Position Strategies for Texas Holdem Poker
Any time you play a hand of Texas Holdem, you should consider the position you are in when betting. This is particularly true when playing No Limit Texas Holdem poker online. You can divide the poker table into three different sections or “positions” that are know as: early, middle and late. It depends on how many actual poker players are involved in the hand and how many seats are at the table you are playing in - but generally the first two or three seats are the early positions and the last two or three are the late positions – leaving all the others as middle position seats.
Online Poker Tip(s): Just make a mental note of the placement of the dealer’s button prior to the beginning of each new poker hand. Keep in mind where you are located on the poker table (your position) for this hand and play it accordingly.
The early positions seats include the two blinds (big and small) that already are forced to place bets to begin each hand and are the first Texas Holdem poker players to act during a round of poker. It also includes the player known as “under the gun” or the first to act during the pre-flop round of a Texas Hold’em hand. It is best to play only high ranking hands in this position or ones that withstand a raise or two. When you play in this position you have the disadvantage of acting first, allowing the other poker players in the hand to react to you.
The middle positions have a little better advantage then the early positions, since these Texas Hold’em poker players know what the early position players are doing (betting, calling or raising) before they have to act. However, players in the middle position also must act prior to the ones in the late positions, so this is a disadvantage to them. You can easily get caught in the middle of a late player raising an early player and end up losing the hand (and more money than you should of). So again, it is best to play only cards in this position that can withstand a raise.
The late position Texas Hold’em players have the best location to be in during a poker hand. These players get to see how all of the previous poker players are playing and then act (or react to them). This gives you a chance to watch how the other players involved in the round play their cards. Pay close attention to what each player does each round. The very last position (the player who has the dealer button) is the best of all, but the ones next to them are still better than any early or middle positions. These are the positions where you can play hands “aggressively”, otherwise raise, or re-raise when it is your turn. This is a position that you can often steal a pot or “bluff” (make a bet with a bad hand) your way to a winning hand simply by placing a bet. Often you will find the others players will fold their cards and you will win the blinds. Another strategy to use in the late position is to “limp in” or play a good hand as if it was a marginal or lower ranking hand than it actually is. You can get more players involved in the hand this way by not raising and scaring them off, which makes the pot size bigger.
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