After years of play, the masters of the most popular poker game
in the world, Texas Holdem, have honed their skills at bluffing,
strategy, slow playing and reading other players. But the one thing
it doesn’t take an expert to know is that the pocket cards
in Holdem hold all the power.
This is the period of the game in which the most important decisions
are made. You have to evaluate position; whether the game is loose
or tight; the skill level of your opponents; and the number of players
who have already called. All of these components, along with those
two cards face down in front of you, will determine whether you
get in or get out.
Since five of the seven cards dealt in Holdem are community cards,
the game is all about what you have in the hole, not all about chasing
pairs. The reason is, if you improve, your adversary usually may
too. If you don’t consistently begin with higher cards than
your adversaries, no matter how many years you’ve put in at
the tables, you will not come out a winner.
If you draw pocket pairs, where odds run 16-1, consider yourself
lucky, and in good position to grab the pot. But you still have
to know how to play them correctly, whether you’re sitting
with a pair or deuces or a monster pair of aces.
High Pairs
Pocket Aces - There is a large advantage with this pair. You have
a huge advantage with this pair, and the first thing that should
go across your mind is maximum profit. However, don’t get
greedy and scare away the entire table away. You want at least two
to three callers left to pluck before the flop. Anymore callers
than that and something strange might occur by the time the river
comes up. In other words, a big pair plays well against a five-player
table, However loses steam to a 10-player table.
Second to aces, of course, are pocket kings, which are almost as
powerful. Your main concern here is letting in drawing hands with
a suited A-X. You’re still coming from a strong position because
an ace will flop only once every eight hands.
A pair of queens is nervous time. You have the confidence of a
monster hand, But the trepidation of getting hit with a king or
ace overcard, a card that opponents may more than likely play. Jacks
can be played like queens, hitting the table with a big raise, betting
on the flop, then hoping everyone folds.
Low Pairs
It is important to understand the value of small pocket pairs.
These hands fall under the category of playing well with very few
(heads-up) or several (6 or more) other players. Once you do decide
to play a small pair, your ultimate goal is to flop three-of-a-kind,
also known as a set. If you have 5-5 and the flop doesn’t
produce the third 5, begin thinking of an exit strategy. So, you
need to think economy class when getting to the flop, playing your
small pair as cheaply as possible. The cost to see the flop with
a small pair should be no more than a single blind bet. And since
it’s rare that a set will be beaten by a higher set, having
two’s in your pocket is only slightly worse than a set of
nine’s. As with any hand, your position makes a difference
on how to play a low pair as well. Since they’re not solid
raise material, early position hurts. Middle is OK in a loose game
and, if you’re aggressive, a raise if you’re near the
button.
The most important advice when playing pocket pairs? "Never
marry small pocket pairs." This means you must be ready to
fold if you do not make a set on the flop.
It seems like it's ladies night in the Nightly Turbo tonight. We're bringing you the hottest girls of poker as decided by Maxim magazine and a ladies club promotion brought to you by PokerStars. Ok, we won't single out the ladies, there's news...
It's been a busy week in poker, with Annie Duke winning the NBC Heads-Up Poker Championship this past weekend, and a major robbery taking place at the PokerStars.net European Poker Tour Berlin. Both topics were on the minds of our readers, and we...
On Tuesday morning, another 196 players bought into the World Poker Tour Bay 101 Shooting Star, creating a field 332 players strong. Among the Day 1b starters were 25 namesake “Shooting Star” bounty players whose knockouts were worth $5,000...
The PokerStars $2,000 cash freerolls are running through April.
Just sign up for a PokerStars account through PokerNews and earn at least 150 VPPs in March to receive a ticket which can be used to register for the $2,000 freeroll of their...
The PartyPoker Women's World Open IV has just confirmed a few players, the Ladbrokes Poker Team has just signed its newest member, and more, all in tonight's Nightly Turbo.
Full Tilt Poker hosted some huge action this weekend, largely driven by the presence of everyone’s favorite online poker punching bag “Isildur1.” There were epic heads-up matches, swingy six-max games, and as many as eight tables of $300/$600...
The unique format of the World Poker Tour Bay 101 Shooting Star makes it stand out from the tournament crowd during this blossoming springtime poker season. Day 1a of the $10,000-buy-in event ran on Monday, and the Bay 101 Casino in San Jose...
Patrik Antonius capped off a miserable day at the online tables with another losing session in the "durrrr" Challenge, his tenth in their last eleven meetings. Antonius and Tom "durrrr" Dwan met for only a bit over an hour and 364 hands, but the...
Mainstream media coverage of the Bipartisan Tax Fairness and Simplification Act introduced in the Senate two weeks ago often didn't even mention the bill's clause to license and regulate Internet poker.
This might seem like a slight to the...
PokerNews is bringing you $500 cash freerolls at Carbon Poker every Wednesday through May.
There are no minimum deposits or point requirements to qualify. All you have to do is sign up for a Carbon Poker account through PokerNews. The freeroll...
