Texas Holdem Play Styles 101
Texas Holdem Play Styles 101
There are many different play styles in Texas Holdem, but in the end the root of any playing style depends upon two basic components: the range of hands that a player is willing to play with, and how aggressively he will act when he is in a hand.
Tight versus Loose
A poker-player who tends to play with a multitude of starting hands can be called a loose player, while a poker-player who will only play with very good starting cards can be called a tight player. When we discuss hands that a player plays with, we are typically concerned with whether or not the person will bet his money into a mediocre hand, typically in the earlier betting rounds of a poker hand. So a tight player would very likely fold if he received a weak hand like 83, and probably even a medium strength hand such as 79s.
Looser players frequently still throw away garbage hands, but they will play the game with a much greater range of cards. This can make it considerably more difficult to put them on a hand, and in addition it means that a loose player is playing in a lot more hands overall.
Passive versus Aggressive
As well as how loose a player generally plays, you need to be alert to how aggressively they act. These are all aggressive actions in Texas Holdem:
1.) Making big bets
2.) Raising instead of calling
3.) Moving all-in time and again
4.) Doing continuation bets
5.) Defending your hands
A continuation bet is a bet made as a followup to a bet you made in a prior round; for illustration, if you bet pre-flop, you might like to bet once again after the flop to attempt to convey that you are still confident in the strength of your cards (occasionally even if you just got slaughtered by the flop!)
Defending your hand is a challenging topic, but put simply, it usually entails calling your opponent's bets and/or raises if you suspect he is trying to bully you out of the pot. Sometimes that entails calling when you suspect you are probably beaten, for the purpose of suggesting to the other players at the table that you will not be pushed out of a pot just because someone bets or raises.
A passive player is quickly chased out of a hand, folds routinely when confronting a raise or re-raise, and rarely if ever will go all-in. Passive players are relatively easy to read; the few times they perform an aggressive maneuver, you know that they are holding a monster hand so watch out!
Tight Aggressive and Loose Aggressive
Tight and loose styles of play both have advantages, but passive play is virtually universally viewed as weak and ineffective. Thus most skilled poker players implement either a tight aggressive or loose aggressive play style.
A tight aggressive player is especially selective of what hands he will play, but when he does play a hand, he plays it aggressively. This technique has the advantage that it doesn't squander many chips on speculative bets, and an efficient tight aggressive player will typically be playing with a high-value hand and have decent odds to win at the showdown in many hands.
This style of play requires a substantial amount of patience, mainly because the tight aggressive player regularly finds himself folding a great deal of starting hands, waiting around for a starting hand that fulfills his strict requirements. Also, other players will be more unwilling to bet against a tight aggressive player (because they assume he typically only will play superior hands) which makes it trickier to take down massive pots.
Loose aggressive players will play with a much broader range of hands, which not surprisingly calls for a lot more bluffing than tight aggressive play (you usually will not want your opponents to know when you're playing a marginal hand!) Loose aggressive players will use up more chips in rounds that they ultimately are forced to fold or wind up losing at showdown, but they also tend to pick up giant pots when they do win, which more than make up for these losses.
Players are inclined to think a loose player is constantly bluffing, so they tend to call or re-raise his bets much more frequently. The looser a player is, the trickier it is for others to put him on a hand, since he is known to play such a wide array of hands. A loose player also plays in so many hands, that he has more chances to flop very strong hands, and when this happens his opponents frequently won't realize, producing huge payouts.
Change Gears
No matter what style of play you select, it is crucial that you periodically change gears, briefly adjusting your play style to protect against being very predictable. If you are playing tight and no one gives you any action, try loosening up a little. "Get caught" playing a trash hand or two, until people let their guard down and stop believing that anytime you're involved in a hand you must have unbeatable cards. If you're playing loose and someone keeps calling your every bet, making it difficult to bluff or squeeze in with a marginal hand, tighten up for a while until the other players start to respect your raises again.
Final Thoughts
As a closing note, please be aware that no play style is absolute; there is large gray area between the two extremes. Even a passive player may once in a while grow a pair of balls and attempt to slip in on a complete bluff or defend a marginal hand. A usually tight player may go on tilt and start betting with any two cards. One loose player might play looser than another. The idea is to be conscious of both your own playing style, and that of your opposition, to aid you in making judgements and improving your tactics.
