Playability Of Pocket Cards And Importance Of Table Image In Texas Holdem
“Play only selective hands.” This should be the umpteenth time you are coming across this statement and the comical thing is that we forget this very often than not.
The commonest thing that happens with beginning players is that they play more hands than they actually should.
They play too many hands.
Per statistical data, only 1 in 4 hands dealt is worthy of being played, beginner players are excited about playing real money poker and they tend to play more hands and they are reluctant to fold when actually they must be doing it, because they think they will get a miracle card, which can change their fate in the table.
Miracle cards do not happen 99% of the time and there is no use in waiting until the river for the best hand.
You need to better understand that playing too many hands is not going to give you lot of winnings.
Quality really matters a lot when you are playing Texas holdem.
If you are not going to be selective about the kind of pockets you are getting dealt with then you will be losing more.
Therefore concentrate on the playable hands chart rather than playing too many hands.
• Recount on the worthiness of being heads up with the kind of hand you hold in your pocket.
• If you think you are already beaten, better fold! You will save the last few chips at least; however, if you still continue to wait for a dramatic change, that is not going to happen and that is the reality.
Deciding to stay with the kind of pockets you hold is one of the primary decisions involved with playing.
Though it is important to be in the table to eventually make a winning, it is not practical to play hands, which will eventually have you loose money in the long run.
You can classify the pockets you get as strong, medium and weak.
Strong hands are those which can be played until the showdown.
Medium hands are those which should be played with an improvement in the flop.
Rag hands are those which should be thrown right away. If you are a beginning player, play only strong hands and do not play the medium hands beyond flop if they do not improve, and the worse hands are to be just thrown away in the very beginning.
Getting to know your table image is very important.
Your table image is your position in the table.
If you are the dealer you are the last to act and if you are in the blinds you are in the early position.
• If in positions between the dealer and the blind you are in the middle position.
• If you are late to act, you have the extra advantage of learning what the other players are up to with the kind of pockets they hold before you actually start to play.
• If you are in the early position you better play with real good hands because you must be making most of your decisions with less information.
So, before you play your holdem hands consider the following:
• Playability of your pocket cards.
• Your table image.
• Fold if your hand is not worthy.