One of the more rewarding things to learn in poker as a beginner is the importance of position. Once you grasp this concept your time at the tables will be a lot more comfortable and very likely more profitable as well.
Why is position important?
Playing hands in position has a some great benefits. First of all, the other players in the hand act before you so you have more information to base your decisions on than your opponents.
Secondly your have more ability to control the action, take initiative and put in the last bet or check.
What this gives you is a much better chance to realise the equity of your hands as well as to push your opponents off their equity. Strong hands will be fairly easy to play both out of position and in position but marginal hands will be a lot easier to play in position due to the factors mentioned above. Because of this, bluffs will also work better in position.
Pick the right hands
Which hands you put in your pre-flop ranges will be key in putting yourself in the right spots post-flop. Generally look to play tighter from early positions as well as from the small blind and to some extent the big blind.
When you are playing a hand which you are likely to be playing out of position, you want to pick hands that are easy to play post flop. Avoid playing hands that will be difficult to get to showdown and choose hands that can either flop strong hands or make strong hands on later streets. This is generally pocket pairs, strong Broadway hands and suited connectors.
Now let’s look at some examples:
Example 1 – playing a marginal hand in position:
It’s folded to you on the button. You open to 2 big blinds (bb), the small blind folds and the big blind, whom you think is a fairly tight player, calls.
The flop is and your opponent checks to you.
In this spot it’s very unlikely you will be called by a worse ace if you bet. Versus a nine or a pocket pair between KK-TT you can’t expect to get more than one or possibly two bets called, and you can do this on later streets.
You also hold a backdoor flush draw and a straight draw so there is value for you in seeing the turn as some cards will increase the equity of your hand drastically, and if you bet the flop you risk getting check-raised by a stronger hand or a bluff/draw. At the same time you don’t need to bet to protect your hand as few turn cards are bad for you.
Therefore, you check the flop.
The turn is the making the board , giving you both a flush and a straight draw. Your opponent makes a 3/4 pot bet and you call since you have no reason to raise here as you will only get action against a better hand if your do.
The river is the making the board and your opponent checks.
Since you expect him to bet a flush on the river you go ahead and make a half pot value bet with your straight and get called by a set of nines.
This example should hopefully illustrate how you used position to realise the equity of your hand.
You:
• Checked behind with the worse hand on the flop
• Called the bet on the turn with a disguised hand and a spike in equity
• Used the information from your opponent’s river check to put in a nice value bet on the river
To make the importance of position even more clear, let’s imagine the positions are reversed.
Example 2: playing a marginal hand out of position
So a fairly tight player opens the button to two big blinds, small blind folds and you call the big blind with .
The flop is and you check. Your opponent bets 3/4 pot and you call.
On the turn the action repeats as you check-call a 3/4 pot bet expecting to be up against a strong range consisting mostly of flushes, two pairs and sets. You make the call since you have good equity against most hands and expect to get paid off by a worse flush on the river some of the time.
As the river completes the board you check and your opponent check behind.
In this case you:
• called a big bet on the flop with the worse hand
• called a big bet on the turn knowing you have the worse hand hoping to improve on the river
• had to check to river once your hand improved to the best hand allowing your opponent to check behind
Sure you can bet into your opponent on the river here but you will most often get called by a flush when doing so, which makes it an unfavourable option.
Playing against aggressive opponents
Position becomes even more important when you are up against aggressive opponents. This will allow you to play a much wider range of hands than you could out of position which is very desirable if one or more of your opponents are weak and aggressive.
Sitting in position on a weak player of any kind, passive or aggressive, tight or loose is a very good spot for you. It gives you the best chance to exploit their weaknesses and isolate these players to play more hands against you than any other player at the table.
So, if you are about to sit down at a table with only a few players, try to pick a seat directly on the left of a player you suspect to be aggressive or weak.
If you’ve ever played a session of blackjack, then you know the advantage that comes with being able to act second. It’s the main reason the house has an edge in the game, and if you make a priority to act second in poker – by having position – then you’ll enjoy a similar advantage.
