Texas Holdem Poker

As you start to play more and more Texas Holdem you will realize that poker players tend to have there own language. If you don’t understand the terms and ethics of the game it will make it uncomfortable for you at the tables. Holdem players will make up there own language and some lingo is used commonly by all players. There are also some ethical things you need to understand in order to be successful at Texas Holdem poker tables. I will try and help you understand some of these ethical and poker languages.

Slow Play - Slow playing in Texas Holdem is when you make a hand and decide to “lay in the weeds” and hide the strength of your hand. By doing this you can allow your competitors to put money into pots with lesser hands, and sometimes can get more value for your hands. Caution when slow playing, you may allow the other players to catch up with you and they might beat you in the end. Basically slow playing is when you check with a great hand and allow your competitors to bet into you, and it is a common strategy in No Limit Texas Holdem.

Slow Role - Slow rolling is an ethical problem that exists in Texas Holdem. If you get called out for slow rolling, you are being criticized for showing up your opponents. Slow rolling is when the hand is over and you delay in flipping up your hole cards when you have a great hand, winning hand. Don’t do this, showing up your opponents will give you a negative image at the table. If you have the best hand, turn it up and let the players know that you won the pot, to avoid embarrassing your opponents. In my opinion slow rolling should be a penalty in Texas Holdem and I suggest no one should do it.

The Nuts – When you have the nuts, you have the best hand possible at that time. Making the nuts, will make Texas Holdem a lot easier, there is no better feeling then knowing you can’t be beat. The nuts can change on every street, you might have the nuts on the flop, but the turn could make it possible for someone else to have a better hand. An example : The community cards are Ad – Ah – 10d – 5d- Qd, What is the nuts? You would have the nuts if you had a King – Jack of diamonds for a Royal Flush.

Card Rush - Card Rushes are when every time you look down at your hand you seem to have a big cards. Card rushes can last for a few hands or on great days can last for hours.  Ride out these card rushes and make some money when you can. Don’t get married to your card rushes they will come to an end and there is such a thing as a negative card rush. A negative card rush is when you are getting big pre flop hands, but can never seem to make a hand. An example of negative card rushes are when you pick up pocket kings and raise and on the flop there is always an ace that beats you.

Family Pot – When all players at the table are playing in the same hand.

Limping In - Calling pre flop instead of folding or raising the big blind.

Rail Birds – A rail bird is a person watching the game and is usually used as a negative comment. A lot of times rail birds will make inappropriate comments and might effect the game when they have no business getting involved.

Sharks and Fish - These are terms that you will hear people called at a poker table. A fish is a person that is leaking money a weaker player that other players will pick on. Obviously the shark is a strong player who will feast on the fish at the table. Basically don’t be the fish, play in games where you are a Shark instead. If you get called one of these terms use it to your advantage and exploit the table image that you have created for yourself.

Under the Gun - When you are under the gun, you are the first person to act pre flop. This player will be to the left of the big blind and is commonly the worst position at a poker table. Playing under the gun can be tricky, but you can get control of the pot immediately if you raise.

Coolers and Cold Decks – These are ways to complain about the cards and your luck. If the deck is cold or you hit a cooler, it seems as if “the poker gods” are against you. You could be making big hands and losing or starting big and getting no where in the hand. An Example: You start the hand with pocket aces (Ad – Ah) and the flop comes Ac – 10c – Jh, perfect you flopped your set bet out and get one caller. The turn isn’t a problem a 5d, and you bet and get another call. When the river comes Kc you have hit your cooler now your opponent might have made a flush or straight and you are probably beat. This can have one of two effects, one it could just slow the action and you still win with the best hand. Two your opponent made there hand and you will be forced to make a decision at the showdown.

This is hardly scratching the surface of language you might hear at a Texas Holdem table. Of course there is the common language like call, check, raise and fold that you need to know if you want to play. Certain hands have names of there own you get the “dead mans hand” (A – 8), you can make a wheel (A-2-3-4-5) or you could get sucked out on. Learning some of these terms can make your time at the poker table more comfortable and show the other players that you know what you are doing.

