Online No-Limit Texas Hold'em Poker for Beginners - Part 8

Playing the Blinds

In position 1 (SB), and position 2 (BB), you already have your money in on the hand. The ONLY advantage you get in the blinds is that pre-flop, you get to bet last. After that, it's a terrible place to be.

Generally speaking, you DON'T want to play from this position. But, it is a no-limit game we are talking about here, so anything can happen. When you are in the blinds, you DO get to see what everyone else does first. Sometimes, you actually get a decent hand.

If everyone just calls the big blind, you are pretty golden. This is actually pretty common in lower buy-in games. Most folks are afraid to bet their hands, and try to slow play too much. You know a decent player by if he bets his hand or not.

If it gets called around to you, and you are in position 1, you have a decision to make. First, you are already in for ½ a bet. From the small blind, it is a losing proposition, over time, to always call to the big blind. But, with a decent hand, why not?

Skalanski and Muldem (S&M) write that anything played from group 7 or lower is not advisable, and not to overplay it. If you have one of the top 84 hands, in the small blinds, you are quite lucky. Since no one raised, and you are in for ½ already, it may be a good idea to put in the other half.

If the blinds are low enough, say 10/15 or 15/30, I almost always put in the other ½ if that is all it will cost me. Regardless of what I have. You could get lucky. If the bb is 30, and you are already in for 15, and have roughly 800 chips, like at the start of a game, you are really only throwing in 2% of your stack. That is not much.

You need discipline though if you are going to play from the blinds. If you called, and have a lower grouping hand, say groups 5-8, and don't get a flush draw, trips, or two-pair, be prepared to fold it up. Even an open-ended straight draw isn't so good from here.

Generally speaking, from the blinds, you will want to check. If you have the top hands, group 1, and are in either of the blinds, by all means, play them accordingly. AA and KK don't play well with a bunch of people in. AK doesn't play to its strength unless it's against ONE other guy. Basically everything else you will want to limp in.

Since this is the ONLY time you will play last, and you have one of the top hands, you NEED to raise it. Play it just as you would from late position. If you were UTG, it would be advisable to just call with AA or KK, and hope someone else raised so you could call that, or re-raise.

But, from the blinds, you just raise with the group 1 hands.

If you limp in, with some bad hand, and hit your flop, it is up to you to bet it or check it. If you flop the nuts, ALWAYS check! If you have a pretty good hand, say two pair, I still always check. Check, check, check. This way, you "sort of" steal the button from the player on the button. If you check, whether you have a good hand, a draw, or even nothing, at least you get to see what everyone else does without committing any more chips.

Say it's early in the game, and everyone has about the same amount of chips. You'd hate to have, say A7 limped in, get an ace on the flop, and throw up 50 chips. Then as it goes around the board, and #5 re-raises to all-in over the top of you. I wouldn't advise going all-in with A7 at that point of the game. Odds are he was slowplaying AK, or hit 2 pair.

Either way, he most likely has a better kicker than your 7. So you fold it down, and are out 50 chips when you could have just as easily checked to see if nimrod #5 was coming out firing anyway.

Most good players know that amateurs raise while in the blinds. Tight players only raise in the blinds with the VERY top hands. If you've identified a player as a tight player, and he's raising from the blinds, if you don't have one of the top hands, something in group one or two, it'd probably be best to fold it up and watch.

Bluffing

Bluffing is an art. Only real fools flat-out bluff. For the most part, on the low buy-in SNG's, you will have to play everything real tight. Another disadvantage of the low buy-in SNG's is that most players are beginners and have a tendency to want to see your cards to "keep you honest". They will call down your bluff. The final disadvantage, when playing with beginners, is that they don't recognize the play you are putting on them. They don't know to fold, so they don't.

For the most part, on the low buy-in SNG's, don't bluff. With that said, here are some useful tips for bluffing.

Bluffing isn't just taking any old hand and trying to win with it. Some folks do this occasionally, and get away with it, but really, it's financial suicide. You WILL run into players, time and time again, that actually HAVE the hand you are trying to represent. This happens a lot with a full nine or ten-person table.

The key to bluffing is to represent possible winning hands. Bluffing is done most easily in position. It is also a lot easier to bluff at a short-handed (6 players or less) table. With less hands being dealt, less cards are actually out there.

A Bluffing Example:

You have Ten-Jack suited Diamonds in the 9th position. You raise the BB when it's your turn. The button folds, SB folds, BB calls and so do two others. Four hands are in to see the flop.

FLOP: 9d, 9s, 3c

You have basically missed the flop. You could catch running diamonds or suck out two cards to complete your straight. The first 3 players check, and now it's to you. What do you do?

Being that you raised pre-flop, the other players will assume you have something. They think you have a pair, or an Ace-something, or maybe even K-something. The pre-flop raise is the most likely reason everyone checked to you.

