Hold Em Strategy

When you get ready to sit down at a Texas Hold ‘em table in a casino, you have to be prepared. No excuses. And part of this is developing a strong before-the-flop strategy.

You general poker strategy may be different from mine. I prefer to play tight (aka safe) most of the time. I definitely recommend avoid taking too many risks before the flop where there are a large number of players at the table. Of course, the more people there are, the more likely it is someone else is going to have a better hidden hand that you. If you start throwing bluffs around like they’re souvenir dollar chips, you might get one or two people to bite every now and then, but you won’t get someone with a strong hand to fold all the time, and you’ll expose yourself rather quickly as a reckless player.

Also, the more legitimate competition you face once the flop comes, the less likely you are to ride your mediocre hand to a victory. So unless you’re really a pro, you hurt your own financial status by upping the pot too early without the cards to back it up. At that point, your best option is to cut your losses, fold and learn from your mistake.

As a beginning to the game, there’s nothing wrong with betting carefully. You’re likely going to find yourself hesitant to make large moves anyway, especially if you’re sitting early in the betting rotation. It comes back to how much risk you’re prepared to take. And being prepared is a hell of a lot better than making rash strategy-related decisions on the fly. You won’t be able to make a calculated decision if you constantly feel like you’re rushing or on the spot, and you’ll expose your anxiety quickly to anyone paying attention.

As you become more comfortable with the game, you’ll know yourself, and get a sense for how you want to play the hand before the flop. Are you that risk taker? Are you OK with putting up significant bets without always having the cards to back it up? This takes us down the road to the conversation of how much guts you need to be an affective bluffer, but that’s an article for a different time.