Acting second is so important that position and stack sizes are the two most relevant factors in determining which hands you should play pre-flop. Players who make a habit of playing out of position are quickly punished; for many beginning players, it’s the single most-common leak in their game.
Being able to see what your opponent does first is one of the few pieces of telling information we have that helps define their range of holdings. For example, if a straight-forward opponent raises in early position, and then checks to you on an uncoordinated flop like Q-7-2, then you can likely eliminate the strongest and weakest holdings from his range because his combinations with top pair and better would likely bet for value, while his combinations with no pair would likely bet as a bluff. With just one street of information, we can make a relatively accurate assumption that he has something with moderate showdown value that doesn’t want to bloat the pot (perhaps a holding such as pocket tens or jacks).
As the hand continues, the power of your position becomes even more apparent. Take the turn for example, where it’s common to see the pre-flop raiser continue their aggression with a continuation bet on the flop, passive players will be more reluctant to fire again on the turn if they’re not confident in their holding. This is especially true when the most obvious draw on the board completes. Unless your opponent is holding the nuts (or creative enough to slow-play a relatively strong hand), you can infer that a check from your opponent means he’s concerned about the draw. In situations like these, it’s possible to turn a hand that’s behind his range – such as a small pair – into a bluff if you believe he’ll give you enough credit.
Of course, you can’t always be the one in position. Take the small-blind for example; any time you enter the pot you’ll be out of position, so you’ll need to mitigate the disadvantage whenever possible. In the event you’re facing a raise from middle or late position, you’ll often adjust by three-betting pre-flop so you’ll have the lead in the hand, and the opportunity to win by betting the flop when you don’t connect. This doesn’t mean you should always three-bet from the small blind – and if your opponent is weak it may be better to just call pre-flop and keep the pot small – but against capable opponents, it’s a major leak to be just calling often, particularly in heads-up pots. If you do just call, make sure it’s with hands that play well post-flop, such as suited Broadway holdings.
Check out this video clip to see the power of position in all of its glory.
“What do I want to do with my life?” I bet you have had that question rattling around in the dusty recesses of your mind for quite sometime right?
Let me guess.You don’t want a boss because you hate authority, you don’t want to work very hard… because… who does right?Getting dressed and leaving the home is not so much as a drag, but a complete write off in terms of costs, the thought of attending an interview scares you to death, and you don’t really know too much about anything, and everyone new in the world of business always starts out on the lowest rung on the ladder meaning lots of work for minimal pay.
Does that sound about right?
Well have you ever heard of online poker? We present you with nine online poker strategy tips from nine different people who had the same question swimming around in their head and found the solution to their troubles on their computer, tablet and mobile phone.
1. Volume
If you want to become great at anything then there needs to be the right blend of dedication, motivation, skill, willingness to learn from your mistakes and sheer volume.
Sam Grafton believes volume is one of the most important concepts any new online poker player should grasp if they want to earn a decent wedge at the table.
“Volume is the key. If you look at all the best players: Phil Galfond, Chris Moorman, Chris Brammer – there was at least one point in their careers where they put in huge volume. Sadly there’s no substitute for hard work.” – Sam Grafton
2. Time Management
If you have ever played Football Manager, Tomb Raider or Resident Evil you will understand the power the video game has over your senses. Normal sensible people are dissolved into agoraphobic crazies as the game consumes their lives for months on end.
Surprisingly, this type of behaviour doesn’t necessarily bode well with those ‘other people’ who are crucial to your life – a point that Paul Zimbler believes is important to note if you want to make online poker an important part of your life.
“You need to play within your means and manage the time you spend playing wisely. It’s all about finding that right blend of work, rest and play.” – Paul Zimbler.
3. Routine
Have you ever heard of the phrase ‘familiarity breeds contempt?’
Well in online poker that phrase has been changed to ‘familiarity breeds cracking online poker players.’
