Online casino poker |
What to do preflop?Have you ever felt like all the preflop betting was driving you nuts? Did you ever feel like you were feeling your way around in the dark trying to catch something illusive? Well preflop betting can feel like that...unless you set yourself a few fixed things you will use as guideline in your preflop betting. First of all, let's take a look at the factors that may influence preflop betting: – The number of players at the table you play at is quite important. It is my experiance – and probably anyone who's played online poker can confirm – that the larger the number of players at a table the more likely it is for someone to come up with a perfect hand. Happened to me that I lost on a full house when there were lot's of players around, because obviusly the odds of somone getting a hand just that little bit better than your own increases with the number of players. – Table position: being early or late at the table has everything to do with how much of an influence one can exert on the size of the pot. – The style each player has. This here is important in determining how aggresive you are preflop ( and all through the game as well...) taking higher chances preflop will result in higher wins if the gamble pays out and in higher losses provided it doesn't. – The pocket cards that you hold. These guys will be your most precious lead as to the amount of chances it is reasonable for you to take preflop. If these cards are paired, it obviuosly radically improves your chances to a 2 pairs or a three of a kind, maybe even a full house. In that case that is what you should build your case on. – In case the cards are sequential ( 6-7, 7-8 etc..) then you get a shot at a straight and that's what you should be looking for in that case. Even if your cards are like 5-7 or 3-5 or other such gotshot combination the chances of you hitting a straight are still there. In order to help you evaluate your preflop pocket hands better, here are a few odds, how different pocket card combos will fair one against another. A high pair vs a lower pair obviously give an 80-20 percent advantage to the high pair. A pair going up against two high cards is about a 50-50 split maybe with a tiny edge for the pair in case the highcards are not suited. Odds like these can be given for pretty much every pocket hand combination, you'll eventually be able to figure them out on the go once you get enough experience under your belt. – The playing style of the other players around the table should also be a determining factor in how you establish your preflop startegy. If there's a notoriously loose and aggressive player raising the crap out of the table, you might consider dancing with him, but if a tight passive player raises you should think twice about what you do, chances are he has pocket aces. – The amount of chips you have left in your stack. This is a factor that will largely determine your own playing style. Why is that? Since poker is a game which only yields it's benefits of one can stick to the correct strategy for a longer period of time, it is imperative that you stay in the game. This is especially true for poker tournaments. Now, if your roll is smalland you're in danger of busting out you'll obviously play it a lot tighter than you normally would. If the stack you have in front of you is a big one you might decide to run it a bit looser then usually since you're in no immediate danger of being knocked out. Knowing these factors it'll be easier for you to decide how to approach that uncomfortable preflop situation in the future. |
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