I must say that a lot of Poker players find it hard to work on various formulas presented by mathematicians and poker experts around the world. But you don’t have to worry because I am here today to make it simpler. You can figure out pot odds through simple division and multiplication. This, I’m sure, will prove to be more effective than those that require advanced mathematics. We call this method as 4-2.

To begin with, you have to compute the number of outs you have on Poker hand. As you know, an out is a term for card which you can pick for a winning hand. Let’s make use of the clubs A-10. Can you count the outs you have on hand when the flop turns to Jc-9c-8h? Also, you have to ask yourself what is a winning move for this flop. You should remember that you actually have an open-ended straight draw and a nut flush draw. You can also get the chance of winning the hand when an ace hit the board. In other words, you have all queens, 9 clubs, all seven, and winning aces. Now can you express these in a 4-2 method? It will result to a 9+4+4+3=20. But it’s not yet over as there is problem that I see here. You have counted 2 outs twice.

Please do remember that the 9 outs flush include the 7 of clubs and the queen of clubs. Therefore, we can change your outs to be able to come up with 18 hitting outs, which we can express this way: 9+3+3+3=18.

After you figured out the outs you have on hand, let’s come now to the percentage figures to hit your hand.  This is the best time to see clearly the gist of the 4-2 method. Multiply the total number of outs you have on hand by 4, add 2 to its result. Using this example, it can be expressed in this manner: 18×4=72+2=74. The end result will determine the percentage of hitting your hand through river pot after the flop. Just in case you have to turn, you will then have to multiply the total number of outs you have on hand and multiply by 2, and add 1. We can express it this way: 18×2=36+1=37. Since the end result is 37, therefore, the percentage of hitting your hand is 37% by the pot of river.

A tricky part, however, is when it’s time to learn the pot percentage before you make a call against a bet. Say for instance, a pot has $75 placed in there; a Online Poker opponent placed a $50 bet. Now can you figure out how much percentage is the pot that you need to call?

Before you proceed, determine the amount present in the pot. $75+$50=$125. So $125 is the end result for the original pot size and your opponent’s bet. And to be able to come up with the calculation, you have to include your call into the pot. Then divide 50 from what is the amount in the pot. It will result to 175 when you decide to make a call. We can express this as: 50/175. You will know that its end result is in a decimal percentage form, .285. To get the real percentage form, you have to move the decimal over two spots which results to 28.5%.

Before you make any decision, ask yourself first what Poker hand type do you intend to slow play. But don’t forget that there are poker opponents who are a bit trickier. Let’s say you got a top two pair, would you prefer slow playing this hand? Also, when you got a flush draw or straight potential, would you slow play the potential?

In some cases getting a hand which you can outdraw hinders you from slow playing. Sire, you’d want to move and begin catching value as you push out any possible Poker draws. For instance, you got to pick pocket deuces and you limp with it then the flop becomes 2-J-10. And since you already have a set of deuces, would you slow play the hand now? And should any of my opponents call a bet, I will surely go for a raise, and it will definitely be a strong raise. If I got the chance to act first, then I will more likely make a bet of pot sized. It may look like a counterintuitive scene for those who wish to disguise his hand strength. But missing this chance may end up to a waste of set should you not bet your hand in pushing the draws.

Next thing you have to prepare for is facing a Poker player who plays as a rock. What makes him a rock? Well, he simply makes a raise with only a big pair, which is A-K suited. The moment he hits hard a flop, he will bet on it so you have to be ready. In the later part, you are expected to hold a K-Q set on hand while the rock player will raise a pre-flop and you have to decide by then to speculate what he’s holding in his hand. If the flop falls to a K-K-Q set, then you have successfully hit the nuts against the poker rock. It is right then that you have to decide whether or not you slow play the hand. You must also be ready when the rock player calls you a bet. If he hit hard the flop, it’s given that he is probably holding a Q-Q pair. It’s until then when Online Poker players will try to make raise on him.

The flop falls K-K-Q.  You have hit the current nuts against the rock.  Now you must decide if you will slow play this hand.  If the rock bets into you, what will you do?  First, the rock bet into you which mean that he probably hit this flop hard, probably with Q-Q.  Some people would try and raise him here.