Tournament Texas Holdem is a battle of attrition. Deep field tournaments are a grind that will test your mental game as well as your physical stamina. Most people don’t realize what a grind it is to play a full day of Texas Holdem Poker. It will drain you, and you will never know what it is like unless you sit at a table and play for 10 plus hours.

Recently the final table of the World Series of Poker Europe Main Event lasted 22 hours, almost an entire day of No Limit Holdem. Every hand could be your last, and one little mistake can cost you a lot of money. To survive in big tournaments you need to stay on point for long periods of time, you need to remain focused on the task at hand. You never know when you are going to get the hand that will either bust you, or propel you further into the event. I am going to try and set up a few things for you that will help you survive and make some money in deep fields.

Research - Before you put a large sum of money down to play in a big tournament you need to know what you are getting in to. Check out the blind structures, sometimes overlooked structures have a major impact on tournaments. Depends on what kind of Poker player you are, but for the most part the slower the blinds increase the better chance the best players will emerge in the end. Quicker blind structures will force you to gamble earlier in tournaments and might not allow you to play your game. With slower structures (ex. 1 hour blinds), you can take your time, get your reads and play the game that best fits you.

Another thing to research is the payout structures, how many players and how much money will be awarded. Once again it depends on what kind of player you are, some people like when the winner takes a large portion of the money, while others like a safer structure where more people will make a smaller amounts of money. You need to know yourself and pick the payout structures that will best fit your game. If you are a win or bust player, feel free go for the payout structure that will pay the winners 40% or more.

Patience - There is no need to gamble early on in Texas Holdem tournaments, especially when there are a lot of players. Take your time when you get started, feel out your table and set up a game plan that you think will help you win. I am not saying sit there and don’t play, I am saying you need to manage your risk and pick and choose your spots. As an example if you start a tournament with starting stakes of 20 000 and the blinds starting at 25 – 50, there is no reason for you to go broke early in the event. The only reason you should go broke in the first few blind levels is if you take a horrible beat (ex Royal vs Quads).

Once you feel comfortable with the game and you have a good plan it is time to exploit what you have learned. There will become a time when you need to gamble and the better reads and information you have the better chances that you make the right decision.

Stay Ahead of the Binds - The worst thing you can do in a Texas Holdem Tournament is get blinded out. No one wants to go down without a fight, and if the blinds are high in comparison to your stack, its time to gamble. A good rule of thumb is if you have 10 big blinds or less left in your stack, its time to find a hand a go with it. Even if you don’t get any action when shoving your stack in, stealing blinds can buy you some time to find the hand you truly want to get your money in with. If you are low on chips you need to force people to lay down decent hands and take your chances of coming up against a monster. Take advantage of position, if you have a chance to pick up loose pots do it.

Get Lucky - Can’t really control this, but to win big Holdem tournaments you will have to get lucky. Luck is a big part of poker tournaments, and you don’t get any it will be tough to come away with the title. In addition to that you need to stay composed when you get unlucky, and it will happen. Control your emotions, stay focused on your goals and do your best to avoid tilt.

It’s a Team Game? – There will be a point in all tournaments where eliminating players is the most important thing. You need to move yourself up the pay scale and this might mean that you need to give up some value in individual hands in order to bust another player. This might mean you need to check down, slow play and play some hands you usually wouldn’t. I have seen it many times, when a player doesn’t check down, and the all in player survives and busts that same player later in the tournament. Its not a team game, but sometimes helping others, in order to improve your chances to win is the best thing to do.

The draw of the big cash, the glory and respect is why people play big field tournaments. These events can be time consuming, and very frustrating, anyone who has ever finished “on the bubble” knows what I mean. If you do your research, be patient, stay ahead of the blinds and get lucky you might be the next big winner. Tournaments with big fields will test every aspect of your game, mental and physical. Don’t get discouraged you cannot expect to win every tournament you play in, play your best and give yourself a chance.

