Texas Hold’em Poker Strategies

Poker is fun to learn but takes regular practice and a never-ending improvement of strategies to master. As you play through various levels of this game, you will discover new playing styles and develop unique tactics to deploy in various gameplay situations. In this section, we bring you the crucial Texas Hold’em poker strategies and styles of gameplay that you can implement to beat your opponent while playing live poker games or online poker tournaments.

The Best 5 Texas Holdem Poker Strategy

Here are the best texas holdem poker tips:

Pick the Right Starting Hands

Your starting hand, as is your position on the table, is essential in the poker game. The closer you are to the button, the more hands you will play. Also, if there are more players, you need strong hands to win; in contrast, you can bluff more if there are fewer players.

Selecting the right starting hand is important, but you should also consider how that hand can help you win.

Bet Sizing with Confidence

The betting strategy is the second most important rule or strategy in Texas Holdem. Here’s the betting strategy according to different levels in the games:

• Pre-Flop: The ideal is to stick to the standard table raise, 2.5xBB. Raising an unusual amount in the pre-flop can confuse opponents and may backfire.
• Flop: If raised in the pre-fop, you can use a C-bet of 50-70% of the pot.
• Bluffing: When bluffing, it is advisable to avoid overbetting. You can try with smaller bets and achieve the same results.
• Value Bets: If you have a strong hand, bet enough to get paid without leaving money on the table.

No Limping

Avoid limping if you have a weak hand unless it is a cheap multi-way pot. Limping shows you have a weak hand, which aggressive players will try to exploit. Instead, try raising or folding. A good player raises when they are the first to act to take control of the hand. You can call, re-raise or fold if someone else has already raised based on your hand.

Why is limping bad?

• If you limp, players in the blind can easily see the flop. Instead of putting pressure on them, you let them stay in the game.
• Limping also shows that you have weak hands. It is better to fold.
• Since you allow opponents to stay in the game, you will face several opponents post-flop.
• If you limp and get a strong hand, getting value out of it is difficult. Also, a stronger hand will beat you if you get a mediocre hand.

Know When to Fold

Knowing when to fold saves time and money. If you know you have weak hands, try folding instead of bluffing, as bluffing can cost you a lot. Avoid chasing with weak hands and raising with marginal hands in a bad position.

Let’s say you are playing a cash game with ₹50/₹100 blinds, and you get a weak hand, say an Ace and a six, and you're a small blind.

A player raises ₹200, and you also want to call because you have an Ace. Now, if you call, there’s a possibility that you might lose, as weak Aces often lose to stronger hands. But, if you fold, you can save ₹200.

Understand Position

Along with cards, the position you are playing from is important. If you are playing from the last position, you have access to much information about the table and the opponent. You can play more hands and make better decisions. You can decide when to bluff, call, or bet.