Pre flop strategies

PRE-FLOP STRATEGIES |POKER

POSITION IS EVERYTHINGThe best poker players are almost always those whounderstand the primacy of position and how to use it totheir advantage. At its core, poker is a game ofincomplete information – you simply dont know whatcards the other players are holding, and your strategygoing forward will be based on calculated assumptions ofwhat cards or combinations your opponents possess, andrelated to that, how you deal with the hand youre dealt,so to speak.

POSITION IS EVERYTHINGA good pre-flop strategy helps you play in position,and a central point of the pre-flop action is thestrength of your own hand as well as the nature ofthe game that youre playing. Ask yourself howaggressive your opponents are currently.Sometimes, even with an ostensibly strong holecard pair, it may not always be profitable andrecommended to continue.

POSITION IS EVERYTHINGThere are lots of players who simply play from the handsof the blinds before they’re privy to the flop. Its not aterrible strategy, but its not necessarily applicable toevery hand. Its essential to keep a mental track of howyour opponents have bet in previous rounds and whereyou think theyre going in the present one. This is thecrucial psychological dimension of poker, and if usedeffectively it can help you gain a far more completepicture of the current round than a simple recourse toblind betting habits and your own two hole cards.

POSITION IS EVERYTHINGIf you believe that you are potentially in a strong positionin the opening round, it tends to be a good idea toraise/re-raise in the pre-flop rather than simply call. Inmost instances, if you call you are signifying a mediocreopening, or one in which you’re simply unsure of wherethe game will head. Remember: this is the position ofevery player at the poker table as no one has completeenough information to make a foolproof play. If they do,then they are simply cheating and all bets are off.

POSITION IS EVERYTHINGIf you believe your opener isnt worth the time and effort ofseeing the flop, or indeed of going beyond that, youreprobably better off folding.That being said, one of the keys to good poker play is to avoidbecomeing predictable. Then youre just fodder for the rest ofthe table, most of whom will quickly cotton on to the ideathat if and when you do raise or re-raise in the preflop stagethat youre fairly confident in your hand and they should takecareful note of your betting habits and bodily gestures.

POSITION IS EVERYTHINGFinally, remember this: its okay, sometimes, to just stayin the current round long enough to see what directionthe flop is taking you in. By all means, if you think there’spotential then you should absolutely move past the initialblinds stage and see what Lady Luck might have for you.This becomes harder, of course, as the blinds are raisedand the cost of an initial betting round become moresubstantial. Please feel free to distribute and republish this document providing that all links contained herein remain intact © CrazyVegas.com 2011

Pre flop strategies

by CrazyHarry Von Schlusselburgsgestaltmeier on Oct 18, 2011

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