by Vince Smith

Created on: January 23, 2007   Last Updated: January 26, 2007

Texas Hold'Em is a complicated game that can't really be summed up in a paragraph or two. It has to be studied and played extensively for someone to gain a good grasp of the strategy. The frustrating part of holdem is that no matter how well you play, no matter how you trapped that sucker with your pocket kings or whatever you have, there's always the luck factor that can send you to the rail and/or the poorhouse. The only thing you can do is play the percentages the best you can and read your opponents to minimize the chances of being "sucked out on" by a lucky straight, full house, flush or trips.

Tournament play is a totally different animal than ring games (cash tables), so knowing how to do well at one doesn't mean you know how to win at the other. While cash play is all about waiting for the right moment to spring a trap with a good hand, tournament play is all about the size of your stack compared to the blinds and antes. Position is everything in poker, but especially so in tournament play. Later on in a tournament, you will be more and more ruled by how big or small your stack is and it will determine how weak of a hand you're willing to play.

If you are shortstacked in a tourney, you will be forced to make moves with less desirable holdings and hope you don't get called so you can steal the pot. If you have a large chip stack you can decide whether or not to play a hand because you have the advantage of being able to put smaller stacks all in without being eliminated, which will keep most players from tangling with you unless they have a great hand. The big stack's best target are the middle sized stacks, as they are more likely to fold to a raise from somebody that can eliminate them. Short stacks, however could call you at any time or raise all in because they are desperate to get back in it before they blind out... it's either double up or go home for them, so beware.

Be sure to keep track of how many people are left to act after you in a round of betting, because if you raise and there are 4 people left after you, somebody's going to call or reraise most of the time. The best time to push is when there are only 1 or 2 players acting after you, lowering the chances of somebody playing the hand and raising the chances of you taking the blinds without a fight.

In live play, you can read the players, but in online play, it's a lot more difficult. In general, online players DO NOT RAISE ALL IN unless they have the nuts. If you call and somebody raises you all in, you'd better have a monster if you're going to call, because most online players never try an all-in bluff with nothing or a weak hand.

Hopefully, these tips will help you to improve your game and start winning instead of breaking even or losing. Good luck!

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