Texas Holdem is an easy game to learn, but hard to master. We have all sat a table with a player who embodies the idea that if you play a straight forward simple game you can win. Playing tight is when a player sits and waits until the cards come, it might seem like a tight player only plays pocket aces. A super tight player can be difficult to beat, but it isn’t that difficult to not let them beat you. Depending on what kind of player you are, there are a few different ways to combat the tight player. A tight player can fly under the radar and when your session is over you will be surprised that they won money. A lot of inexperienced players play tight, sometimes too tight and you need to take advantage of that. If you are playing an experienced player who is not seeing a lot of flops, it probably means they know how to extract money when they are in a hand. Be aware of an experienced solid player, they might just be setting up a table image in order to exploit you later in the Holdem session. They are multiple ways to play a super tight player, I will help you with a few suggestions.

Pick on Them - If you are at a table with a player who isn’t playing pots, a player who is just waiting for aces you need to force them to make decisions pre flop. Steal this players blinds, your cards don’t matter get in there, if they are super tight they will lay down. If you are playing with tight players you need to pick up all the loose money, in tight games you might be able to win pots with limited risk. Basically what your doing is forcing the tight player to play back at you, you are trying to get them off there game. Don’t fool yourself a experienced solid player will know you are just stabbing at pots, but if you don’t they will take the pot from you eventually.

If you have been picking on a tight Poker player, raising there blinds and stabbing at loose pots you need to be careful. Watch out for the slow play, don’t get carried away or be to confident. You can win all those small pots you want, one big pot you loose will make all that effort wasted. To become a good Texas Holdem player you need to manage your risk, don’t commit to much money into pots, make value bets and force players off there hands.

Play Against the Grain - If you are at a whole table of super tight solid players, you could always just do the opposite. Especially in cash games, playing against the grain can be a good way to win session to session. Basically what I am saying is if you are at a table full of extremely tight players, you can play extremely loose. Make the tight players pay to play, raise a lot, raise big and put the pressure on. By doing this you will frustrate your opponents and force them to change there games. Its important to remember that all good No Limit Holdem players hate being run over, and hate losing money without putting up a fight.

If you are going to play this way, you need to pay close attention to the table. Watch for players, who might flip and change styles to combat your aggressiveness. As I said before you can win all the small pots you want, but one big pot loss can make it all a waste of time. If you want to beat tight players, this can be the most fun way to do it. Poker players can get a lot of satisfaction from completely running over there opponents. Only play this style if you are comfortable with it, if you are uneasy playing this way the other players will notice and exploit you.

Don’t Play - I am not saying don’t play in the game, I am saying don’t get into pots with a player you know has a stellar hands. Basically a tight player wants to play very few pots, but when they do they want to play big ones. To combat this is easy, don’t get involved. A tight player who cannot extract money, becomes extremely easy to play against, its as if there is just a guy sitting there who has no effect on you. So fold to any raise from the tight player, unless you have a really big hand. If you are facing a raise from the tight player and you look down at that really big hand, say pocket aces, play back at them immediately. If they have raised you there is a good chance they have a big hand as well and you might get a chance to put all your money in with the best hand.

If you want to become a good Texas Holdem player, you need to know how to beat the tight player. If you are that tight player, you need realize the ways people are going to try and beat you. When playing Texas Holdem the main goal is to make money, and the easiest way to this is to frustrate you opponents. Take away your fellow players strengths, and force them to change there game. My suggestion is be a flexible player, tight one session and loose the next. Your game should be ever evolving, every time you play you will learn something new, a new way to extract money or better ways to bluff. If you have been leaking money to tight players try some of these tactics and I know your game will improve. One more time I will mention that if you win ten $5 pots ($50) and loose one $75 pot, stealing all those small pots will have been a waste. There is no perfect science to winning at Holdem, find a style and have fun playing the game

When I first started playing live Poker in 2006, one of the first people I befriended was a man that was an absolute master at working a short stack. I sat one night and watch this man navigate his way through a field of 301 and finish in 16th place. The event paid 27 spots. This may not sound very impressive, but there is one fact I left out. He was the short stack of the poker tournaments with about 40 players left. I watched him work a stack in such a way that he was able to survive and cash in this event.

