Jan 28

Are you tired of losing while playing Texas Holdem Poker online? When we play online poker we all expect to be big winners. We have all read the stories and have seen the online players go on to become big time Texas Hold'em Pokermoney winners in the biggest event of all – The World Series of Poker. Unfortunately, when most beginners start out they end up losing money. Then in an effort to win back what they have lost, they end up losing even more. So, how do you avoid becoming like most beginners? If you are in the midst of a big losing streak, how do you get to playing winning poker? Well…

The first thing that I would do is to completely analyze my game to find out what I am doing wrong. Ask yourself questions such as:

Am I playing way too many hands?

Am I paying attention to how the others at the table are betting?

Do I play aggressively? Passively?

Does my position at the table influence what I do at the poker table?

Am I playing at the correct limits for my skill level?

We are going to take a look at these questions one at a time. But beware; the answer to winning is in all of these. Don’t just take one of the suggestions and incorporate it. Use all of it. Why? Because it will work for you.

Am I playing way too many hands?

Simply put, you may be playing too many hands. Start by tightening up and playing only the absolute best hands. I would recommend that you only play AA, KK, A-K, QQ. Then when you start to win with these hands slowly introduce other hands into your game. Add JJ first. When you are successful with JJ then add 10-10 and so on.

Am I paying attention to how the others at the table are betting?

The answer here is simple. Pay attention. Does your opponent in seat #1 always bet no matter what they have? Are they super tight and only play the best hands? Do they just call? A lot can be learned about what types of players are at the table and what type of hands they may have just by simple observation.

Do I play aggressively? Passively?

Aggression is rewarded in Texas Holdem Poker. Being a passive player and only calling bets usually means that you are being a generous donor to the others at the table. Playing aggressively does not mean playing every hand and betting. It means playing the best hands and playing them aggressively. Typically a bet will force opponents with weak hands to fold. You don’t want players hanging around to see a flop for free. Don’t give them the opportunity to connect with it and beat your hand. The fewer the number of players in the hand the greater the value of your already powerful hand.

Does my position at the table influence what I do at the poker table?

Beware of your position at the table. When you are seated in late position you have the advantage of seeing how the others act. If you are seated in early position you have no information on how your opponent has acted and how strong their hand may be. I’d recommend playing hands cautiously in early position.

Am I playing at the correct limits for my skill level?

The higher the limits, the better the competition tends to be. There is nothing wrong with dropping down from say, playing $1/$2 blinds to .50/$1 or even less and then working your way up when you feel comfortable. If you feel the need, then play at the free tables a little. Remember though, you’ll have a tendency to play differently for free than when real money is at stake.

So to recap our strategy to get you on the winning path:

1 – Play only the best hands and then add other hands as you begin to win.

2 – Pay attention and learn about your opponents.

3 – Play the hands that you do play aggressively.

4 – Use your position at the table to your advantage as well as assessing hand strength.

5 – Drop down in the limits that you are currently playing and if necessary spend some time at the free tables.

These are all simple steps that you can immediately incorporate into your game to get you on the winning path. Follow them and you can be a successful Texas Holdem Poker player.

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Jan 01

Who Wins At Poker? Poker Basics

Learning the finer points of poker can only be done by playing the game. The rules of the many variations of poker differ, but one thing that always stays the same is what makes a winning hand.

Poker is considered to be America’s most popular card game of chance. People not only play it at a casino but they also play at home and online. Poker first appeared in America in New Orleans in the early 1800’s. The game spread quickly from Mississippi to the rest of the country by way of the railroads. Some of the more popular variations of poker are 5 Card Draw, Texas Hold ‘Em, Omaha hi lo and Seven Card Stud.

Other casino games pit the player against the house. This is not true of poker where the players are trying to beat each other by having the best hand. If you play poker in a casino you will usually see limits that are posted to set minimum and maximum bets.

The majority of poker games are played with a deck of 52 cards. The value of the cards begins with the Ace as highest and twos as the lowest. An ace can also be used with a value of 1 in a low straight. In some games a card is designated as a wild card and can have any value that the player assigns to it. Winning poker hands are based on the ranking of the five cards that a player holds in their hand. Below are the rankings beginning with the highest down to the lowest.

A Royal Flush has an Ace, King, Queen, Jack and ten all of the same suit. A straight flush has five cards in sequence of the same suit such as 5, 6,7,8,9. Suits are clubs, hearts, spades and diamonds. Four of a kind is four cards of the same value. Next comes the full house which is three of a kind along with a pair. A Flush is five cards no matter their value that are all the same suit. A straight is five cards in sequence no matter what their suits. Three of a kind is three cards of the same value; two pair is two cards of the same value and another two cards of the same value. A pair is just two cards of the same value.

