Texas Holdem Poker Tournament Strategy - Starting Hands
Welcome to the fifth in my Texas Holdem Poker Strategy Series, focusing on no limit Texas Holdem poker tournament play and associated strategies. In this article, we’ll examine starting hand decisions. It may seem obvious, but deciding which starting hands to play, and which ones to skip playing, is one of the most important Texas Holdem poker decisions you'll make. Deciding which starting hands to play begins by accounting for several factors: * Starting Hand "groups" (Sklansky made some good suggestions in his classic "Theory of Poker" book by David Sklansky) * Your table position * Number of players at the table * Chip position Sklansky originally proposed some Texas Holdem poker starting hand groups, which turned out to be very useful as general guidelines. Below you'll find a "modified" (enhanced) version of the Sklansky starting hands table. I adapted the original Sklansky tables, which were "too tight" and rigid for my liking, into a more playable approach that are used in the Poker Sidekick poker odds calculator. Here's the key to these starting hands: Groups 1 to 8: These are essentially the same scale as Sklansky originally proposed, although some hands have been shifted around to improve playability and there is no group 9. Group 30: These are now "questionable" hands, hands that should be played rarely, but can be reasonably played occasionally in order to mix things up and keep your opponents off balance. Loose players will play these a bit more often, tight players will rarely play them, experienced players will open with them only occasionally and randomly. The table below is the exact set of starting hands that Poker Sidekick uses when it calculates starting poker hands. If you use Poker Sidekick, it will tell you which group each starting hand is in (if you can't remember them), along with estimating the "relative strength" of each starting hand. You can just print this article and use it as a starting hand reference. Group 1: AA, KK, AKs Group 2: QQ, JJ, AK, AQs, AJs, KQs Group 3: TT, AQ, ATs, KJs, QJs, JTs Group 4: 99, 88, AJ, AT, KQ, KTs, QTs, J9s, T9s, 98s Group 5: 77, 66, A9s, A5s-A2s, K9s, KJ, KT, QJ, QT, Q9s, JT, QJ, T8s, 97s, 87s, 76s, 65s Group 6: 55, 44, 33, 22, K9, J9, 86s Group 7: T9, 98, 85s Group 8: Q9, J8, T8, 87, 76, 65 Group 30: A9s-A6s, A8-A2, K8-K2, K8-K2s, J8s, J7s, T7, 96s, 75s, 74s, 64s, 54s, 53s, 43s, 42s, 32s, 32 All other hands not shown (virtually unplayable). So, those are the enhanced Sklasky Texas Holdem poker starting hand tables. The later your position at the table (dealer is latest position, small blind is earliest), the more starting hands you should play. If you're on the dealer button, with a full table, play groups 1 thru 6. If you're in middle position, reduce play to groups 1 thru 3 (tight) and 4 (loose). In early position, reduce play to groups 1 (tight) or 1 thru 2 (loose). Of course, in the big blind, you get what you get. As the number of players drops into the 5 to 7 range, I recommend tightening up overall and playing far fewer, premium hands from the better positions (groups 1 - 2). This is a great time to forget about chasing flush and straight draws, which puts you at risk and wastes chips. As the number of players drops to 4, it's time to open up and play far more hands (groups 1 - 5), but carefully. At this stage, you're close to being in the money in a Texas Holdem poker tournament, so be extra careful. I'll often just protect my blinds, steal occasionally, and try to let the smaller stacks get blinded or knocked out (putting me into the money). If I'm one of the small stacks, well, then I'm forced to pick the best hand I can get and go all-in and hope to double-up. When the play is down to 3, it's time to avoid engaging with big stacks and hang on to see if we can land 2nd place, heads-up. I tend to tighten up a bit here, playing very similar to when there's just 3 players (avoiding confrontation unless I'm holding a pair or an Ace or a King, if possible). Once you're heads-up, well, that's a topic for a completely different article, but in general, it's time to become extraordinarily aggressive, raise a lot, and become "pushy". In tournaments, it's always important to keep track of your chips stack size relative to the blinds and everyone else's stacks. If you're short on chips, then play far fewer hands (tigher), and when you do get a good hand, extract as many chips as you can with it. If you're the big stack, well, you should avoid unnecessary confrontation, but use your big stack position to push everyone around and steal blinds occasionally as well - without risking too many chips in the process (the other players will be trying to use you to double-up, so be careful). Well, that's a quick overview of an improved set of starting hands and some general rules for adjusting starting hand play based upon game conditions throughout the tournament. Until next time, best of luck to you at the Texas Holdem poker tables! Rick Rick Braddy is an avid writer, Texas Holdem player and professional software developer and marketer for over 25 years. His websites and Texas Holdem poker software helps people become better Texas Holdem players. If you're a poker player, be sure to visit his Texas Holdem poker poker today and learn how you can play better Texas Holdem poker, too. |
