Good preflop play in Texas holdem is enough to make you a break-even
player if you master it, especially if you're an online player. A
few guidelines for learning how to play on the flop will make you a
profitable player, and the turn and the river become "just details".
This article is aimed at beginners and gives you something to think
about as it relates to selecting which starting hands you're
actually going to play.
Tight Play is Good Play
The first thing you need to know is that you're going to fold
before the flop a lot, possibly even as much as 4 out of 5 times or
more. (Even on the hands you'll play, you'll probably fold on the
flop as often as 2 out of 3 times.) By starting off playing only
good hands, you'll make more money in the long run, because you'll
have an advantage toward winning all the dead money that less
selective players have put in the pot.
Cold Calling Raises
You're cold calling when you flat call when someone else has
raised in front of you. 95% of the time, this is a mistake. If your
hand isn't good enough preflop to re-raise the raiser, then you
should probably fold. Generally, the only hands good enough for this
are premium pairs like jacks or better and AK and AQ, especially if
the latter two are suited.
If you've already limped in and someone behinds you raises, it's
often correct to call their raise though. This is not cold calling
since you already have money in the pot. Same principle when you're
in a blind; since you already have money in the pot, it's not cold
calling, and it's often the correct play.
Considering Position
In early position, you should only play strong hands, especially
if there are a lot of aggressive players behind you. (Aggressive
players raise a lot.) This is because you don't have a lot of
information about the cards the other players have. In middle and
late position, you can get away with playing some more speculative
hands because you get a better sense of what the other players'
might be holding because you get to see what kind of action they
take before you have to make a decisions.
Legitimate Starting Hands
There are 169 possible starting hands in Texas holdem. Only about
50 of those hands are profitable to play, and of those, not all of
them are profitable all of the time. Some of them are only
profitable in big pots with lots of callers.
Pocket Pairs
Pocket pairs are often overplayed by novice holdem players.
They're a good starting hand, yes, but the higher the cards, the
more powerful they become. Pocket aces and pocket kings are
the strongest starting hands you can get, and you should almost
always raise and/or re-raise when you have aces or kings.
Pocket tens, jacks, and queens are also terrific starting hands,
even though they're not the monsters that kings or aces are. You
should usually raise and re-raise with these unless the pot's
already been raised more than once, in which case you might either
raise or call.
Pocket seven's, eight's, and nine's are considered middle pairs,
and are usually pretty good hands, especially if you can get in
cheap with them. If you're in early position it's best to limp with
them, and if you're in late position, you can raise with these hands
if everyone else limped.
Pocket deuces through pocket sixes are considered small pairs,
and you should play these if you can get in the pot for 1 or 2 bets,
but not more than that. Your goal with these cards is to hit a set
on the flop and take down a big pot. A lot of times it's a good idea
to fold small pairs, especially in the face or multiple raisers.
Suited Hands
Suited cards that total 20 or 21 in blackjack terms are usually
pretty good starting hands. (You're looking for suited hands that
have an ace or king high usually.) You've got the possibility of
making a big flush or top pair with a flush draw with these hands.
They're often worth raising with preflop, especially if you have the
ace.
Suited cards that are adjacent in rank are speculative hands and
should be player a lot like small pairs. 7-8 suited has the
potential to make several kinds of straights, and the potential to
make a flush. But they only become profitable if there are a lot of
players and a lot of money in the pot, and you can get in cheap. And
the higher the ranks of the suited cards, the better your chances
are.
Another suited hand that's worth playing is big-little suited,
like Axs or Kxs. These are speculative hands, and should be played
the same as small pairs or suited connectors. See a flop cheap if
you can, and fold if the flop doesn't fit your hand well.
Unsuited Hands
The only unsuited hands you should be playing that aren't pairs
are high cards with an ace or a king high and a ten or another face
card. These are all speculative hands, and play best from late
position, getting in cheap, and hoping you hit a good flop.
Junk Starting Hands
Other hands not mentioned in one of the categories above are
basically junk, and should be thrown away unless you're in a blind
or you have a good bluffing situation. (Late position, no one coming
in before you, and the players behind you are tight and weak.)
The Race
Think of each hand of poker as a race, and your pocket cards
determine where you start. You only want to run in races where
you're ahead, and that's why tight starting hand requirements are so
important in Texas holdem.
You'll probably also be interested in reading my article about
Phil Hellmuth's suggestions for starting hands for no limit holdem.
The article about
David Sklansky's all-in or fold tournament strategy also lends
insight into thinking about poker starting hands. And understanding
starting hand strategy isn't enough; you also need to
learn how to calculate card odds and pot odds. And if you're a
beginner, and there's nothing wrong with that, you'll want to start
by memorizing the
poker hand rankings.
This page was last updated on January 5, 2006.