There are many different play styles in Texas Holdem, but in the end the root of any playing style depends upon two basic components: the range of hands that a player is willing to play with, and how aggressively he will act when he is in a hand.
Tight versus Loose
A poker-player who tends to play with a multitude of starting hands can be called a loose player, while a poker-player who will only play with very good starting cards can be called a tight player. When we discuss hands that a player plays with, we are typically concerned with whether or not the person will bet his money into a mediocre hand, typically in the earlier betting rounds of a poker hand. So a tight player would very likely fold if he received a weak hand like 83, and probably even a medium strength hand such as 79s.
Looser players frequently still throw away garbage hands, but they will play the game with a much greater range of cards. This can make it considerably more difficult to put them on a hand, and in addition it means that a loose player is playing in a lot more hands overall.
Passive versus Aggressive
As well as how loose a player generally plays, you need to be alert to how aggressively they act. These are all aggressive actions in Texas Holdem:
1.) Making big bets
2.) Raising instead of calling
3.) Moving all-in time and again
4.) Doing continuation bets
5.) Defending your hands
A continuation bet is a bet made as a followup to a bet you made in a prior round; for illustration, if you bet pre-flop, you might like to bet once again after the flop to attempt to convey that you are still confident in the strength of your cards (occasionally even if you just got slaughtered by the flop!)
Defending your hand is a challenging topic, but put simply, it usually entails calling your opponent's bets and/or raises if you suspect he is trying to bully you out of the pot. Sometimes that entails calling when you suspect you are probably beaten, for the purpose of suggesting to the other players at the table that you will not be pushed out of a pot just because someone bets or raises.
A passive player is quickly chased out of a hand, folds routinely when confronting a raise or re-raise, and rarely if ever will go all-in. Passive players are relatively easy to read; the few times they perform an aggressive maneuver, you know that they are holding a monster hand so watch out!
Tight Aggressive and Loose Aggressive
Tight and loose styles of play both have advantages, but passive play is virtually universally viewed as weak and ineffective. Thus most skilled poker players implement either a tight aggressive or loose aggressive play style.
A tight aggressive player is especially selective of what hands he will play, but when he does play a hand, he plays it aggressively. This technique has the advantage that it doesn't squander many chips on speculative bets, and an efficient tight aggressive player will typically be playing with a high-value hand and have decent odds to win at the showdown in many hands.
This style of play requires a substantial amount of patience, mainly because the tight aggressive player regularly finds himself folding a great deal of starting hands, waiting around for a starting hand that fulfills his strict requirements. Also, other players will be more unwilling to bet against a tight aggressive player (because they assume he typically only will play superior hands) which makes it trickier to take down massive pots.
Loose aggressive players will play with a much broader range of hands, which not surprisingly calls for a lot more bluffing than tight aggressive play (you usually will not want your opponents to know when you're playing a marginal hand!) Loose aggressive players will use up more chips in rounds that they ultimately are forced to fold or wind up losing at showdown, but they also tend to pick up giant pots when they do win, which more than make up for these losses.
Players are inclined to think a loose player is constantly bluffing, so they tend to call or re-raise his bets much more frequently. The looser a player is, the trickier it is for others to put him on a hand, since he is known to play such a wide array of hands. A loose player also plays in so many hands, that he has more chances to flop very strong hands, and when this happens his opponents frequently won't realize, producing huge payouts.
Change Gears
No matter what style of play you select, it is crucial that you periodically change gears, briefly adjusting your play style to protect against being very predictable. If you are playing tight and no one gives you any action, try loosening up a little. "Get caught" playing a trash hand or two, until people let their guard down and stop believing that anytime you're involved in a hand you must have unbeatable cards. If you're playing loose and someone keeps calling your every bet, making it difficult to bluff or squeeze in with a marginal hand, tighten up for a while until the other players start to respect your raises again.
Final Thoughts
As a closing note, please be aware that no play style is absolute; there is large gray area between the two extremes. Even a passive player may once in a while grow a pair of balls and attempt to slip in on a complete bluff or defend a marginal hand. A usually tight player may go on tilt and start betting with any two cards. One loose player might play looser than another. The idea is to be conscious of both your own playing style, and that of your opposition, to aid you in making judgements and improving your tactics.
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