Other Casino Game Articles
Stay Sane At The Casino You may have been playing at a table where everything appears to be going according to plan. All of a sudden, someone walks up to the table and does something so stupid it messes up the game for everyone.In these situations it is important to keep a cool head and concentrate on your own game. You may be unfortunate enough to play with som ...The Blackjack Tournaments In the past five years, one casino game that has become a very popular tournament game is blackjack, or “21.” This game is particularly big with younger gamblers, people in their twenties and thirties, who’ve learned that there is a way of playing blackjack, a certain strategy involved, which makes it somewhat a game of skill. In tournaments the ...Blackjack Doubling Down – Do It Correctly & Increase Your Bankroll As you are going to win less than half the hands you play at blackjack, you need to up your bet size on hands when you see the odds are in your favor.If you want to win at blackjack you will need to learn how to double down and up your bet when the odds are in your favor to win longer term.Lets look at doubling down in more detai ...Online Casinos Are Much Cleaner You have to admit, online casinos have such more appeal these days. With Avian Flu scares, SARS and other epidemics, who wouldn’t rather pull up a chair or flop down in a recliner at home?The appeal of Brick and Mortar casinos will forever be unmatched as a favourite pastime activity, but what about during flu season? Do you really want t ...Poker A Novice's Guide - 5 Card Draw The Basis Of Poker Games You wont find 5 card draw poker in the casino or online much as newer hybrid varieties are more popular.However 5 card draw is the basis of all the new games (including the poker found on video slots) So lets learn it here and you the basics covered, before you look at all the variations.Poker is actually a very simple game to pl ...Badugi Poker - An Introduction Badugi Poker is gaining ground like Texas Hold’em did in the beginning, but until the hysteria surrounding Hold’em dies down there isn’t much room for Badugi yet. If it was given a bit more coverage it would be interesting to see how everyone adapts to the online version of this game which is a favourite in Asia.The object of this poker g ...Playing in Poker Tournaments Playing poker online can be very fun and exciting and if you enjoy playing poker online you may also be interested in playing in poker tournaments that are offered online as well. Many poker websites offer poker tournaments for you to play in and they can be a great amount of fun while also winning you a good bit of money. Usually you will find ...Gambling for Fun With so much being talked about the problems of gambling addiction we have lost sight of the fact that gambling can actually be a fun way to past the time whether it's online card games like poker or going to the casino to play roulette or indulging in some sport betting on horses or your favourite football or basket ball team.That's it, ...Reach Your Goals - Make A Game Out Of It Make a game out of reaching your goalsGo to a yard sale and pick up a cheap board game, if you don't have any "throw away" games at home. Sit down and brainstorm a way to transform the game into goal-completion fun. Use contact paper to cover the old instructions or commands, and write in new ones with a permanent marke ...Be a Sharp Gambler The gambling world is full of people who just throw down hard earned money without thinking about what they are doing. Are you one of those people who will just go with the flow? If so, you are most likely a losing gambler or you are not winning as much money as you could be. There are three main factors that make up every successful gambler ...Overview of Online Casino Software The most common form of the online casino is obtaining downloadable software usually for free once the gambler surfs to any online casino on the internet. In fact, many sites offer the download as an automatic process to encourage gamblers to play for fun or money, besides bonuses and other incentives.An online casino offers as the main a ...Using An Online Gambling Site With today’s computers, you have two options for betting at an online casino. You can either play a Java game, which allows you to bet or play almost immediately. The second option is to download the software from the site and install it on your computer. This second method will provide you with better sound and sharper graphics. However, either ...Online Golf Games Hit the Mark Since the inception of the World Wide Web, online games have been popular. Enthusiasts have embraced everything from online gambling to the Sims and have spent hours playing games either alone or in virtual communities. Sports enthusiasts have carved out their own niche on the Web, with fantasy football and baseball leagues and all types of spor ...Online Football Betting Secrets: Knowing When NOT To Bet Sports Betting on the NFL and college football is a national pastime. Every week millions of dollars are bet on the home town favorites with local bookies. People bet even more money with online sports book agencies. Even the major news services publish all the betting