I’m not talking about learning the game in a generic kind of way. Instead, I am talking about moving online poker into your life in a routine sort of way. Turn everyday into a ritual. Tell your brain to expect the expected and slowly but surely you will get into that pokercadian rhythm.
Super High Roller star Philipp Gruissem concurs.
“You need to prepare properly and get into a routine. It doesn’t matter if that routine means eating, sleeping, getting errands done, showering, turning your technological distractions off… whatever you need to get into gear and focus. I always make a bulletproof coffee mix for example.” – Philipp Gruissem.
4. Start Small
Always remember that the giant Oak that pulled the kids out of the window and ate them in Poltergeist started life as a tiny, innocent looking acorn.
Great achievements take time, something that John Eames knows only too well.
“If you are just starting out in the online poker world then play for tinier amounts than you might want to. The little monster in your head will be telling you to play higher, but if you do you will probably lose too much too quickly and give up. So if you deposit $20, don’t immediately play for $20, play for $2 or something similar, and give yourself a chance to gain experience,” – John Eames.
5. The Right Equipment
Everyone knows the importance of making sure your equipment is in good working order, but do you have the right equipment to start out with?
When you start out in the online poker world you probably have no idea that there are technological ways to improve your game. Something that Bodo Sbrzesny thinks is an important point to understand.
“Make sure that you experiment with your equipment until you find something you are comfortable with. Take your screen view for example. I play with a black table background layout and coloured cards for maximum overview. The card backside is bright and this helps me understand how many players are in the hand. I hide all other unimportant stuff like avatars which takes my focus away from the hand.” – Bodo Sbrzesny.
6. Never Play Tired
You will know within yourself that the best levels of performance you have delivered in any area of your life have come when you have been full of energy. It’s admirable to stay awake for 48-hrs at a stretch but not very advisable as Richard Trigg explains.
“You should never play when you are tired and I have learned this the hard way. I find when I am tired I start telling myself off and going on tilt. I also find that at the extreme I start to not care if I win or lose just because I want to go to bed. So stay sharp, prepare and make sure you are full of energy and focused when you play. “ – Richard Trigg.
7. The Right Mindset
The greatest thing about online poker is you can play it whenever you want, but this doesn’t mean that it’s a good idea to use it as a vehicle to blow off some steam after arguing with the dragon.
I will let Mathew Frankland explain…
“You should only play when you’re in a good frame of mind. You should never force yourself to play, and if you get this feeling then switch off and do something else. It’s so difficult to make decent folds when you are slouched down in your chair wishing you were on a desert island somewhere.” – Mathew Frankland.
8. Relax
The online poker-sphere can be an intimidating place for someone who is new to the game. There are so many bells, whistles, lights and colours that you could be forgiven you are at a fairground.
Take a deep breath and relax…
“The first time you play poker online can be intimidating. There are so many buttons to press and more exciting noises than a Vegas Casino! Just relax. Don’t try to play every pot, or bluff every hand. Patience is a virtue, the longer you’re initial deposit lasts you; the more experience you will get. The more experience you get; the higher your win rate. This comes ‘full circle’ enabling you to play more with your money, and hopefully win a bunch of Wonga!” – James Sudworth.
9. Pay Attention
Technology has become such an ingrained part of our life that your good lady can be forgiven for tweeting whilst you are on the nest.
It’s become a part of life to wake up and check your e-mail before kissing those that matter to you.
This can be a disaster for an online poker player as Matt Ashton explains.
“Pay attention. Every bit of information you can take in is very valuable for the learning process. Watching every bet and thinking why each person is doing what they’re doing is great for considering how to play your own hands in future and for getting reads for the present. I think too many players fail to use their downtime between hands to continue learning from others.” – Matt Ashton.
Pokergets a bad rap from time to time, but at the heart of all the begging, cheating and borrowing lies a game that continues to stand the test of time.
Why?
Because people absolutely love it.