If I were you, should this rock player begins playing comfortably to the point that he makes a bet, then I would willing to accept his bet. He might be holding an A-K set or Aces to outdraw me, but what he got is an A-A then I doubt it if he would still continue calling a bet.

Here’s the scenario. I was sitting to her left on the second half of the Poker tournament. And so I can see the way she play the game. I saw her making rounds of raises which seemed to be an unchallenged pre-flop. Should there be any challenged past flop, she could have always won the river pot. It’s not only how the play went on that I got to witness. I was also able to witness her flirting with anyone making a bet into her.

An instance was when one Poker player was trying to reach for chips, what she did then was to look at the man and looked down while squeezing her breast and then threw a sly look to that man. It made him laughed and decided to just check. As expected, she completed her draw on the river card and won the big hand without too much effort.

After a while I got the chance to play with her in a hand. A potential flush draw was on the board, but I flop a straight. So what she did was to bet out while I made a raise. Right then, I was surprised when she tried touching my arm and said, “Would you still want to go for a raise?” Perhaps, she was confident that I would give in to her trick so she decided to call a bet. It was just unfortunate for her that I got to check the bet, thus, I potted again while she stayed folded.

After a few minutes break, I got back early at the table so with that woman who grabbed the chance of flirting with me. But since she’s way older than me, I never had that urge to flirt with her. I mentioned earlier about her squeezing of the boobs against her poker opponent. She frankly said that it didn’t work on me. While everybody is already on the table, I responded to her statement to tell her that her tricks won’t work on me because no woman is on a poker table as soon as she sits on it.

The other men looked at me as if they want to yell at me of being a fool. But that woman knew it all along what I mean when I said that. I focused my attention for I know that she’s not just an ordinary player. She must be playing regularly at various casinos in the states. But she can’t do her tricks on me because I knew it right then what type of player she is, a tricky one I should say.

Evaluate your Online Poker game. Look at the different aspects of it and determine where the holes are in your plays. They may be causing you your losing streak. Do you bluff too much or bluff at an off timing? Do you chase the wrong hands without computing for percentages? Scrutinize every aspect of your game. It might help to do this with another player who can view it from an objective standpoint. This gives you the chance to gain more insight or feedback on how you can improve on these weaknesses.

While it is not advisable to be a total rock at the table, you could try being a little tighter the next time around. This will help you get back on track. You might think it’s boring. But discipline is key factor to being a great poker player. Don’t chase action just for the sake of.

You might also want to drop down a level. Don’t be embarrassed to do so. You might feel as if you’re compromising a certain reputation of competence by doing so but you’ve got to take it from a different perspective. It might be better to be at a level lower and gain back your winning game than stick to your level and continue losing.

If all else fails, walk away from the whole thing for a while. Take a break. It would not hurt as bad as you think it would. A lot of poker players who have been having a bad run at the tables chose to step away for a while. This gave them time to reorganize their game on their own minus the risks of a real game and gain some new perspective. You might learn a new thing or two away from the tables, too. By the time you come back, you will be refreshed and ready to take on the game again. Hopefully you’ll be luckier this time around.

Losing streaks happen to Poker Games players, no matter the fame and reputation. So don’t take it too hard on yourself if you experience this at some point in your career. Just learn how to look at things objectively. You will eventually come up with a solution to your dilemma and get your game back.

Knowing how to play your position is crucial in this game. Your position is relative to the dealer button. If there are nine of you in the Poker Games, the first three players to the left of the dealer button are in early position. The next three are in middle position and the last three players are late position. Players that are in late position have an advantage over other players in a hand because they are last to act on any hand. You need very strong hands to make an initial raise from early position and late position players can open with a raise because they typically do not need as strong of a hand.

Beginners should stick to strong hands as they’re still learning the ropes. If you are playing in early position, you will only want to raise with pocket aces, kings, or queens. Ace-king suited can also be raised with from early position. If in the middle position, raising hands should be pocket eights through pocket jacks. Ace queen suited and ace king offsuit are also potential raising poker hands. Late position raising hands are pocket deuces through pocket sevens, ace jack suited, and ace queen off suit.

Another sticky issue with beginners is how much to raise. There are two answers here. The normal play for raising in No Limit Holdem is 3 ½ times the big blind. If the big blind is $2, then the raise would be to $7. This type of raise is typically sufficient to earn the respect of other players at the table. In other games, you will get 6 callers to this raise. Pay close attention to what the other pots have been raised to in prior hands, and adjust your play accordingly. A modified raise is five times the big blind. In some cases it can be nine or even ten times the blind. For those types of games, playing strong hands is crucial.

