Basic Texas Hold’em Strategy

• 09.06.2025 5:33 pm
• headhunter
• 1 Comment

You have heard the old adage before: Poker take just minutes to learn, but a lifetime to master. The reason it's used so often is because it is so true. The rules are simple once you learn what hands beat what, but learning how to win on a consistent basis is extremely difficult.

When you first begin playing poker, you want to have a basic strategy. You may have played before and watched people loft their chips into pots without any regard and come out on the winning end. These people don't look like they know what they are doing, and many times don't. The key is not to be caught up in what they are going or how they are playing. Stick to what is going to work for you because in the long run, it will be your pocket with the most money and the other player trying to figure out where things went wrong.

As you play poker longer, you are going to find different strategies that work for you. First, you are going to need a starting point. You should start out playing tightly. This will make winning in the short run easier because when you are put to a decision for your money, you know where you stand better. If you start out with good cards and it only gets better from there, every decision on every street becomes easier. You can loosen up your play once you get comfortable with your game and reading people.

Part of your basic strategy should be watching and learning. Pay close attention to how people bet. Watch how they act and pay very, very close attention to the cards they showdown. This will help you in reading them later on. Keeping a notebook on what you have learned is a great way to get better. If you are serious in becoming a better poker player, a little homework can go a long way.

One thing to note is that the more pots you win doesn't make you a better player. In fact, some of the best players don't win pots too often, but the pots they do win are huge. That's what you want to aim for. You want to be able to win the bigger pots, not the small ones.

This is when your starting hands come into play. Play hands in the right position. Play tighter in earlier position and you can loosen up as your position gets better. If you have a marginal hand, you have to hit the flop hard to continue playing. Also, if you have a drawing hand, don't stick around for fourth and fifth street hoping for that miracle card without the proper odds. In the end, this will lose you money and the purpose of poker is to make money.

Pick your opportunities and be selective. Winning poker players always follow this strategy. As new cards are dealt and revealed, odds change. You have to recognize the changes and play accordingly. Don't hang on to a hand just because it looked good at the start. Your pocket aces might have run into a flush or a straight. Saving money will also make you money in the end.