Here are 9 reasons why you should be playing online poker instead of reading this load of old nonsense.
1. You Never Have to Leave Your Bed
Let’s be honest.
How many of you hate getting up in the morning?
How many of you feel like your eyelids are being ripped apart when the alarm drills into your earhole with the alacrity of a howling cat?
Online poker players don’t have to get out of bed. They don’t have an alarm clock. Half of them even sleep with their laptops (I’m not even joking). No need to move, no need to brush your teeth. None of that annoying crap. Just roll over, open up your little baby, log on and start registering.
2. People Become Your Slaves
With just one five-minute break per hour, online poker players don’t have time for trivial things such as cooking, eating or breathing. They are far too busy focusing on 24-tables to have time for any of that old nonsense.
So they hire own slaves.
For the young grinders this slave is your mother. She makes you food, brings you refreshments and some of them even feed you. For the middle-aged grinders they have their wives, husbands and children. The only people who are screwed in this regards are the single. Get a life.
3. It’s a Social Leveler
Life it pretty tough.
It doesn’t matter what our values are there is a societal hierarchy that puts each one of us into our place from a very young age. There are bullies and people who get bullied. There are extroverts and there are introverts. There are people who get chosen first to join the football team, and there are those that seemingly have their back glued to the gym wall.
It’s tough.
But it’s life.
Not in the online poker world. In this world you can be whomever you choose. Do you want to be The Rock from WWE wrestling? Go for it. Do you want to be Joffrey Baratheon from Game of Thrones? Why not. Do you want to be Beyoncé Knowles? Shake it girl.
Nobody can see you.
There is nothing to be embarrassed about.
4. Be a Chat Room Bully
Do you have arms like sticks? Can you see your ribs underneath your translucent skin? Did you get bullied as a child? Were you not tough enough?
The rules of engagement are different online. When the gloves come off it’s your fingers that do the damage – not your knuckles.
Do you think someone just played a hand like a fish? Tell them…. feel the exhilaration. Get it off your chest.
Be the chat room bully you have always wanted to be.
5. You Don’t Have to Get a Real Job
Online poker isn’t just a fun game to play; the very best can actually earn some money… real money.
Imagine being able to play poker for a living. It would mean you wouldn’t have to get a real job.
What better incentive is there than that?
6. No National Insurance or Tax
Ok… so this rule only applies in certain countries, but if you are living in one of those countries then BOOM!
There is a reason the rich and the famous bugger off to tax havens. They like to keep their hard earned cash. If you are living in a country that doesn’t tax poker winnings, and poker is your job, then is there any better feeling in the world?
This is why the UK has such a diverse culture. They are all online poker players.
7. You Can Blame Variance When You Are Crap
One of the beauties of the intricate mix of skill and luck in poker is the ability to tell lies.
When you know you are crap, and don’t want to harm your ego, just tell everyone that you are losing because of variance.
It works for me.
8. You Can Tell Everyone You Are Great When in Fact You are Just a Luckbox
The great thing about poker is in the short-term luck wears the crown.
This means you can be a complete and utter imbecile and still develop the belief that you are amazing. Some people even get so lucky that they develop careers spanning 30-years, never get any better, and still win enough money to keep up the charade that they actually know what they are doing.
9. You Don’t Have to Talk to Anyone
Let’s be honest here, we can count the people who we talk to, and are interesting, on one hand. How much time do you waste in work, or socially, listening to absolute nonsense about nonsense you just don’t care about?
Well if you play online poker you don’t have to talk to anyone and you can still earn a living.
It’s an age-old discussion in poker. What is the best way to succeed at the game we all love – playing live or grinding online? Well, many professional players mix both and are able to succeed across two very different disciplines. So how do you go from crushing dreams across the virtual felt to ousting live players without batting an eyelid? We’ll help you identify the areas you should focus on by highlighting the differences between online and live poker.
