How to Win at Poker

Guest Post By Paul Westin

As you progress through the skill sets and learn how to play hold em poker, you want to continue to enrich your style to include some of the more advanced poker strategies. An exceptional poker strategy to learn is known as the Trap.

Trapping your opponent in Texas Hold’em is the process of doing exactly that, trapping them into a situation where they are forced to over-commit with a weaker hand and lose a sizable portion of their chips. Executing a perfect trap when you play Texas hold’em can easily propel you to a lead, especially in an online poker tournament.

The trap requires several situations to be in play in order to maximize your wins. These situations include the set-up, the weak play, and the takedown. When you play Texas hold’em, use the following guidelines and allow your opponent to easily fall prey to your trapping skills.

The Set-up

Usually when a new player begins to learn to play poker, they typically follow the same style that they are accustomed to as a player. In other words, you can set up your opponent by playing a strong hand pre-flop as though you are weak. For example if you have pocket 9’s and just limp into the pot, you are starting the set up of your trap.

In any hand that you get an opportunity to limp with, you should always keep in the back of your mind that a good trap would net you more chips than over playing a strong hand. Therefore, in many cases, when you choose to limp, do it with the hopes of trapping.

The Weak Play

When you play Texas hold’em, most players take a check as a sign of weakness. Therefore, if your pre-flop hand hits the board and produces a monster hand, this is your opportunity to allow your opponent to try and steal or make a play against you.

In the example above, your preflop hand is pocket 9’s, let us say the flop is K of diamonds, 4 of hearts and 9 of clubs. This is a perfect scenario for trapping. Check to your opponent hoping they will bet, and if they do as is common in Texas hold’em, you should just call.

On the turn, as long as no draws exist, play the same way and check hoping for a bigger bet from your opponent. However, if the board creates a situation where you may become victim to a suck out (a flush draw, straight draw, etc) you may want to raise your opponents bet here.

The Takedown

The takedown is the most rewarding part of the trap; you have convinced your opponent that you are weak just by smooth-calling the flop and the turn. The river card is where you can likely get the most action for your hand, especially if the river does not put out any hand that may cause your opponent to fold (like a straight or flush).

If you are first to act on the river, now would be a good time to make a value bet, usually ½ the pot up to 2/3 of the pot is good. If your opponent actually had a part of the flop or turn, they will likely call the value bet. If you are last to act after the river, you can make a lot more if your opponent bets out first. When they bet, make a value raise, about 2 and ½ times their bet or 2/3 of the pot whichever is greater.

If you play Texas hold’em with the skill of a pro, you will soon find you are getting deeper into tournaments and reaping greater cash rewards. Use the trap as your way to play Texas hold’em and win!

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Bluffing is usually the first move many new poker players learn when they start to play no limit Texas hold em poker. Although it can be an effective poker strategy to take down a pot, the technique of bluffing is actually a refined skill that when used properly can help you win Texas holdem tournaments.

The most important consideration when using a bluff in a Texas holdem tournament is to ensure that you are doing it at the right time, for the right reason, and with the right price. Failure to follow the best poker strategy when bluffing could easily result in disaster to your chip stack.

The Right Time

In no limit Texas hold em poker, especially online poker tournaments, timing is very important. Your bluff must be executed with the utmost care to protect you from losing and quickly being recognized as a bluffer. If others at the table witness your bluff, there is a very good chance that when you have a good hand, they may call you down, believing you are bluffing again and possibly suck out on you at the river.

Therefore, a bluff is likely to work when you have the right position in no limit Texas hold em poker, usually, last to act. If the board is practically a blank, with no draws and the action is checked to you, this is a good time to pull off a bluff. However, you must ensure that the players in the hand are not inclined to trap! If a player is known to be a trapper or check raiser, you may want to wait to make your move.