If you think you have a winning Poker hand, put your money in the Pot Limit holdem. Don’t be afraid to be aggressive. A lot of beginners play too timidly, allowing other players to take free cards and draw out on them. While others will bet, they will bet the minimum or bet an amount too small to force an opponent fold. As you gain more experience, you will find that varying your bet sizes is important. But for now, you typically want to make a bet of around ¾ of the pot size to keep your opponents from having the proper odds to call your bet.

Watch your opponents’ respective betting patterns. Take note of which type of hands a particular player bets big on, for example. This will give you a better feel of how they are doing and how to act for the hand you have.

If you know you’re beat, fold. Don’t stay in a hand when it is obvious that another player has a stronger one. Pay attention to straight and flush possibilities. Many people overvalue one pair and lose a lot of money when met with a draw.

These tips can help you get started but as with everything else, it takes practice.

Game Structure

Let’s first take a look at the betting structure of limit holdem. Pre-flop and on flop, betting is done in the increments of the big blind. In a $2/$4 limit holdem game, betting and raising occurs in $2 increments. On the turn and the river, betting is in the $4 increments. Moreover, there is a limit on the amount of raises allowed in this variation of Texas Holdem. In some cases the maximum allowable number of raises is three. This allows many to play looser then they normally would.

For beginners, playing strong Poker hand is as important in limit holdem as it is in a no limit game. Your playing position is also crucial but the range of starting hands differs. In early position, you can pocket pairs of jacks, aces, ace-king suited, and ace-queen suited. Others include ace-jack suited, and both ace-king and ace-queen unsuited. If you’re in the middle position, you can add both nines and tens to raising hands and ace-king suited as well. Being in the late position allows you to raise a variety of hands. You can add all the other remaining to your list: king-ten suited, queen-jack suited, king-queen off suit, and king-jack off suit. If you face a raise, it is important that you pay close attention to what play you make. This all still depends on what position you’re playing in.

A lot of lower stakes limit holdem games are very loose with at least 4 players seeing the flop. Sometimes you will encounter games that will almost ignore a pre-flop raise. In this case, pay close attention to the players at the table and the types of hands they show down. Sometimes their plays don’t make sense. Don’t be confused. Experienced players tend to do that in limit holdem. Also, don’t play every hand just because there are multiple players in the pot.

Watch what type of players you’re up against. If you are in a soft game, you will want to pay attention to betting patterns. Pay close attention to players who raise often and what hands they’re raising with. Also pay close attention to flop betting by players.

Drawing to straights and flushes are much more common in limit poker than in no limit holdem. In many cases, if you flop a straight or a flush draw, stay in the pot to try and hit your draw. Remember that if you flop an open ended straight draw, eight cards can come to complete your hand. If you flop a flush draw, you’ll have 9 cards that can complete your hand. Stay in the hand unless there is a lot of action ahead of you. If you can see the turn and or river for one bet or for free, then continue but if not, just fold.

You won’t see or need to do a lot of bluffing in limit holdem because it is hard to force a player to fold to just one bet which will basically represent 10% or less of their chips. It would really best to just play relatively straight forward poker.

Hand Rankings

Most poker games are dependent on making the best five-card hands. The first thing you need to know is which hand beat which. A royal flush is top of the game. This consists of an ace, a king, a queen, a jack, and a ten of the same suit. If you hit a royal flush then you can start taking it easy and just try to make the most money out of your opponents. Next to the royal flush is the straight flush, which is five suited cards in a row. An example is a hand of three, four, five, six, and seven hearts. Next is the quads – meaning four of a kind. This is a great hand that will almost always win you the pot. Next to it is a full house. This is when you have three of a king and two of a kind in your hand. The next best hand is a flush. This is when you have five cards all of the same suit. If you’re going against someone who also has a flush, then the one with the highest flush wins. An ace high flush will beat a king high flush. Straights mean you have five cards in a row. Aces can go either high or low in straights.

