It’s a very good place to start. When you a just starting out playing Hold’em you should be aware that a patient player is a profitable player. If you want to play in every hand you will lose money hand over fist. It is true that any two card can win. I have been beaten by 72 when holding KK, and have beaten AA when holding 23S. Obviously though this is not the norm. Some starting hands have a greater statistical chance of producing a winning hand.
If you hold the following, AA, KK, QQ, JJ, AKs, AKo, or AQs – RAISE. The fewer players you are up against the greater your chance of winning. Players with weak hands should and mostly will fold so you have a better idea of what you are up against. Obviously there are some caveats to this. Be sensible. Watch the other players. If someone who has practically folded every hand they have been dealt for the last hour raises a huge amount and you are holding JJ chances are they have AA or KK and you should leave well enough alone.
You can call with the following; TT, 99, 88, 77, AQo, AJs, ATs, KQs, KQo, KJs, QJs. If you can get in really cheap the middle suited connectors are also worth playing in the late position. But as with above, if that tight player makes a huge raise just fold. Folding is free unless you are in the blinds. Calling only to fold leter can get expensive.
When the flop hits how your hand has developed is in the hands of the poker gods and that is a subject for another time.
Even the best poker player in the world loses sometimes. You will have some losing sessions, some losing days and if you are really unlucky some losing weeks.
Knowing when to just call it a day for the session is an invaluable skill and will save your bankroll from disappearing.
Set yourself an amount that you are prepared to lose in on session and stick to it. When you reach that limit walk away from the table/computer and put it from the back of your mind. Whilst it is entirely possible that you will ‘make it all back in the next hand’, it is doubtful and all you’ll do is make a bigger dent in your bankroll.
You should also walk away if you have stopped playing good poker to chase big pots or improbable draws to make your money back. Also if the thought of moving up a limit to make back your losses faster crosses your mind you are definitely tilting.
Be aware of your emotional state when playing. Poker is as much a psychological game as a mathematical one. Don’t play if you have just broken up with your girlfriend and can’t see the cards for the tears (I guarantee you will play terribly) or you have had a huge row with you boss. Depressed, angry or tired players lose money hand over fist. And if anything will make you feel worse it is losing lots of cash.
When you first play Chinese Poker it can seem a little like roulette with cards but there are ways to find an edge. Once you have been dealt your cards, you must then study them in order to settle on what would be the correct hands to play.
You should look at your cards carefully before setting your hands. The best way to do this is by sorting them by rank and then by suit. Becoming quick at this will kelp you to have more time to arrange your hands. Of course if you are playing online you have the benefit of sorting your cards with a click of a mouse button.
Your first hand is supposed to be the strongest, so anything less than a full house is considered a marginal hand. If you are able to make a full house or better you would want this as your first hand. After your first hand is made should then start looking to make straights and flushes. If one of your hands must duffer to make the others good then always sacrifice the middle hand. Although your middle hand must be stronger than the three card hand there are situations where you could leave the middle hand with a simple straight to give your last hand trips or a high pair.
The skill of Chinese poker is finding the optimal configuration from the cards you are dealt to maximize profit.
Betting and playing the hand post-flop is the very heart of Pot Limit Omaha (PLO). When developing your PLO game post flop play should be your priority. Playing after the flop in PLO can be tricky; the pots are more likely to be contended and unless you have flopped the nuts you need to beware of draws.
If you have a hand (no not top pair, you need at least top or second set) it is nearly always better to bet than check-call. Why if your hand is worth calling did you not bet? Your decisive bet can knock out weak draws and the just plain pre-flop hopeful. It also means you are in control of the pot. As with most poker games your non-nut hand will stand up better against fewer players so try to thin out the pot with aggressive play. If you have a draw and it checks round to you, look to bet the pot in late positions, even with relatively weak draws.
Make notes on the hands people are showing down. Remember whatever the maths says you have to base how you play on your opponents and adjust accordingly. In Omaha more than Hold’em the most observant player often is the most profitable player. Take notes on betting patterns. Most online sites will let you attaché notes to a player to help you remember when you come up against tem again. Make use of this facility. If you fold your cards watch the rest of the hand closely to see how it plays out.