Speed of Play
The first major difference between playing online and sitting down in a bricks-and-mortar casino is the number of hands you’ll see during play. In an hour of playing poker at one online table, you’ll likely up to 100-120 hands. Even at a fast-paced table in a casino tournament, you’ll be lucky to see more than 40 hands in the same timeframe.
A frequent leak from online players is that after multi-tabling for 10 hours at home, adapting to the comparatively slow play at a live table will frustrate them. If this is you, make sure that you don’t get distracted by only have nine players to focus on, instead putting all your energy into working out which players demonstrate the strengths and weakness that you take advantage of online. If you’re predominantly a live specialist looking to add online success to your CV, make sure that you use the same game selection that you would face with two tournaments at opposite ends of the country to choose from. Working out what is the best game for you to play online and where you have the biggest edge is vital.
Location, Location, Location
It can be a thrilling experience to win around $25,000 by taking down the $150K Guaranteed in your favourite pair of jogging bottoms and hoodie. But winning live trophies often gives a good player great promotion, with headlines, news articles and that classic trophy photograph projecting a player from solid to spectacular, potential pro to badged-up ambassador. It really can happen very quickly, so the advantages of dueling it out in the live arena are plenty. However, there’s no better way to analyse your own game and iron out weaknesses along with building a bankroll to cope with the live elements than by putting in the hours online. Your profit margin can be grown with volume to build up a stash of fund that is able to cope with the travel expenses that joining the live circuit demands.
It isn’t just the financial and recognition areas in which there are massive differences between the online lifestyle and the live tour. There is a social element to getting dressed up and meeting your poker friends face-to-face that no amount of social media, video communication or mobile phone calls at 3am can replicate. It’s fun to put faces to names rather than online avatars to chat box banter, so don’t be afraid of breaking up a successful online career with time outside, if only for the natural light your poker face probably craves! Likewise, playing in casinos every day would be demanding to even the most gregarious of party animals, and online poker can become a source of fun as well as finance. There is a therapeutic feeling behind many of the processes behind online success, so embrace it!
Two’s Company, Three’s a Live Table
One thing you see a lot more of at a live game is opponents. Not in terms of numbers, as the opposite is true with online tournaments getting thousands of runners, but in pots themselves. Many more pots go multi-way at a live table as opposed to online, where you’ll frequently be heads-up to the flop or even pre-flop with all-in and call situations before a community card is dealt much more common. This may mean that you need to modify your tactics as a consequence. Live games are much easier to get involved in pots for less and there is less pressure to raise than online. You’re also less likely to be ‘squeezed’ when you’re eyeballing your enemy, and can exercise more control multi-way than you would be able to online. If you’re at the mercy of a digital deal against a sole opponent, then factor in their range and learn to multi-table to give yourself the best chance of a comparable edge.
Attack vs Defence
Live and online players are very different, and using this to your advantage can not only win you plenty of money, but also make your experience a more enjoyable one. Live players are typically a little looser than online players at much lower buy-in levels, so take advantage of loose/passive types by ramping up aggression when it matters. Online, players are tighter and more aggressive. They also mix up their ranges better in general than live players; put simply, if you identify a player as loose live who has a certain range, that’s probably how they’ll stay until either you or they leave the table. Online, players can switch it up easier – they haven’t got to look into anyone’s doubting eyes while they do it and can disguise without giving away physical tells. Online players will normally be more discerning about when they commit all-in for 50-100 big blinds whereas a top pair, top kicker can be enough for many inexperienced live players.
There is a famous example of an older live player once claiming that a young player should show him more respect because he had ‘played more hands than him’ by playing the game for over twenty years. The truth is, as the youngster was only too happy to point out, the sheer volume of hands you can rack up online proves that statement to be wrong more often than not.
Be careful about how you identify players live and online on this basis, and never assume anything 100%. Before long, you’ll be mixing it with the best!
to 2 big blinds (bb), the small blind folds and the big blind, whom you think is a fairly tight player, calls.
and your opponent checks to you.
making the board 
making the board 