There is also a three of a kind. This can be a good hand but you should watch out for straight and flush cards. If you have a couple of aces and a pair of kings, then you have two pairs. Any two pairs can lose to a number of hands. You need to be careful with this one. The highest pair is the best such as aces and deuces because they would beat kings and queens. Having a pair is common and may win you pots every now and then. You can also win a pot with a high card. If no other player has a pair, the highest card will win.

Game Structures

The first structure you need to understand is something called blinds. This is a forced bet that is done before each hand starts. The small blind goes to the person to the immediate left of the dealer and the big blind to the one sitting to the left of the small blind. This ensures that there is a pot for every hand dealt.

The game is quite simple, actually. Each Online Poker player is dealt two cards face down at the start of the game. After you get your hole cards, a round of betting happens. This is when you can call the big blind, raise, or fold. After this round of betting is over, three community cards are placed face up on the board. This is called the flop, after which another round of betting ensues. A fourth card is turned up. This is called the turn or fourth street. Betting begins again. When that is done, a fifth community card is turned up. This one is called the river or fifth street, which is then followed by the final round of bets. When the betting is over, you turn up your hole cards and a winner is declared. On any of the streets, you can raise, fold, check, or go all in.

Basic Strategy

This is purely a game of strategy more than anything else and it has a few easy principles. Pocket pairs (or a pair in your hole cards) is a good starting hand. The best starting hand is pocket aces and the worst is a seven-two off suit. This is the worst because it will not be easy for you to come up with a hand using them. The dealer acts last on every street and is considered the best position at the table. This allows you to make a decision based on those of your opponents. If you are the dealer, feel free to play weaker hands because you can easily bluff from this position.

No Limit Holdem. This is how most players learned how to play and is the variation most commonly played in home games and on television. Playing No Limit Holdem allows you to go all in when it is your turn to bet, regardless of pot size or what street you are on. This game also allows you to be more creative, leaving room for bluffs and big pots. When you go all in, you force your opponents off a hand and makes bluffing easier if you can pull off such a bold move. The problem with this variation though is that inexperienced players will lean too much on the all in bet. This is because these days, this is what they see most poker players do on television – which is basically edited to show the audience the most exciting hands. This is a game that forces you to be on your toes because you even know when you will have to go all in.

Limit Holdem. This variation does away with the all in bet as it is structured in such a way to limit the action. There is a ceiling amount for bets and raises in this game. This is most commonly played in online tables and in the casinos. If you are playing with a $1/$2 blind, the small blind is 50 cents and the big blind is $1. The first two round of betting allows you to raise only a dollar at most. On the fourth and the fifth streets, you can bet in increments of $2. If you have some good poker math skills of a no limit holdem player, you will find that in this game the odds are in your favor to make a lot of calls. For example, you are in a four-way pot from the button with a $1/$2 blind with two bets per round. When it is your turn to make your final decision with the hand, the pot will already be about $42. You call $4 and you have top pair. Question is, can you lay down top pair getting a price of 10.5-1 even if you think you’re beat? Answering questions like this one is what makes a good limit holdem player.

Pot limit holdem. Here, the maximum amount you can bet is what’s in the pot. This is like playing a no limit holdem game only you’re not allowed to go all in unless the pot is bigger than your stack. The minimum bets are the same. In online games, these are automatically calculated for you so it will be kind of frustrating to do this on your own when you’re playing a home game. It is important that you include a call in the size of a pot size bet before you calculated the final total.

Mixed Texas Holdem. This variation combine two game limits in one. It allots a specified amount of time to play a particular variation then switching to another one after and so on and so forth. You can be playing no limit at first and then switch to limit holdem after. This is an interesting game, depending on which variation you’re better at. If you think you can play both extremely well then this variation is for you. But what is more important is how well you are able to cope with the switch.

While it’s not really all that bad to specialize in one style of Texas Holdem, it won’t hurt much to give the other variation a try. Improving your skills in one style can help you develop your game in another. Just keep an open mind about it.

Most of online poker rooms offer texas holdem poker games in Limit, Pot Limit, No Limit and mixed versions o. Visit poker reviews website to find out your choice of online poker room to play texas holdem poker.

It is indeed a negative feeling that anyone wishes to get rid off. But they just can’t because they have no other way to escape from tilt. It is always expected to happen, and if you can overcome this will determine how good you are in playing.

