The importance of the position in poker

So complex and varied as it is, the strategy of Holdem poker is essentially built around the keystone is that the concept of position.

It tells you the benefit (the position) on a player when you are on the left: You speak after him. On the other hand, you are under the position of a player when youre on his right: you speak before him.

Position = Information

The poker is a game: you must gather up your opponents on their hands and their expectations to decide the most appropriate.

In this sense, be at the end of speech is a precious advantage: a lot of players (or all) before you spoke. So you can get an idea of their situation.

A player who checks is a player that can not believe it is served: it tries to improve his hand cheaply, trying to see the next card by paying the minimum.

Call a player who considers that his hand deserves to pay, often because it is intermediate and can easily improve.

Now imagine youre beginning to speak. You have a main intermediary, as J10.

The problem is that there is between 5 and 9 players behind you. That means, between 5 to 9 raises threats of on-again. You would be obliged to bedtime, and abandon your bet.

Aware of the embarrassment of players at the beginning of speech, the players at the end of speech will be tempted to bully you, especially if they have an aggressive temperament: why, when taking a seat at the table, you prefer to the extent possible, sit to the left of aggressive players and unpredictable: in this way, they can not exert any pressure on you without risking face a strong hand on your part.

On the other hand, you prefer to have players cautious, passive wait on your left: these players are daunted by your moves, and do you revive that very rarely.

In this way, you face the threat and keep control, minimizing the risk of your left.

Adjust your game to your position

You understand that every move you make at the beginning of speech is done indiscriminately, you know nothing of what you expect and have no way of knowing you speak in the dark.

The lack of information and exposure that you have puts you in a very delicate: you never know if what you want is a good idea, and if you do not you take a blow with a stick behind neck. Knowing this, you understand that we expect to have to talk hands SOLID early parole: at least these hands will allow you to take it one or more raises.

You can play more marginal hands being at the end of speech, since no player does after you (or little), and constitutes a threat to re-launch - which you put in a delicate position. Do not play anything not under any circumstances: if too many players boost before you, it is wiser to bet your hand intermediate, even at the end of speech. Take this opportunity to look at what is going on and draw conclusions for later.

Sometimes, when you turn more than two or three, you speak in the first or second and the first check, a good bet measured can be a very good way to scare opponents who Would not have affected the cards they hoped into thinking that you received what you want ... and thus to steal the pot. You suspect your opponents to bluff ... but will they risk having to pay the net heart? One who should check before you folder, it has already shown its weakness. That last paid or not, it depends on his game and his temperament.

It takes time and a lot of rounds to learn how to really take advantage of the position and the strategic advantage it provides. But one thing is certain: this is the key to all strategies of poker, players who do not take into account are raking quickly, and it is good for them.