Basic Texas Hold’em Poker Strategy
Poker is a game of skill and, although it is infused with an element of luck, the player can go a long way in improving the odds of the game by learning a basic strategy of the game upon which he will build as he advances in skill level.
Don’t be Afraid to Fold: Top poker players can tell you that they fold up to 80% of the time! The strategy involved here is to know that it is okay to fold and that it is better to land up losing a little money than a lot. Understand that you cannot win every game all of the time. Think long term. If you follow this strategy, you will see that in the end you will come out even and then start to win.
And Don’t be Afraid to Raise: If you have followed the strategy above and folded early, you will have enough chips to put into the pot when your hand is strong. In that case, the best strategy would be to raise – unless there are a lot of players at the table. In that case, you’d have to have an excellent hand and your best bet would be to fold on medium hands or less.
Learn to Read your Opponents: One of the best holdem strategies that players can adopt is to learn what their players are thinking by trying to get inside their heads. This type of strategy requires practice of course and the more you play poker, the more experienced you will become in figuring out what your opponent is going to do next, what you think hand consists of and how he may try to outsmart you!
And Learn to Bluff: If you manage to figure out what your opponent is thinking, you develop an advantage over his game. You can then use bluffing as a technique in order to throw him off your trail and make it difficult for him to guess what you are going to do next. A word of warning however: Bluffing takes practice and you need to gain enough experience in order for this strategy to work. An inexperienced bluffer is easy to spot and more seasoned players will have a field day on his attempts to use this strategy.
Understand Starting Hands: To win more hands in the long run, players need to understand the importance of starting hands. Essentially, these are good hands with which to continue in a game of poker and if players have bad starting hands, they should fold early on. Good starting hands in Texas Hold ‘em include Ace-King suit, Ace-King off suit, Ace-Queen suit and Ace-Queen off suit. Other good hands are pocket pairs of ten or higher. Good starting hands differ among poker variants and players should learn these as they switch from game to game.