the solid players an opportunity to use everything
in their arsenal such as bluffing, pot odds, solid game skills and psychology.
Because of the ability to place any size bet, you can manipulate pot odds to make
your opponents pay too high of a price to draw to their hand or make the price
low enough that it is correct for them to call when you want them to. This alone
can make no-limit one of the most profitable games you can find and makes the
understanding of the correct use of pot odds imperative to anyone hoping to be
a successful poker player.
If you are
going to be a lifetime winner at no-limit holdem, you must become a solid, tight/aggressive
player. You must rarely call. Winning players tend to raise or fold. Bear in mind
that because of the betting limits involved in playing no-limit, mistakes are
magnified. Every time you force an opponent to make a decision, they have the
opportunity to make a mistake. By calling, you are the only one who can make a
mistake. If you raise, then your opponent is forced to make a decision, and hopefully
a mistake. This doesn’t mean that you should never just call, it just means
that as you gain experience you will find yourself playing this way because this
aggressive style of play when combined with tight starting hand requirements will
mean that you are rarely behind at the beginning of a hand and you allow your
opponents many opportunities to make mistakes.
In closing, here are
a few quick pointers to help you while learning
to play no-limit. The first time that you look down
to see pocket aces while playing no-limit holdem,
your first instinct will probably be to move all-in.
In a typical game, this will win you the pot, but
it will likely only be the blinds as everyone else
will probably fold. When you have a great starting
hand such as AA, KK, AK or QQ your goal should be
to raise enough to make all but one or two opponents
fold. Then if you are re-raised before the flop
you can move all-in. Winning the most pots in a
session is nice, but winning the most money is what’s
important.
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The Hot New Texas Holdem E-Book By Wes Young
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