Texas Holdem will always be one of the greatest online
poker games. You got to play it to see why.
Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) is a different animal to Holdem. It seems an easy change to those who are bored of Texas Holdem. ‘I just have more cards,’ I hear you cry. NO. Stop now. Many of the things you have learned from playing Hold’em or NLH online will not help you with playing Pot Limit Omaha.
Let’s start with the basics. You are dealt four hole cards and there are five community cards.
Phase 1 - Each player is dealt four cards (Hole Cards)
Phase 2 - A chance to bet
Phase 3 - Three community cards are dealt face up on the table (The Flop)
Phase 4 - A chance to bet
Phase 5 - One more community card is dealt face up on the table (The Turn)
Phase 6 - A chance to bet
Phase 7 - The final community card is dealt face up on the table (The River)
Phase 8 - A last chance to bet.
You must make the best hand you can from two hole cards and three community cards.
The pot limit game limits betting and raises to a maximum that is currently in the pot. If the pot holds $100, you can not bet more than $100. If you are raising a player’s bet, your call is included in the pot already. So the pots can get very big very quickly and if you don’t know what you are doing it can be a costly mistake. Three raises in a row can turn a $1 pot into an $18 pot so think before you pot your bankroll at risk.
Trying Pot Limit Omaha without first understanding the game properly could be a costly mistake but with less really skilled Omaha players than Texas players you may just make a killing.
One of the major mistakes in Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) poker is not knowing how to bet. The tendency for the rapid rise of the pot can make betting incorrectly a costly mistake. (Although others doing it can mean you have a very nice day) To help make sure you don’t sell your house down the river I’ve put together a few guidelines.
Bet the pot. No seriously. Bet the pot 90 – 95% of the time. The reason for this is twofold. Firstly it makes it very hard to put you on a hand. Better players will spot your betting patterns very quickly. If you don’t think you have the best hand or your draw is weak, fold. Messing about with small bets that you are going to fold later means you will leak money like the Northern Rock. Secondly, it will give people the opportunity to draw cheaply. The dodgy hand they had on the flop my turn into a blinder by the river if you let them get in too cheaply.
Bet on a draw. If you have a fantastic draw that has at least 10 outs to give you the nuts then bet. (Yes bet the pot). If you are first in then be aggressive. Do NOT slow play your hand. Just don’t do it. Omaha is game of draws and redraws and if you have the best hand by the turn, it could be all over by the river.
Finally watch what others are doing around you. If a tight player suddenly bets and then re-raises then get the hell out of dodge. If a big gambler raises pre-flop don’t give it as much weight. You’ll find more bluffing with the betting here than with Hold’em.
Playing Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) can take some adjustment for the Texas Holdem Player. What constitutes a good starting hand in Holdem is not necessarily what you look for in PLO. Most new players of PLO are surprised to learn that being dealt AAAA is not the best hand going. What you must remember is you can only use TWO of your hole cards.
You want starting hands that hold straight, flush and set potential, two pair is just not going to cut it in PLO.
The top 10 starting hands are below.
1 AKsAKs
2 AJsATs
3 AQsAQs
4 AJsAJs
5 ATsATs
6 A9sA9s
7 AxsAxs
8 JTs98s
9 KQsKQs
10 KJsKJS
Although even in the very best heads up hand in the game, AKsAKs, is only 65% favourite against a random 4 card hand. There are some quidelines to playing a starting hand. All four cards need to work together in some way. AKsAKs can lead to a straight, two nut flushes and two different sets.
It is better to learn to look for features in your hand that could lead to the nuts than learning by rote all the PLO starting hands. Look for cards that run together, high pairs and flush cards. I would favour a card with straight or flush potential over any set. Unless you are very lucky trips are vulnerable to straights and flushes.
The truth is PLO is a post flop game. The most important decision you make is whether to play on the flop. Looking for info on Omaha players? The biggest name is Sam Farha!
It’s a very good place to start. When you a just starting out playing Hold’em you should be aware that a patient player is a profitable player. If you want to play in every hand you will lose money hand over fist. It is true that any two card can win. I have been beaten by 72 when holding KK, and have beaten AA when holding 23S. Obviously though this is not the norm. Some starting hands have a greater statistical chance of producing a winning hand.