In my case, I associate tilt to a rolling table that is trying to get rid off you. And since it’s a rolling table, poker chips will also keep moving in the sway of the table. Now, would you be able to control its sway? If you say yes, then you are also more likely to hold on your emotions. Many poker players, however, are not good at handling tilt or perhaps, they are not aware of its symptoms.

Playing in cash games won’t bother you much since you can get up from your seat and breathe some fresh air. But it’s the other way around when playing in tournaments. You are only given one choice, and that is to play against all odds. You really have to figure out a good means of controlling your emotions.

Talking about figuring out a tilt will lead us to a discussion about the various Online Poker forms of tilt, which actually corresponds to every poker player.

The Cards – Always remember that a tight player is most exposed to tilt. Let’s take a look at this instance, when you wait to pick for big hands but it did not come, expect all players to get frustrated. If the cards affect you, then it is when the Poker Games starts to get single dimensional. There are two possible things to happen. It’s either the most awaited big hand won’t come your way and you will end up driving with lesser poker cards or maybe getting a good hand, but might only overdo it.

You must not lose hope though since you can overcome the tension by being patient. Never dare changing your game plan or strategy. You may be sitting there for so long, but be patient as Ace-10 unsuited might come along, which is a great deal on your part. However, be careful not to overplay it. Should you pick up the hand you have been waiting for, like pocket aces, never forget that it is not real good since it can also lose when you overplay it. So if you controlling your emotions is the toughest thing you can do, better go home and breathe.

The Player – Many of you come across it more often. So who’s this player then? For instance, you’re playing at a table and noticed a player who isn’t really good and you find him catching on you, which he took the chance of counting your bankroll. And since chasing your money is the worst scenario in a Holdem, you should therefore avoid it. Otherwise, “the player” will use it against you. As you may know, the possible reason why you are chasing your bankroll is when you are already losing, thus, changing your strategy just to get your money back. You tend to face bad opponents who would break rules and play not with their mind, but with their mouth. Should it happen, don’t let them get over you as you will only end up a loser. Better yet, ignore “bad poker players” than chasing your money.

The Draw – There will always be bad and good nights. But it could also be both, good and bad. Say for instance, you were able to make a good draw on every hand you pick. But it will be nonsense when you can’t take a hit. The bottom line here is that you will end up with an empty bankroll without even trying to fight.

You may ask, “What it means to play games more than what is in your bankroll?” That is a scenario when you choose to play in a game where limits are not suited for normal swings which you can only find in regular poker games. A good example for this is when you decide to play at the casino, having with you a bankroll of $500. It may be big, but not good enough when you choose to play in a $5-$10 Limit Holdem. That’s playing way too far of your bankroll.

Same fault also happens in some poker beginners. A friend of mine, whom I have worked with at the World Series of Poker, tried his luck in turning professional with a bankroll of $10,000. At first, I saw him playing on reasonable poker levels. But later on, he decided to hop in around the range of $50-$100. And he used to bet in a $30-$60 range. But sad to say, his bankroll is not enough to survive until the end of the game. When a losing streak hit him, he found his bankroll with nothing left. He may not be an amateur poker player, but since he came up with a wrong decision, it was too early for him to end up as a loser, and still had to pay for the price.

In other cases, a huge number of Online Poker players would always think that as long as they are in winning sessions for the first or second level, they can always go up and reach the higher level. Of course, that’s possible. But it’s a big “NO-NO!” when your bankroll is not enough to support the idea. Otherwise, you’re contemplating a suicide. Bear this in mind, a 200-300 big bets is a healthy bankroll for Limit Poker levels. If you wish to play the range of $5-$10 Limit Holdem, your bankroll must be healthy enough to contain $2,000-$3,000 as it allows you to handle swings successfully.

I am not stopping you to get into a higher limit game when your bankroll is below 200-300 big bets. There are also times that a poker game is really tempting, especially when it’s worth taking the shot. I was able to play a $5 to $10 Limit Holdem Poker game a year ago. I was also able to identify my opponents at the table and the rocks were the only decent players I got to play with. Technically, my bankroll is not enough to play the $5 to $10 range. What I did was to take a couple buy-ins equivalent at a lower level then took a shot. It only lasted for a couple of hours, but fortunately I ended it with a $150, which is equivalent to 7 ½ bets per hour.
It is therefore safe to play any higher games when you are perfectly aware that a good standing bankroll is a key player in playing any poker games for a couple of hours.