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IT'S ALL ABOUT POSITION IN TEXAS HOLDEM POKER
Position is the most unmarked aspect of games like Texas Hold'em by novices. And that's a huge disgrace. It costs these people many pots.
Pro Tip
Your position at the table is based simply on your position in relation to the dealer. The dealer is at the most advantageous position, as he/she gets to see how all the other players at the table react before making their own decision. The chances of your hand being a winner increase as more and more people fold their hand.
Yes - if you have say KQs and are going up against 1 other player, your chances are not bad - but if you're going up against 8 or 9 others who feel they too have a hand worth betting - your KQs is not nearly so strong.
Now -if you are in an early position (standing for you are among the first who has to bet) then you have no idea how many card players will be playing this hand when it is time to bet or muck your pocket cards.
Conversly -if you are in a late position (meaning you are among the last to call) you not exclusively have the knowledge of who and how many opponents are in on this round - but if anyone has made aggressive bets.
If you are in a late position and hold an decent hand -say a small pair or a KJ -if everybody before you has mucked you have got a strong hand -but if everyone before you has called or raised – you know you've got a feeble hand.
As you see - this has little to do with your hand - but more the conditions in which they are played.
The person to the left of the dealer is not only the small blind (SB), but must act first after the flop. The player to the left of the small blind is the big blind (BB). This soul is already obligated to the game and is in another early position. The person to the left of the big blind acts first before board cards are dealt. This is frequently referred to as "living under the gun". The clockwise motion of play permits those who act afterwards (in late position) to be at an advantage. As a consequence, those in late position may play more powerless hands or "gambling hands" with little fear of financial obligation or deprivation.
The blind positions . . . and the player under the gun need to be very selective with their starting hand selections. They do not have the privilege of keeping an eye on other players wagering/raising before they must choose if they want to stay in themselves.
Professional Tip
For instance, lets assume you are under the gun (first off to act). You have Jack-Ten, unsuited. The player to bet after you raises, and everyone but you folds. Now you're in a hole.
Chances are good that this rounder has a better hand than you, with at least an ace or a pocket pair. Regrettably, you have already bet, since you had no estimate or no way to tell what other poker players at the table had in their pockets.
You will always . . . throughout the game, be acting before this opponent. This positional advantage will continue throughout this hand.
Professional Tip
Then again, being in the dealer’s position not only gives you the benefits of noticing how the other players are wagering, but it also gives you the opportunity to adjust the size of the pot. After all other players have bet, a raise by the player in the dealer’s position could potentially double the size of the pot (assuming no one folds). Since the participants have already committed to one bet, it is more facile to invest to a second (or a third or fourth!).
If you watched a poker table over a space of many hours, you would start out to discover that the winning hand tends to move around the table in a clockwise position. Long-term studies have shown that over time, the chips tend to move in that way.
Pro Tip
Why? Because your knowledge of the hand increments your probability of winning. The blinds and player ‘under the gun’ have the lowest knowledge. As the play moves around the table, each person gains more cognition about what the other players are doing. Are they in? Are they hesitating? Are they raising? Are they shutting down? The last poker player to bet has the supreme knowledge and hence the best position – they are in what is sometimes called the ‘hi-jack seat’. Knowing how money moves around a table can give you a sense of the importance of position at the table.
One of the little-understood benefits of last position at the table is that you get a lot of free cards likewise.
Another Professional Tip
When you acquire a free card, you are chartering a free ride. If nobody bets during a round, you get that chance at zero cost. That's what a free card is. Hunky-dory. A dominant concept of free cards is that you get lots more of them when you are last to act than when you're first to act. Even better, when you are last to act, you get control over whether or not you accept a free card. You can accept the opportunity, or you can fire and deny the same chance to your adversaries. Befriend players to your left; declare war on opponents to your right.
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