Sometimes 2 players will be tied so the rules applied are:

If both players have straights, flushes or straight flushes then the highest card of each hand will determine the hand that wins.

If two players have a full house the player with the highest value of the three of a kind is determined as the winner.

If two players have 3 of a kind or 2 pairs then the player holding the highest valued cards is the winner.

Poker is a game of strategy and chance and the rules are not difficult to learn. By playing and observing the game one can become quite adept at poker in no time at all. Choose one variation at first and learn the game well before going on to play other variations of poker.

By: Roberto Bell Poker wins

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Dec 22
Texas Holdem Poker: Basics Of The World Most Popular Game

The image of poker has changed rapidly through the years. It is no longer an exclusive game of tough cowboys or sneaky sharks. Nowadays, it seems like everyone is playing poker. Celebrities prefer the poker table to the red carpet and million of amateurs of all ages and genders from around the world are playing poker online.

Nowadays, poker is so popular that not knowing the basics of poker is almost the same as not knowing which Beatle is still alive. Of all the poker variations, Texas Holdem is the most popular one. Here you can find introduction to the basic of Texas Holdem poker including the game rules and terminology.

Texas Holdem is a community card poker game, in which all the players can share the face up cards dealt to the middle of the table. The object of Texas Holdem poker and any other poker variant is to win the pot by forming the highest possible poker hand according to the hand ranking detailed below. In Texas Holdem poker, each player has to form a five card poker hand of seven dealt cards: two private face down cards known as hole cards and five community cards.

Texas Holdem poker is played with a standard 52 card deck. Formally, up to 22 players can take part in a game, but you will not find a Holdem game with more than 10 players.

There are three betting structures: fixed limit, no limit and pot limit.

In fixed limit games, the maximum you can bet or raise in each betting round is fixed in advance.

In pot limit, the maximum amount of money you can either bet or raise is limited to the amount of money available at the pot during the betting round.

In no limit, the maximum you can bet or raise is the amount of chips available on your table. In other words, it is not limited.

Here we will refer to fixed limit Texas Holdem games.

How to Play Texas Holdem Poker

Prior to the dealing, the two players who are positioned at the dealers left put out blind bets. These are called blind bets, because they are put out before the players have seen their cards. The player to the dealers immediate left puts out the small blind, which is usually half the amount of the minimum bet and the players to his left puts out the big blind, which is the amount of the minimum bet. Then, the action begins.

The play begins with the dealer deals each of the players two face down cards. Afterwards, the betting round begins with player to the left of the player who put out the big blind and continues clockwise. Each player has to choose whether to call, raise of fold.

If he calls, he has to add the amount of the minimum bet to the pot.

If he raises, he has to double to the amount of the maximum bet.

If he folds, he has to forfeit his hand

The first betting round is followed by the flop, in which the dealer deals the three community cards and places them face up in the center of the table. Then, another betting round occurs, which is followed by the turn. In the turn, the dealer deals the fourth community card. In the betting round that follows the turn, the bet has to be the amount of the maximum table limit.

The dealing of the fifth and final community card is called the river and it is followed by a final betting round, which is followed by the showdown. In the showdown, each of the remaining players is exposing his five card poker hand formed by the two hole cards and the five community cards. The player who holds the highest hand, wins the pot.

Here are is a list of poker hands ranked from the highest to the lowest:

Royal Flush: A, K, Q, J, 10 of the same suit

Straight Flush: five cards in sequence of the same suit

Four of a Kind: four cards of the same value

Full House: three of a kind and a pair

Flush: five cards of the same suit

Straight: five cards in sequence of different suits

Three of a Kind: see: Four of a Kind

Two Pair: two pairs

Pair: one pair

As you can see, learning how to play Texas Holdem poker is not very complicated. However, there is a long way between knowing how to play poker and knowing how to win in poker. Learning how to win in Texas Holdem poker, or any other poker variation, is an art that requires much more attention and practice. In the meantime, you can at least understand what everyone is talking about when they are talking about no limit Holdem.

By: James Lezpool

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

For more advice on the came of poker, see Betting to Win / Poker

James Lezpool has been playing poker for over 15 years. Recently, he has started to play Texas Holdem online. He also writes poker tips and reviews for the online casinos 707 web site.

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