Looking for some personal insight on betting in Texas Hold em?

Question

I fully understand the mechanics of the game, where I struggle is knowing how/when to bet. I would appreciate any thoughts on the following questions as well as any other info you care to provide.

What kind of hand is worth staying in to see the flop? Roughly what percentage of hands would you fold before the flop? I realize sometimes you have to stay in with bad hole cards so other players don't fold if you start betting.

When you stay in, how often would you just check on the blinds, how often would you call, how often would you raise? To what extent is this dictated by your cards?

After the flop, what kind of hand should you have to stay in? Would you ever stay in with nothing after the flop? Only with a made hand? What about betting strategies?

Same questions for the turn and the river.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

Answer 1

Poker is a game of situations and that's the great thing about poker, is that you may see the same cards over and over, but you will never have the same situation. And there are so many ways to play your hand it gives hundreds of ways to win the hand, so the advice i will give you is just in terms of generality's. Now pre-flop with big hands likeA-A, K-K, Q-Q, A-K, J-J, AND 10-10, i will make a raise of around 3-4 times the big blind, and if i get a re-raise here it will depend on the player who made the re-raise, my chip stcks vs his chips stack, my position, weather it's a cash game or tourney, and weather or not i am playing loose or tight. But with A-A, K-K, and A-K, i will come over the top if i think he has any kind of hand. You should never slow play any big hand in poker, unless the other player is a maniac and you think he will bet the hand for you. Now as far as betting these hands after the flop depends on if the board is safe to do so, and also if it is a heads up pot, or a multi-way pot. If I have two kings and the flop comes out K-Q-J with two hearts, then even heads up you want to make a big enough bet to give bad odds to the other players in the hand, now on a flop of K-7-4 all rainbow i would not mind giveing a free card here. Anyways big hands will play themselfs for the most-part, it's hands like J-9, Q-10, A-9, AND Q-9 that will make or break you in the end. I myself hate playing any small ace rag (A-2, A-3, A-4) in a raised multi-way pot. If i play any weak hand i do it in position for the most part, and i play it for a raise if i am first to enter the pot, if you play a weak hand in a weak way, you will be punished for it. Now if it has been called around and i am on the button or i am getting a good price, then i have no issue at all, with taking a flop here. As far as how many hands you should play, depends on your style at the table, and how loose or tight the game is at the time. In a loose game i play on the tight side and will only play good hands, but if the table is on the tight side i might play every hand is see. But for the most-part you should only be playing around 25-30% of the hands you see. Now blind vs blind play, or even playing a hand from the button i would suggest that you play very aggresive in un-raised pots here. If i am on the button and i see a limper in from of me, i will 40-50% of the time make a play at the pot, no matter what my hand is. Now if it gets re-raised back at you then of course you dump the hand. Also if it's just me and the blind i will raise from the small blind, and if im in the big blind i will make a raise here as well to take the pot down. As far as how i play i like to make raises and re-raises with big hands like A-A, K-K, A-K,-Q-Q, and J-J. With hands like K-Q, K-J, Q-J, and K-10 i like to see the flop for either just a call or a small raise, most top pros don't like putting in a tons of chips with these hands until they have seen the flop. How i bet my hands is hard to explain, because a ton of it depends on the other players, but i will bet my hand if i think i have the best hand, if i think the other player will fold, if i am on a draw i will bet to semi-bluff, or to set-up a steal on the turn. With tight players i am more likely to bluff them, but with a loose player i have to have a hand to take them on. You have to know when others are on a draw so you can price them out of the pot, if i think a player is on a flush draw i will always bet enough to make it a bad play to chase, by underbetting the pot you are making a huge mistake by giving odds to other players to call your bet. Now weather or not you should stay in a hand is more knowing other players then anything else, i will give more credit to a tight player then to a maniac at the table. You can't wait for aces and kings all day, so at some point you will have to go with your gut, i like to make small prob bets with meddium hands. If the flop is A-7-Q and i have Q-10 here i will make a bet of around 1/4 of the pot to see where my hand is at, or if i have a big draw like a striaght and flush draw, i will play very aggresvie, i would even think about re-raiseing all-in in a spot like this. Knowing how others play, and from what position they play the hand is key to playing good poker. good luck.

Answer 2

It really depends on what style you are comfortable playing. A lot of people online play a great number of hands. If you want to play more aggressively and looser, you should be playing more pots, seeing more flops, and raising more before and after the flop. There's a lot of merit to this in short handed games, where you can be playing 30-35% of your hands.

This also assumes you are playing Limit. If you are playing No Limit things change up a lot, and in tournaments it changes more. If you want to play a simpler game, play fewer more powerful hands. If you think you have a hold on the game you can start playing more suited and connected cards and such. Go to http://www.theultimatepokerguide.com and read some of the Tips From The Pros articles they have posted as some of those deal with this sort of a topic.

Answer 3

You will get much more and better advise from reading one of the books about Texas Holdem. There are hundreds and hundreds. Contact the Gambler's Book Store in Las Vegas, NV. They may have an on-line site by now.

Answer 4

When it comes to poker Ask me no questions I will Tell you no lies Hey Sin city don't let any secrets out I like to teach poker live people must pay for lessons as I did! I was a Fish once Now I am a Shark! Swim before me and I will eat you!!

Answer 5

hi. I'm sure you can find the answer at http://forum.viaden.com. You will be able to find a lot of interesting regarding poker strategies