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Texas holdem poker is the most popular card game in the
United States. It’s also hugely popular in Europe and other
countries. Omaha has a firm foothold in other countries, too,
but Texas holdem has a big following just about everywhere.

If you want to be a winning poker player, it’s almost a given
that you’ll need to learn at least the basics of Texas holdem
strategy. After all, you’ll be able to find more games (and more
weak players) at those tables than anywhere else.

Texas Poker Tips

Texas holdem strategy is a huge subject, too. We have
literally dozens of pages on various subtopics related to the
subject. Below we provide brief introductions to many of the
strategic concepts you need to understand. In almost every
instance, we link to a comprehensive page devoted to that
concept, too.

Low Limit Strategy vs High Limit Strategy

The strategies you use when playing for lower limits differ
from the correct strategies at higher limit games. As a general
rule—and make no mistake, there are exceptions—you’ll find more
unskilled players at the lower limits than you will at the
higher limits.

For one thing, it means that a more direct approach to the
game will often be rewarded. We can sum up this direct approach
in 2 sentence:

Get the hands. Then bet the hands.

What does that mean?

First of all, it means don’t bother trying to play second
rate hands. Don’t spend a lot of time trying to bluff. Unskilled
players have a hard time laying down hands, and bluffing only
works if your opponents are willing and able to fold.

Second, it means that when you do get good cards, start
putting your money into the table. Bet or raise. Don’t
cold-call. Don’t check. Get paid off for your hands.

Finally, keep in mind something called “the schooling
effect”. Lots of players at this level are calling stations.
This means that if you have a speculative hand, like suited
connectors, you can often get enough other players into the pot
to get paid off big when you hit a strong flop.

When you start playing in higher stakes games, you have to
get more creative in order to win. Skilled players are likely to
notice if you’re playing ABC poker, and they’ll be able to take
advantage of that. So you’ll have to learn how to mix it up.

Microlimit strategy is another aspect, too. The same
strategic concepts that apply to microlimit games, only more so.

Blind Play

It’s important to know how to play from the blinds. In fact,
the blinds are some of the most important positions in a Texas
holdem game. Correct blind strategy is a complicated subject,
too.

Here are some of the basics:

What most players concern themselves with is defending their
blinds. A situation that comes up often is that everyone will
fold before the action gets to the player before the blinds, and
you’ll wind up with some aggressive player who will raise into
you when you’re in the blinds. They might be holding nothing.

You’ll need to be paying attention to your opponents’
tendencies when deciding whether or not they’re just trying to
steal your blinds. It’s okay to fold when someone raises you in
the blind, especially if you have junk.

But it’s not okay to fold EVERY time someone raises your
blind.

Sometimes you need to call and then raise on the flop.

And sometimes you need to re-raise their raise before the
flop.

Some of this depends, too, on what cards you’re holding. If
you have a solid hand (like KK or AA), and someone raises into
your blind, don’t be afraid to try to get them all in.

In fact, premium hands almost play themselves in this
situation. As long as you avoid slow-playing, you’ll be fine.

It’s the more speculative opening hands, like low pairs and
suited connectors, where you have to start making decisions.

And the best guideline to making those decisions is your
knowledge of your opponents’ playing tendencies.

Playing Styles

If you’ve done ANY reading at all about playing styles in
Texas holdem, you’ll know that players are often categorized
according to how many hands they play and according to how often
they raise or bet.

Players who play a lot of hands are called “loose”, and
players who play only their best hands are called “tight”.
Players who bet and raise a lot are called
“aggressive”
Players who call and check a lot are called “passive”

Most experts agree that tight-aggressive play is the winning
formula, especially at lower levels. This means you should focus
on playing good hands, and betting and raising when you have
them.

You’ll also find plenty of players who do well with a
loose-aggressive style. They play a lot of hands, but they bet
and raise so often that they win a large number of pots without
a contest.

If you win enough smaller pots, you can use that money to
“freeroll” your way into hands where you have more speculative
holdings. This is an especially important strategy to think
about when you get into higher limit play.

Guide to Playing Styles

Odds and Probability

Understanding the odds and probability involved in Texas
holdem are a critical skill. The most important aspect of this
to understand has to do with comparing the odds of hitting your
“outs” and the pot odds being offered.

The first concept to understand is the concept of “outs”. An
“out” is a card that will complete your hand and give you the
winning hand.

Example:

You have 2 cards in your hand, both hearts. And the flop also
has 2 hearts on it. So you have 4 cards to a flush.

There are 13 hearts in a deck of cards. 4 of them are already
out there, so 9 of them are left in the deck. And there are 47
cards left in the deck.

Those 9 cards are your “outs”. Those cards will give you what
you need to have a winning hand. (Assuming that you have the top
flush at the showdown, anyway.)

You can compare those odds to the odds that the pot is
offering you to decide whether or not to call a bet.

In this case, the odds of hitting the hand you want are 9/47,
or about 1/5, or 4 to 1. But you get 2 chances at it.

Suppose there’s $100 in the pot, and it only costs you $10 to
call and stay in the pot. You’ll lose 4 times for every time you
win, but you’ll win 10 to 1 on the 5th time. Overall that’s a
profitable play.

Comparing pot odds to the odds of hitting your hand is just
one example of probability in action during a Texas holdem game.

Another factor expert players consider is how likely it is
that other players will fold. You have to take this into account
when making decisions, too.

If you’re playing against a super-tight opponent in the
blinds, and you estimate that there’s a 90% chance he’ll fold
against any raise, raising is almost always the correct play
there.

But you can’t estimate these kinds of odds unless you’re
playing close attention to your opponents’ playing tendencies.

Preflop and Postflop Playing Strategy in Texas Holdem

The first 2 cards you’re dealt in a hand of Texas holdem are
your hole cards. That’s considered your “preflop” hand, and you
need a strategy for how to play them. We’ve seen estimates that
suggest you can break even if you master preflop play, even if
you’re only an average player after the flop.

We mentioned a tight aggressive approach, earlier. This holds
especially true when playing before the flop. It’s also
important to take into account position when you’re playing
preflop.

It’s easy to find a lot of suggestions