No Limit Holdem Tournament Strategy
Let me clarify very quickly – Drunk Poker isn’t a variant of No Limit Holdem, or any other poker game for that matter. We’re talking about playing while under the influence of alcohol. If you’re the type to partake in a little partying during the weekend and drink a little of the tipsy juice, make sure you don’t login into Cake Poker and start a little poker action.
There are common mistakes that no limit hold’ em poker players commit that cost them money. The list of 10 Common No Limit Hold’ Em mistakes below is not strictly geared towards the beginning poker player. If you find yourself in a downswing, it may not be just variance. Take a look at the list below to be sure you plug up any leaks. There are essentially five key strategic areas that you will need to focus on when you play Texas Hold’em cash games. For Texas Hold'em tournament strategy, there exists a whole set of other poker tournament tips. While there are many things that add up to good poker strategy, we feel that these are the Top Five for new or intermediate players. This is a discussion on Tips on Winning A Final Table – No Limit Hold’em Strategy within the online poker forums, in the Tournament Poker section; Tip #1 - When a final table begins, what you.
Why not?
Because there’s no secret Poker Strategy that will work for you when you’re drunk.
Just do what other drunk people do and make an ass of yourself in public or pass out in a compromising position. Whatever your vice, if you’re impaired for any reason seriously just chill out and stay out trouble. The Dad in me wants to remind you that this should include:
- Driving a car, boat, motorcycle, bicycle, golf cart, or anything else that rolls or moves
- Sex, that’s how babies are made (nothing worse than knowing you conceived your child drunk)
- Fighting (great way to wind up in jail, lose friends, and generally look like an ass)
- Drunk Dialing – don’t call ex-girlfriends/boyfriends asking forgiveness, etc
- I’m sure there’s more to add to the list but you get the gist of it
Danger Will Robinson! Danger!
(For those that missed the Will Robinson reference) In short, don’t play poker drunk. You can make mistakes that cost you money. While this explanation seems simple, in reality it’s something that many players will deal with from time to time. So if you feel that you “may” fall into this category here’s a tip – Print this page out and keep somewhere near your PC. Next time you find yourself logging in to UB after a night out with Jack Daniels, hopefully you’ll see this and find another venue for entertainment.
Why is it such a big deal?
Poker is a game of mental acuity and we’ve all learned the hard way that when you’re drunk, the brain gets drained of, um, lots of stuff required to play a good game of poker. Online poker only adds to the drama because you’re on a CLOCK for every hand. Take too long to decide and you may well be folded out of a winning hand! Make a bad choice thanks to the booze and you just dropped some cash. Either way, it’s a lose-lose situation.
A little tipsy
Let’s not forget the Tilt Factor. Hell, I’ve been known to go on tilt after taking a bad beat. Who hasn’t? If you’re one of the large percentage of the population that tends to have a short fuse when you’re drunk, stay away from the virtual poker table. Tilt = Bad news. Tilt + Alcohol = Disaster. Do I need to preach anymore? I think not.
If it takes AAA meetings to stop bleeding cash at the poker table, pick one vice and quit. One will break down your mind, body (liver, spleen, kills brain cells), and soul. The other at least gives you an opportunity to earn a little cash.
Easy choice? I thought so.
Summary
I am not going to preach to you about drinking and whether it’s bad or not. That’s your call. However, we’re here to talk about poker and unfortunately alcohol plays a role in gambling. It always has and always will (I challenge you to find an alcohol-free casino in Las Vegas), so I wanted to write about it in the hope that it may save a person or two from the headache (pun intended). We’re all big boys and girls so you decide the next time – Drunk Poker or perhaps chill out and watch High Stakes Poker on Tivo while getting tanked.
I know what’d I’d do.
Top 10 No Limit Holdem Tips
In the last 10 years No Limit Hold’em has become the most popular game played in the world. Thanks in part to “TV Poker” and the massive Multi-Table Tournament prize pools. No Limit Cash Games and tournaments are now a permanent fixture in land based casinos as well, and it’s really not a big surprise. No Limit Poker Games allow players to be aggressive, they have lots of action, and of course you can win big pots.The flip side of no Limit Poker, is that you can also go broke in one hand.