In this situation, I would bluff. It's not a major bluff. You could still suck out a straight or even a flush. But taking a raised pot on the flop, after missing the flop, is just good poker. You don't want the other players to catch something that helps them in this situation. By checking to you, they have shown weakness. You should capitalize now.

Could one of them be putting a play on you? Yes they could be. They may be waiting for a check-raise. Doyle Brunson teaches that you can't live in fear of the check-raise. If one of them actually has the 9, they will show you. Then you'll have to lay it down.

In this example, if it was early, and the blinds were 10/15, and you raised it to 45 chips, there would now be (45*4 +10) 190 chips in the pot. My bluff bet would most likely be 100 chips at this point. You could also bet the pot. I would then be hoping a 100-chip bet would drive the others off.

In this scenario, if someone calls, then you have some thinking to do. You tried to bluff at it and failed. If they called, I would guess they had the 9, or a pair of threes. Either way, you are pretty much done. But, you could still suck out a better hand in the case of the player holding the 9.

If you get a caller, then you had better hope the turn card helps you. Let's say you get a caller, the turn card comes 6h, no help. The caller checks to you. After such a terrible turn card, I'd be ready to call this hand quits. It would be very tough for me to commit any more chips to this pot. It would be very tough for me, at this point, to represent a hand that I tried, and failed to represent at the flop. I would probably just check it in, fold to a raise.

Say you get a caller, and the turn comes Qh. You've lost the flush possibility, but have an outside straight shot. The other player once again checks to you. In this case, I raise again, only larger, trying to drive the other player out. It'd be nice if the straight hits, but I really DON'T want to see the river card. In this situation though, after getting a caller, I would assume he has the 9. If the river doesn't help me, I wouldn't put any more chips in.

Almost nobody lays down a REAL three of a kind unless a very obvious straight or flush is on the board. If you get the straight with the river, you can try to break him. If not, pay him off and don't commit any more chips.

Okay, same situation, same hand, only you are in the BB. The button raised (just twice the BB this time), and you called with your 10-Jd. There are two other players behind you. The flop came 9-9-3 as before.

You check the flop. It goes around and the button checks. Lets say this time; a 6h falls on the turn. It is at this point; I would try to steal the pot. Since everyone showed weakness, it's time to take some initiative. You are in a VERY bad position, so all you will get at this pot is this one STAB. Better make it good.

I would bet the size of the pot or so, if I could afford it. Because of your position, if anyone calls, you are done, and if anyone raises behind you, you also have to fold. Hopefully, you will take down the pot. What betting out of the blind does is force everyone behind you to see if the pot is worth it to keep playing.

It is better to win a small pot than lose a large one.

As you can see, bluffing is taking advantage of fears and using your position. Generally, if it's checked to you twice, you have to bet. Sure you may have nothing, but odds are, your opponents don't have anything either if they are checking.

Bad players, generally speaking, bet BIG when they are bluffing and conservatively if they have something. Watch out for this. This is why I recommend always betting pretty big, ESPECIALLY if you think you have something! Big betting is the only way to win a big pot.

I am not the world's greatest bluffer. I DO know WHEN to bluff. With the anonymity of the Internet, everyone has a great poker face. Betting your position, regardless of what cards you actually have, is what bluffing is all about. You can "feel" when the other players just want to give you the pot.

Try bluffing only after playing for a while. On the lower buy-in SNG's, a lot of folks just won't lay down their cards. At a full table, somebody usually has "it". It takes some guts, but it's a good skill to have.

Lastly, in the above situation, if my hand was 9-8 diamonds, played the same way, I would probably bet it the exact same way. That is the key, to bet the hand as if you have the hand.

If I am on the button, same situation, and I bet my 100 at the pot of 190 and everybody folds, you HAVE to show that you had the nine. At least early on. It is a GREAT label to have as being a player who bets big when he has a hand. The next time you raise, on a bluff, you can expect similar results. Fold, fold, and fold.

If you are having a tough time getting any action, as you are betting big on your good hands and folks just fold not letting you realize your hand's worth, you may want to show down a bluff bet. Either by someone calling you, or HOPEFULLY, winning the hand and showing the bluff cards. By doing this, you WON'T be able to bluff at that table anymore. BUT, you can expect some callers the next time you have a good hand.

I have more about bluffing in the "Super System" chapter of the book.

Bad Beats

Bad beats, as I define it, is taking a winning hand and losing with it. Bad beats are no fun, but happen a lot more than the statistics say they should. The hardest part about bad beats is recovering from them.

Good Poker players will suffer MORE than their share of bad beats because good poker players are playing hands that are in the lead more than other players. If you can, you can look at a bad beat as a good thing. It means you were playing the hand correctly and had an advantage going into the showdown. THEY had to beat YOU. If the percentages work out, you win that percentage of the time.