The Right Reason

The right reason to bluff in a Texas holdem tournament is crucial. Are you bluffing just because everyone checked to you, or are you bluffing because you KNOW your opponents will fold? Choosing to bluff when there are calling stations in the hand could be dangerous!

Make sure the reason you are bluffing (whether in an online poker tournament or live poker game) is because you know your opponents will fold. Keep mental notes (or live notes in an online poker tournament) on who is a calling station and who is a strong player that will fold to a bet. Having that little bit of information about your opponents can help you win plenty of pots and get you deeper in your Texas holdem tournament.

The Right Price

No limit Texas hold em poker is all about getting the right price. Remember that the game is about investing your chips to win more chips, and getting the proper return on your investment (ROI). Texas holdem tournaments are especially dependent on your ROI and the right price strategy.

If your bluff is going to put too much of your chips at risk, you need to reconsider if this time is the right time to make your move. In addition, in an online poker tournament as well as a cash game, many weaker players with shortstacks are apt to call in hopes of drawing out.

In a Texas holdem tournament, you must pay close attention to the chip stack of your opponent and know that if they have less than your bluff bet amount, they may call anyway out of desperation to win. On the other hand, if you have a big stack in the hand, he may call your bluff just because he has enough chips to do so.

Carefully plan out your bluff as you progress through your Texas holdem tournaments. The use of bluffing as a tool in your poker strategy arsenal should be used with care to protect your image and your chip stack. Make sure you use the right timing, the right reason to steal the pot, and that you are getting the right price with the minimal risk.

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Texas hold em poker games are the latest rage all over the world, and currently millions of people play poker for fun and money every day. The Texas hold em rules of the game are simple to learn, as this article will examine how to play Texas Holdem.

Texas hold em rules

The rules of Texas holdem are quite simple, each player is dealt two cards face down (your hole cards), starting with a dealer button assigned by the dealer. The first person after the dealer button is called the small blind and the next person is the big blind. Each of these players will post (pay into the pot) a bet assigned by the house or dealer. The small blind will post one half of the big blind. For example in a $1-$2 game the small blind is $1 and the big blind is $2.

PREFLOP (the deal before the flop is dealt)

The deal begins at the small blind and ends on the dealer button. The first person to act will be the one to the left of the big blind, (also called UTG or under the gun). If the UTG player wants to play his hand, he has to call the minimum bet of $2 (equal to the blind) or he may raise. In Texas hold em poker games that are no limit, any player may bet up to and including all their chips at any time. (This is called ‘all-in’)

Each player will act in turn by either calling the previous player’s bet, raising or folding until action comes back to the big blind. If there was no raise, the big blind may raise or check his option. When this round of betting has completed, the dealer will first ‘burn’ a card (turn it face down and put it out of play), then deal 3 cards face up. This is called the flop.

The FLOP (3 community cards)

The flop is part of a community board, wherein all players may use the community cards to ‘build’ their best 5-card hand. After the flop is dealt out, action begins on the small blind (or first person in the hand after the small blind). Each player will have an opportunity to check, bet, raise, or fold, until action reaches the button (or last player to act with cards).

The Turn (Burn & Turn)

After this round of betting, the dealer will burn another card and turn over a single card. This is called the turn. Again, action will begin with the first person after the button that has cards. Players may check, bet, raise, or fold in this round of betting. The 4 cards on the board, along with a player’s 2 hole cards may be used in any way to form the best 5-card hand combination.

The River

The final card dealt in Texas hold em poker games is the river card. The dealer will burn a final card and then place face up the final card, called the river card. The action will follow the same pattern as before, Players may check, bet fold, or raise. Once all betting is completed then players will turn over their cards to reveal the best 5-card hand combination from the 5 on the board and the two hole cards held by that player.

The player with the best hand wins the pot. The dealer button is then moved to the next player to the left and deal begins again from this point. These are the basic rules of Texas hold em poker games. Now that you have the basic Texas hold em rules down, move onto the best Texas holdem poker strategy to learn how to improve your game.