stats.If you're going to bet money on games, you might as well be as i ...MIT Blackjack Team & a Huge Profit In any casino, the only game where the player can have and take advantage of the odds, is blackjack and the MIT blackjack team did just that with stunning results.MIT blackjack team & Beating the dealerIn the early 1960s when a university professor named Edward Thorp wrote his famous book ‘Beat the Dealer’ which featured a computer ...An Introduction to Slot Machines Slot machines are one of the most popular games to play at casinos. On any given night, expect most of the machines to be filled with eager players. They come in a variety of playing levels; some only cost five cents a play and others can cost as much as twenty dollars a play. Although slot machines are a gambling tool, many people are intimidat ...Casino Gambling in Moderation Going to the casino is something that can’t be done everyday. People have jobs and other obligations in life. When there is a chance to do so, the player should make the most of it without going too far.Winning is not that easy when the player is already on the table. This is truly something that doesn’t happen like in the movies where an ...Gambling Equipment Guide Gambling is popular amongst the young as well as the old. For many individuals gambling is a source of earning while for others it is a means to perfect entertainment. Today gambling is not just confined to the four walls of a casino. It has made its way to houses by virtue of computers (online gambling) and other gambling equipments. While many ...Free Internet Poker Are you looking for something fun to do in your free time? Do you have a computer and an Internet connection? Get online today and start playing free internet poker. Its fast paced, full of fun, and free!Free internet poker allows you to play the game with minimal risk and maximum fun. You can focus on improving your individual game, gett ...Craps Odds - Getting The Best Odds To Win! As craps is a game of real chance you need to focus on the bets that give you the best odds in craps to win.Craps Odds of success with the best bets are surprisingly good and you can play at almost even with the house, making craps odds on best bets, better than those in other games of chance such as roulette and slots.Let’s look a ...Poker Games 101 One game that has caught the fancy of casino goers in a short span of time is that of poker. Poker has become the most popular game of cards in any casino throughout the world. Huge stakes of wealth are won and lost in one deal in this game of cards. Developed after many refinements since the early invent of poker our modern poker finally rests ...Play Joker Poker Video Poker & Win! Play Joker Poker is a video slot game that is easy to play, has good winning odds, and with an extra card (the wild Joker) in play, your chances to win are increased even more.The game is fast paced if you wish, or slow if you prefer, its exciting and great fun and you can win big!This is what this article is all about playing joke ...Sports Wagering Odds The most important rule in online sports wagering odds could easily be to find value. A value line is worthless if the team doesn't have a substantial chance of winning that bet, but it wouldn't be a value bet in the first place if that was the case.Online sports wagering bettors and not just sports handicappers, so we understand the need ...The History of Red Dog Poker Whether as a means of divination or as a popular form of entertainment, each type of gambling has its own distinct and interesting history. The oldest form of gambling can be traced back to ancient humanity when dice was played using the bones and teeth of animals.Playing cards were found in the eleventh century, and many believe them to ...Texas Holdem Poker - Today The Texas Holdem poker phenomenon has taken the country by storm. There are reportedly over 100 million active poker players worldwide. Poker’s popularity is largely the byproduct of technology and several recent trends: 1) online gaming, where players engage and socialize in real-time over the Internet, and 2) the broad publicity created by hig ...Making Money as a Poker Player When a common person that never entered the world of true poker thinks of it, the last thoughts that will pass through his mind will be strategies and discipline. Common persons see poker as a game for the rich, cigars smoking and pool sitting men, that have nothing else to do with their money. The concept couldn’t be more misunderstood than it ...Play Blackjack Like a Pro Blackjack is known as the king of all games simply because it is the most popular casino game in the world. In part due to its popularity as well as because of its deceivingly simple play, blackjack is also the most researched game in the casino world. The complexity of the game is due in large part to the variability of probabilities in differ ...#52 Minnesota Golden Gophers Preview Spring practices are in the books and fall camps will be here before you know it so that means getting an early jump on the 2006 NCAA football season. Knowing the teams now will save you time in August and Matt Fargo is here to help you get a grasp of what to expect this upcoming year. We go from worst to first in this 2006 College Football Prev ...
|
