| The Importance of Position |
| Let us suppose you are playing Texas Hold’em, sitting at
a $5/$10 table, and the first two cards have been dealt. You decide
that your hand is strong enough to make it worth $5 to see the
flop, and you call. Then the next two players fold, but the following
player raises. So, you look at you cards again and now decide that
it isn't worth $10 to see the flop – you begin to wish that
you had never placed the bet in the first place. |
| That’s how important table position can be. Had you already
known someone was going to raise, you’d have saved yourself
three dollars on that hand by immediately folding. Knowing what
your opponents are going to do makes a difference. So, the later
your position at the table, the more you will know about your opponent's
actions. |
| Early Position |
| A full Hold'em table is divided into three parts. The first three
players are said to be in ‘Early Position’. They must
act before most of their opponents. When you are acting first,
in early position, avoid playing marginal hands - here may be nine
more hands at the table to contend with. When you are in early
position limit yourself to playing premium hands only. |
| Middle Position |
| After the early positions, the next set of players at the table
are said to be in ‘Middle Position’. In this position
you will have seen some of your opponents act, and so have an idea
of what you are up against. If no one has raised, players in middle
position don’t have to limit themselves to just the premium
starting hands. Another advantage of middle position is that because
there are fewer players who have not acted, the chances that someone
will raise you are reduced. |
| Late Position |
| Unsurprisingly, the last set of players are said to be in Late
Position. In this position you will have had the advantage of seeing
most of your opponents already act. When you are the very last
player to act you will have the biggest advantage at the table.
You will have seen everyone act, and should you decide to call
a bet, there is no chance of someone raising you. Playering in
late position you can play a wider range of starting hands, because
you already know how many opponents you will be facing. |
| Positional Play |
As a general rule: Play very tightly in Early Position sticking
only to the strongest starting hands. In Middle Position, stick
to playing good starting hands, though they needn’t be
the very best, necessarily. In Late Position you can afford to
play
more loosely.
|
