or not your actions throughout the hand dictate a strong hand, which means in most cases your opponent will fold his middle pair, draw, or whatever he was holding.
In some cases this Texas hold 'em tip won't work - if your opponent is new or is a calling station he'll continue to call along with you to the river. In this case you're increasing the pot size and if he doesn't hit you're looking at a nice pay day. If he does somehow catch, you've lost some chips, which is why I suggest playing against calling stations with slightly smaller bets than you would against someone who actually knows what they're doing. You could also be up against an opponent who loves to trap or slow-play. A quick glance through previous hand histories should tell you whether or not you're up against this type of opponent, in which case you know you shouldn't bet at them to keep their winnings small. The third case would consist of a tight passive player who is calling along with you. Tight passives are less inclined to bet, as they lack confidence in both their hand and playing ability. If a tight passive is calling along, you should probably stop betting.