Unfortunately, knowing you HAD the better hand and losing anyway doesn't do any good to your bankroll or chip count. Bad beats are just a necessary evil of Poker. Deal with it, and move on.

Yeah, I can't do it either. Bad beats tear me up more than just about anything because I DO know all the statistics. I know the supposed "percentages" of the other player catching a card. And most of the time that percentage is very low.

Here's some advice.

Do NOT get worked up because someone hit an outside straight or a flush against you on the river. As far as percentages go, those are "good" percentages with one card to come. Right around 17-19%. Almost one in five.

Do NOT get worked up if a guy with a pocket pair gets his trips on the flop and ends up with a full house to beat your straight or flush. All that has to happen is ANY of the other 4 cards (or 5, 4 of a kind) pairs on the board. You CAN get a bit peeved if he hits his pocket-pair trips for a boat on the river.

Do NOT think it is a "bad beat" if you are all-in against someone pre-flop and get beat. A bad beat doesn't happen until the river card. Just because you are taking your AA vs. his 7-2os pre-flop, don't expect to win. Realistically, in that situation, there are only 2 cards that will help you in the entire deck. If he pairs, and catches his trips or two-pair on the river, then THAT is a bad beat.

Pre-flop showdowns have WAY too many variables to try to predict what will happen. Just hope for the best, and don't take them too seriously. Unless you are beat on the river card.

The real "Bad Beats" are the 4% draws against you on the river. These just tear me up. These bad beats have cost me a few hundred dollars, and I really don't remember making any money getting a 4% draw to beat somebody. I'm just not in the "behind in the hand" situation very often.

How to Avoid Bad Beats

Bad beats are going to happen. The KEY is to NOT play on TILT after they do. If you are lucky enough to suffer a bad beat and STILL have chips left over, consider yourself blessed. Usually, one bad beat begets another, and soon you are out of chips and out of the game.

As was discussed earlier, the only true way to avoid bad beats is to play correctly. Playing correctly puts you in situations where you have the absolute best percentages to win. There is an old saying, "Always Be Raising" or "If you are going to call you may as well raise."

With those sayings in mind, a good player should ALWAYS raise the big blind pre-flop. Then only exception that I can think of is the late position limp-in where you are trying to see some cards for a minimum amount of chips.

In the better games, at the higher buy-ins, you don't get to limp-in. Someone seems to always raise. Raising pre-flop eliminates the marginal "fluke" hands that end up giving you a bad beat. You have to make the other players think, and make a decision. This starts with raising the big blind.

More often than not, to a significant raise, the big blind will fold. The big blind gets a FULL bet in before seeing what cards are dealt. The odds of anyone getting a Group 1-4 hand are 11.3%. So, a little more than 10% of the time the BB will have a "great" starting hand. The other 88.7% of the time they will have a "good" hand at BEST! If you have a playable hand, make them pay to play.

The other knock on the BB staying in the hand is that once they pay to stay in, they are rewarded with terrible position.

Perhaps even more importantly, YOU don't know what kind of hand they have because they put their money in blind. By raising the BB, you at least get SOME information about their hand. Without raising, the BB could have ANY two cards under there.

The BB has two strikes against it pre-flop. They put money in blind, and have terrible position. Raise the big blind. The big blind will give you more bad beats than anyone else. The small blind is second.

Another way to avoid bad beats is to eliminate other players from the hand pre-flop. A lot of times I will see the UTG player call the BB, as he should if he's got a playable hand. Then the next guy calls, then the next, and the next etc. If you are in 7th position or so, a lot of folks will just call, even though they have a hand that should be raised. The fear is getting re-raised.

With two or three players in ahead of you, odds are one of them has a hand they like. They may be waiting to re-raise the raiser. Who knows? YOU don't want to play in hands where there are 7 players seeing the flop. That is a recipe for a bad beat. The more players that are in, the more possible hands that could be out there.

If two or three players ahead of you have called the BB, and you have a good hand, RAISE IT. Sure, you may get re-raised as someone with bad position was just waiting for someone to jump on. That is a risk. But, this is a hand you WANTED to PLAY right? Now you are playing for a raised pot, and odds are, anyone caught in-between he and you are probably going to fold.

In the same situation, and you felt like you should raise, but are REALLY afraid of your hand being inferior if someone re-raises, then treat your hand as a limp-in. Just call the BB. Now, if you are treating your hand as a limp-in, what is the rule?

If you don't have a four card flush draw, two-pair, or trips, fold it up!

By treating your hand as a "limp-in", this is the rule your should live by when limping-in. Anything less, even though you are in the lead in the hand, could very easily result in a bad beat.

Bad beats are going to happen. Taking these simple steps helps you avoid the most common cause of bad beats. Don't play on tilt, raise the big blind, play limp-in hands only if you hit the flop.

Two years ago I took a bad beat where the guy needed running aces for the turn and river in a short-handed game. He got them, and it STILL burns me up thinking about it.