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Texas Hold em Advanced Strategy

April 28, 2009

This Texas Hold’em Advanced Strategy is meant for experienced players who have already developed a moderately successful poker strategy, but would like to take their game to the next level.

If you’re reading this, we hope you have already read and integrated our previous Texas Hold em Strategy guides:

Texas Hold’em Rules & Starting Hands

Texas Hold’em Beginner Strategy
Texas Hold’em Intermediate Strategy

In the previous guides, we instructed beginner and intermediate Texas Hold’em players on the rules of the game, proper starting hand selection, how to become a specific type of player that meets your preferred style of poker (Loose, tight, Passive, Aggressive), understanding the Nuts, sequence betting and how to avoid chasing a pot with the second best hand.

Each of these aspects are very important to a wining Texas Hold’em strategy, and should be practiced to the point of easy implementation before moving on to this last section – the Texas Hold’em Advanced strategy.

In this last installment, we’ll cover Bluffing techniques, including the Semi-Bluff and Check Raise, and how to Play the Players.

Texas Hold’em Advanced Strategy – Bluffing

A good bluff is Texas Hold’em is placed from the proper position, when all other opponents present the right situation to pull off a successful bluff. Bluffing is most commonly used in Pre-flop situations to steal blinds. Note that in tournament scenarios, stealing blinds becomes much more profitable in the latter stages, and Bluffing to steal blinds should not be done too often before this point.

The problem most players encounter with bluffing is the choice to bluff too often. Once you are called on a bluff, no one at the table will trust you any longer, making the option to bluff near obsolete. A player must be very careful no to bluff too often, so he doesn’t get caught and labeled a bluffer.

The best time to attempt bluffing is from late position, when no other opponent is showing confidence in their hand. There should be only one or two players remaining in the hand, with all others having folded. If these remaining players have limped in (called the Big blind, but not Raised), you can place a moderate to large raise from late position, encouraging everyone else to fold. If you are in late position, and all previous bettors have folded, you are almost guaranteed a successful bluff to steal the blinds.

Texas Hold’em Advanced Strategy – Semi-bluffing

The Semi-bluff is the safest bluff in poker. This means your hand has at least the potential to become great after the Flop. The rules of the Semi-Bluff are the same – requiring a late position and no confidence from previous opponents. The outcome is much different, however, since getting called on a Semi-bluff does not get you labeled a bluffer.

Texas Hold’em Advanced Strategy – Check-Raise

this is the most cunning maneuver in all of poker, used to draw more chips into the pot before declaring your virtually guaranteed win. If you watched poker events on television in the past, you’ve probably seen this pulled off a few times. Daniel Negreanu is especially well known for the successful Check-Raise.

To pull off a check-raise, you need to have a monster hand, or even the Nuts, after the Flop, Turn or River. Open with a Check, and if your opponent has even marginal holdings, he will most often place a large bet to scare you away from the pot. Counter with a large Raise of your own, and he knows he is doomed. He will either fol the pot to you immediately, or make the less common mistake of calling, giving you even more chips to scoop at the showdown.

Many players make the mistake of calling, because they feel they have invested too much to simply fold at this point. If you know you’ve got them beat, use the Check-Raise and take them for all you can. By reading your opponents throughout the session up until this point, you should be able to determine whether they will fold or make the call. This will help you decide whether your holdings are string enough to attempt the Check-Raise.

Texas Hold’em Advanced Strategy – Playing the Players

As a veteran poker player, you should know by now that Texas Hold’em is not a game of cards, but a game of psychology. You are not simply hoping to develop the strongest hand, but to make your opponents think you have the best hand. If you’ve watched live poker events, you probably noticed that most hands do not go to a showdown, but rather to the player who outlasted their competition by encouraging everyone else to fold. This is what we mean by playing the players.

You need to develop a keen sense for your opponents’ behavior. There are four general player types – Loose/Passive, Loose/Aggressive, tight/Passive and Tight/Aggressive. It should only take a few hands of play to label each opponent as one of these player types.

Loose players are easily destroyed by playing a tight game against them. Because they call most flops, they will often get lucky enough to win with a good Draw hand. However, they will falter to a tight player who knows how to reel them in by slow playing a monster hand.

Tight players are harder to defeat, since they fold more often than not. However, they are very easy to bluff and steal blinds from, since they are so conservative with their chips. If they think they are beaten, they will Fold, period.

Watch for behavioral patterns, especially when playing in person. Nervous ticks like touching the face, adjusting glasses or hats, etc., are a sure-tell sign that they have something good.

In online poker, watch for chatty behavior and determine whether it means they have a bad hand and are bored, or are trying to distract you when they have a great hand.

Betting patterns are always apparent if you observe well and, in online poker, take notes. Do they always bet high in late position? If so, they are likely consistent bluffers. Do they fold without a premium starting hand? Will they call Pre-Flop just to see if their hand improves? There are many betting patterns to be observed. Watch closely for these and you will be able to figure out your opponents in no time, taking advantage of their weaknesses.

On a final note, be sure you don’t let yourself be read. If you’re reading them, you can bet they are doing the same to you. Do not be entirely consistent. Change up your game play, tight to loose, passive to aggressive, etc. Keep them guessing and you’ll have the upper hand throughout every cash game and tournament you play.

The next HORSE poker game to learn is Omaha Hi-Lo

Written by Rob · Filed Under HORSE Poker Strategy 

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