Texas Hold'em strategy?

Question

Can anyone give me basic holdem strategies? Thanks!

Answer 1

I assume you already know hand rankings, so I'll skip that.
I think one of the essential fundamentals is understanding the concept of outs. "Outs" are the number of cards you can presume are still in the deck that can help make your hand stronger. For instance, if you have AA (two aces) to start, and the board (the cards on the table) are K-T-2 (K= King, T = ten), then you still have two cards (the other two aces) that can help you. Also, if you're pretty sure no one else made a pair, you have an additional 9 cards (the 3 other Ks, Ts and 2s) that can help you.
Another example: If you have 7d8d (7 of dimonds and 8 of dimonds) and the board shows 6d-9h-2d (h is for hearts), you now have 17 outs (any dimond will make your hand a flush, the other 4 Ts and 5s will make your hand a straight). You could say you have 23 outs because there are still 3 7s and 3 8s in the deck, but if just one player has a T, then 7s and 8s won't help you, so you wouldn't count those.
Outs help you figure out the probability of getting a better hand and, when someone bets against you, whether it's worth it or not to call/raise. You simply utilize the 4/2 rule. At the flop, multiply the number of outs times 4. That's the percentage chance of you getting a better hand by the river (the last round). So, in the first case, you only have about an 8% chance (2x4) of getting a better hand (unless no one made a pair, then you have a 36% chance; 9x4). However, in the second scenario, you have a whopping 68% chance. If the next card doesn't help you, then you multiply the same number of outs by 2 instead of 4, that's your chance of improving your hand by the river. So your 68% chance has dwindled down to 34%.
It's important to consider this along with pot odds. Pot odds means the amount of money you have to put into the pot in order to call compared to how much you'll win. Say there's already $4 in the pot and someone bets $2, making it a total of $6. That's two dollars you have to put in to make $6. 2/6 = 33%, or 3:1. Those are your pot odds. However, let's say the pot is $20, and someone bets $2. You now have 9% pot odds, or 11:1 (22/2). If the pot odds are greater than the odds of making a better hand, and you don't think you have the strongest hand, fold. If, however, you believe you have the strongest hand and/or the pot odds are less than the odds to make a stronger hand, raise or call. So again, let's take an example. You're holding AsJs (ace of spades, jack of spades). A solid hand. There's $10 in the pot. The board shows Qh-Kc-5s. In this scenario, any Ace would give you top pair, so that's 3 outs. Any T would give you the nut straight (a "nut" hand is when you have a better hand than anyone else could possibly have). So that's another 4 outs, for a total of 7 outs. You have a 28% chance of improving your hand, or slightly better than 4:1. So, if your opponent bets $10 to the pot, making it $20, you should probably fold. That's 2:1 odds, too much (he might have two pair or three of a kind). However, if your opponent bets a measly $2 to make it $12, that's 6:1 odds, and your odds of making a better hand are better than that, so you should raise or call.

Also, as the above player mentioned, learning what hands are playable and what hands are garbage is vital. If you're just starting out, I recommend only playing premium hands (AA, KK, QQ, JJ and AK suited - of the same suit - these are the top 5 starting hands). If you start to feel more comfortable and are willing to take more chances, medium pairs are okay (TT-88), as are face card suited connectors (suited means of the same suit; connectors means they are next to each other in rank; i.e. AK, KQ, QJ and JT). Unless you know what you're doing, never play anything less than a T.

That's the number one key fundmental to understanding that poker is NOT about luck. It's about understanding probabilities. Without that, everything you're doing is a gamble. There are many other aspects, such as position, bluffing, semi-bluffing, reading opponents, betting patterns, playing styles, check-calling, check-raising... if you want to know more, just contact me or one of the more knowledgeable answerers on here, we'd be happy to help.

Answer 2

Start by doing some research online. A number of poker sites have instructions.

I would say as a beginner your strategy revolves around minimizing losses and maximizing good hands. To do this only get in a pot if you have an A and 10 or higher, or two face cards. Try to get in for the blind. If you are in a game where people are routinely betting 2 or 3 times blind, you must be very chosey on when to enter. Even your position relative to the button is important.

It is a very complicated and every situation is a bit different. Do a lot of reading if you are going to be playing for real money. If you are going to be using play money, do a little reading at least and practice...then do some more reading.

Answer 3

i just place high bid in the beginning and bluff my way through the rest