No Limit Hold’em | Play Poker Now

Among the variations of poker games, no-Limit tournament has far more popular appeal than either cash or limit poker games. Tournament holdem and its variations is the game of choice among 75% of online players. No-limit is the go-to game of all cash games and those who have a great deal of experience with tournament games will find the transition takes little effort.

Because the tournaments have gotten so much exposure, the new and nave players flock to this arena where they are easily taken advantage of by their more experienced opponents. Free-roll tournaments abound because they demand no deposit for the wary beginner to try his hand and maybe with a few passes from lady luck, the novice may find a new career or at least an addictive pastime.

In a sit-and-go tournament game, the player enters with a fixed deposit and then only plays for chips, not money. This makes for a much less stressful game than the cash game. This relaxing nature accounts for its popularity as well as media coverage, and one may even gain his 15 minutes of fame as a celebrity poker player..

The frequent and rapid-paced SnG (sit-and-go) tournaments must be distinguished from the less accessible MTT (multi table tournament) games. The most important distinction being that in the MTT, every game has the potential of going on forever and a player cannot depart the table without kissing his entire investment goodbye. Add to that the length of time and the difficulty of the play that must be endured. The players must be absolutely aware of these factors, else he may sink into despair, become too inert to leave, and lack the high-level of concentration necessary for skilled play. Of course, those who can take the heat will wind up with quite a haul.

MTTs are also inaccessible even in the online situation. Depending upon where you are playing (which country) you may find yourself able to locate such a game only in the wee small hours. Add to that the fact that little is written about tournament and no-limit games, and the literature that does exist is mostly geared toward psychological strategy rather than strategies of technique.

The transition between cash and MTT is not particularly difficult. No-limit and cash games do have a lot of similarities, but there are more drawbacks to the MTT. No-limit cash games are thought to be the most prospective of all online games by the majority of players. Among all the cash games no-limit is by far the most available and can be found at all places and at all times with no lack of gung-ho players. You can be sure that not all of those eager beavers are experts. Because the game is not well documented in literature, the talented players have an excellent opportunity to practice some psychological manipulations. Those less talented need to be aware of this and proceed with caution.

With cash games, the literature is more available and growing, but even if it does have merit, it is not precise, lacks substantial guidelines and weighs heavily on the potential of the assorted individuals gathered around the table. The only way to become expert then at no-limit cash games is through the experience of playing and closely observing your opponents, thereby piling up a memory of observations to carefully draw upon when involved in future, and just as unpredictable games.

Dispersion is most vicious in no-limit games and even good players may loose as many as half a dozen buy-ins in one session – not something just anybody can easily bare or afford.

The author is a successful limit cash game player. He plays poker online and receives Red Star Poker Rakeback as well as Rakeback at Players Only.

Winning poker comes down to being able to squeeze a profit out of marginal situations. The object is not to win every hand played, but to win every hand you play. The best way to do this is to out bet your opponents. Every bet made should have a purpose. Either it is made to induce a weaker hand to fold, or it is made to maximize the winnings on the hand.

Since there are many opportunities to outplay your opponents, you have to know which opponents you can outplay. It is difficult to finesse weak players. The slow play often backfires because one of the loose limpers will hit a hand. The bluff does not work, since these players call with any two cards. The following sections demonstrate many of the advanced aspects of the game and how best to play them.

The Art of the Slow-play

The slow-play is when you intentionally under-bet in order to disguise the strength of your hand and attempt to trap an opponent with a weaker hand. Unlike the bluff, the slow-play is effective against both strong and weak opponents. Bad opponents simply bet their hand. They are going to pay you off if they have something or they are simply on a draw,

You should not slow-play when there is a flush or straight draw on the board. You should only slow-play when your opponent has a poker hand that is not likely to improve enough to beat yours. Suppose the flop is AD-7H-KC and you hold 7D-7C, and you put your opponent on an Ace or King. It is usually more profitable to bet the hand aggressively on the turn. This way you can get at least one extra large bet by letting your opponent make the initial raise for you.

The flop is the main round to use the slow-play. On subsequent betting rounds, your opponents give you action for one of two reasons: Either they improved their hand on the next street and their hand is now worth betting, or they think their mediocre hand is good because you did not show strength the previous round.

You are sacrificing an opportunity to make money on the turn if you slow-play then. The only reason to slow-play on the turn is if your read on your opponent(s) is that they will fold with any bet you make. If this is the case, then it may be worth checking to see if you can get a bet from them on the river. Winning a pot with one round of betting in it is better than winning one with no money in the pot.

Some players want to slow-play a monster hand on the turn so they can make the big raise on the river. This is another example of trying to be too complex in betting. Because of their desire to raise on the river, they slow-play the turn and forgo an opportunity to make good money from several opponents. On the river, these plays usually end up isolating a single remaining opponent, who may or may not call a raise.

You should concentrate on building the pot at every opportunity when you have the premium hand. Do not attempt fancy slow-plays. They can cost you money from missed betting opportunities or from your opponent hitting a hand on the turn or river.

When Not to Slow-Play

Do not over play the hand if you should hit quads or a full house. Players playing mediocre cards from a good position frequently do not bet the turn or river. Instead, they check or call. If you slow-play the turn, this type of opponent does not start throwing in raises and re-raises on the river. Therefore, just keep betting the turn, despite the improvement. They rarely put you on quads, so try to get some action on the turn. Do not stop playing your style of play and slow-play when you have a great hand. That becomes an easy tell to spot and makes your play predictable.

Remember that the act of betting alone does not automatically give your hand away. This is especially true if you have been constantly changing gears and mixing up your table image throughout the gaming session. Never overlook the fact that another player with an inferior hand may slow-play the flop with the intent to open up on the turn. Letting them do so allows you to hide the strength of your hand when they do raise or re-raise. As with the bluff, the slow play is not as useful in limit poker as it is in no-limit. In limit, with only a small bet needed, most players that are going to stay in the hand will do so for at least one additional bet.

Representing Your Hand

A strong bet can represent a strong hand. This is especially true when betting after the flop. If an Ace or King shows on the flop, you can represent an Ace or King in your hand by betting. Often, it is what you represent that is more important than what you actually have, especially if you have put your opponent on a medium or weak hand.

About the author: Daniel L. Cox is the editor of Poker Insider Magazine, an e-zine dedicated to poker. He is also the award-winning author of “Winning Blue-Collar Hold’em: How to Play Low-limit Ring Games and Small Buy-in Tournaments” and three upcoming books on poker. He can be found on Twitter at PokerInsiderMag, where he gives you a daily poker quote.

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