Working a short stack is part luck and part well timed aggression. First, you must know the opponents at your table. Which are the players that you may be able to steal from? Who are the players that will call your bet with any two cards? Are there any chip leaders at your table? You want to try and pick on the players with middle to lower stacks if you can. A chip leader will take a chance to knock you out but someone middle or lower in chips may not risk hurting their stack.

First, when you are the short stack and you pick up a big hand, there is only one move, and that is all-in. Don’t set yourself up with a difficult decision after the flop. Put your opponent to the test now. Make them risk doubling you up. You are getting to the point where you almost have to move in with any two cards, so if you pick up a hand, get as much value for it as you can.

Next, if you are short and nearing desperation mode, if you are near the end of a level, sometimes it is wise to wait until the level change, especially if the antes go up. This will put more money into the pot pre-flop. Don’t do this if waiting will make your shove meaningless. I was in an event once where I had a reasonable hand to move in with on the last hand of the level but with the action, I chose to wait until the next level since the blinds and ante’s would be up. Since I was nowhere near the blinds, I could afford a few hands since the antes were not too bad. The first hand of the next level, I picked up a suited ace and moved in. I was called and actually doubled up, but because I waited a level, I picked up an additional 525 that I wouldn’t have had if I did not wait.

Also, you need to be the aggressor in the Pot Limit holdem. The example above I actually had a better ace the prior hand before I moved in, but there was multiple players in the pot. With this much action, it would be hard to guarantee a heads-up match for all my chips. You want to be the first person into the Pot Limit Texas Holdem or the first raiser. This allows you to at least apply some pressure.

When short stacked you need to make some moves in order to get some chips in the Poker Games. You will not always be successful and will be knocked out, but the times that you are successful will pay off and also help to build your image as a survivor.

It doesn’t matter how great of a Poker player that you are, eventually you will hit a downswing. Sometimes it is due to bad play and sometimes it is due to bad luck. Regardless of the reason, at some point in a poker player’s career they will hit a downswing and must learn some way to deal with it. Let’s discuss some things to do when you hit the inevitable downswing.

First, evaluate your Online Poker game. Look at different aspect and determine if there are any holes in your game that may be helping to prolong your losing streak. Are you bluffing in spots that you shouldn’t? Are you chasing hands without the proper odds? Start asking questions about every aspect of your game. You may even want to bring in the help of another player to talk about your game. If you are a regular online player, you may want to have them watch you play a session online and give you some feedback on what they see.

Next, tighten up your play at the tables. I know that it is usually bad to become a total rock, but sometimes that is what is needed in order to get back on track. Many Texas Holdem players don’t want to go to this approach because playing tight poker is very boring. Poker players want action. Action for the sake of action will prolong a losing streak. Show some discipline and rock up a bit.

Consider dropping a level. Ego is usually the big hindrance in most players taking this step. People are embarrassed to have to move down. They feel they are not as competent of a poker player or are worried what people will think. I would rather have people gossip about the fact that I had to move down a level as opposed to being the guy on the rail hoping someone will buy him into Poker Games.

Finally, when all else fails, sometime you have to walk away for a while. A poker buddy of mine that is a regular player on the poker circuit was having a bad run in 2006 and went for over 6 months without cashing in a single poker tournaments. Normally this would not be so bad except for the fact that he played in at least one tournament set a month. He was losing money hand over fist at the tables. Finally, he decided that he was going to leave. Not only did he leave the poker tables, he left the country. He took his family on vacation to Mexico. When my friend returned, the first two events he played in he won. The next event he played in he made the final table and finished third. In the span of 3 days, he made over $100,000.

Losing streaks happen to us all. While riding out the streak works many times, sometime further measures need to be taken in order to right the ship. Look at things objectively and you will eventually come up with the proper course of action to get back to the win column. Good luck to you at the tables.