To help you avoid going broke, you have put together this simple guide if the Top 10 No Limit Poker Tips, so the next NL game you play, you can be confident that you know what edges to exploit against your opponents, and what strategies you can use to your advantage. Below, you will find a list of tips that will be of immense value to all NL Holdem players who are just getting started with their career.
No Limit Holdem Tip #1 – Playing tight and aggressive is good
Most online grinders adopt a tight aggressive playing style because it works. By playing fewer hands it makes post flop play easier, since you will find yourself in fewer tough spots where you are unsure if you have the best hand.
No Limit Hold'em Tournament Strategy
No Limit Holdem Tip #2 – Adding deception to your game
Although a tight aggressive strategy is usually best, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t alter your strategy by sometimes entering pots with a raise with hands like suited connectors, or three betting with them, etc. Adding deception to your play can be extremely effective because your opponents will have a hard time putting you on hands when you hit, which will make it easier to get paid off.
No Limit Holdem Tip #3 – Never slow play your big hands
Nl Holdem Tournament Strategy
In no-limit hold’em, so many novice players tend to make the mistake of slow playing their big hands to trap an opponent. For example, instead of open raising with AA, an inexperienced player will just limp into the pot to try and set a trap, allowing other players with speculative hands to enter the pot and suck out on them. You only have the advantage with of the best hand holding AA preflop, on the flop it might just be another pair of overcards versus a straight or a flush, which can cost you a lot of money.
It’s never usually a good idea to slow playing your hand. Most players will call you with all kind of hands. You should observe the board texture to see if there are any potential draws out there. It would be a cardinal sin to give free cards on a draw heavy board, allowing your opponent to catch their draw at no cost.
That being said, it sometimes can be good to slow play, when there are no possible draws, and it’s impossible for your opponent to have a hand they can call with. In this situation, slow playing allows your opponent to hit a hand, allowing you to extract more value then had you bet straight away.
No Limit Holdem Tip #4 – Take advantage of the semi bluff
Online Poker
Bluffing is an important aspect of beating NL hold’em games. One of the easiest ways to incorporate a bluffing strategy into your game is by taking advantage of the semi bluff. Bluffing when you have zero outs to improve the hand is a bad idea, but when you have some out, like when you have a flush draw, even when you get called, you still have a decent chance of winning the hand, even though your intention is to take down the pot straight away.
No Limit Holdem Tip #5 – Pay close attention to your opponents
When playing in NL hold’em tournaments or cash games, you want to closely observe the other players at the table, so you know who’s playing loose or right, to get a better idea of their playing styles. It would be a bad idea trying to bluff a loose player, but if you can be confident your playing against a tight player and you find yourself in a heads up situation when you have nothing, but you sense weakness, it could be a good time to bluff. Your observant skills allowed you to win a pot you may not have won otherwise.
No Limit Holdem Tip #6 – Avoid bluffing bad players
It’s a good idea to refrain from trying to bluff bad players, because they are mostly only interested in their own hands, instead of what the betting of their opponents is trying to represent. For instance, if a player is willing to call you down with a bottom pair hand, getting folds from them is going to be extremely rare, and you should simply be looking to value bet against them.
No Limit Holdem Tip #7 – Position is extremely powerful
Play more hands in position then when you’re out of position, for the simple fact that position is more profitable in any poker games you play.
No Limit Holdem Tip #8 – Adjusting to your opponents
There is no black/white strategy to adopt in NL hold’em. Some players will be maniacs always looking to make bold bluffs, while other players will sit snug and only look to play big pots with big hands. As a poker player, you need to adjust to the different playing styles of your opponents, so that you can react to their actions in an optimal manner.
No Limit Holdem Tip #9 – Trap the maniac with a strong hand
Against a maniac who is playing loose and aggressively, it’s much better to check and set the trap when you have a strong hand, because it’s highly likely they will interpret this as a sign of weakness and will bet into you, perhaps even bluffing off their stack.
No Limit Holdem Tip #10 – Value bet calling stations
You should be doing this all day long when you have a decent made hand. Chances are they are calling with worse because they don’t know how to fold. The beauty of NL hold’em is you get to choose your bet sizes, so you can extract a ton of value with your value bets.
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