If you play tournaments, either sit and go or regular multi-table tournaments of any kind, online or offline, you need to be aware of what your “X Factor” is and what to do about it.
So, what is this X Factor? It’s an abbreviated name for your stack-ratio. OK, that really clears things up, doesn’t it?
One of the less understood poker strategies is that of trapping. When playing poker, how many times have you been trapped by a more experienced or tricky player? We all fall into these traps from time to time… but why? How can we detect traps and avoid them? This article delves into poker strategy keys for setting traps, and detecting them.
First, what is a trap? A trap play is where an opponent with a strong hand represents weakness, luring their opponent into overplaying their hand. For example, I hit a nut flush (Ace-high flush) on the flop. I have the best hand at the table now, unless the board pairs (such that someone could pull a boat or four of a kind – not likely).
Winning at Texas Holdem poker doesn’t have to be a gamble, since it’s actually a game of skill. Of course, there will always be an element of chance, but there’s a lot more strategy and skill to poker than meets the untrained eye. When you learn to play the odds properly, it can make a huge difference in your winnings.
No limit Texas Holdem is the game of choice these days – and for good reason. The fact that anyone can decide to push a large raise or all of their chips into the pot by going “all-in” at any moment, adds an exciting dimension to the game. Unlike limit Texas Holdem, where each round of betting takes place in prescribed, fixed increments, no limit Texas Holdem is as varied as the players at the table, since everyone chooses their own betting style and approach.
It may seem obvious, but deciding which starting hands to play, and which ones to skip playing, is one of the most important Texas Holdem poker decisions you’ll make. Deciding which starting hands to play begins by accounting for several factors:
* Starting Hand “groups” (Sklansky made some good suggestions in his classic “Theory of Poker” book by David Sklansky)
* Your table position
* Number of players at the table
* Chip position