Texas Hold-Em poker is probably one of the most exciting card games there is. The excitement comes in that fact that the hands go
fairly fast compared to other games, and the overall rules are simple to learn. In essence, you start with two cards in your hand,
five hands are eventually flipped onto the table, which everyone can bet off, and you hope to have the best hand out of seven cards
at the end. There are four rounds of betting, but usually most people will bail out before you get to the third round so it ends up
moving along fairly quickly.
The thing is, if one goes to the internet and does a search on tips of playing the game, those tips all concern how to play no-limit
poker. What that means is poker where, at any time, you can push all your chips into the pot and dare someone to take you on. Yeah,
that's really exciting, but most people don't play that way, can't afford that game, so they start with the lesser amounts, such as a
$2/$4 game. The problem is, they've been reading all these tips on how to play no-limit poker, and limit games are so much different,
especially the $2/$4 game.
So ask me; am I a big winner in $2/$4 poker? Well, it depends. If I go to only play a couple of hours, maybe three, I'm a great
player. I'm usually very alert, always eager, and I will end up ahead around 75% of the time. However, if I stay past 3 hours,
which I often do, I tend to win only 20% of the time. What's the difference? Stick with me on this one.
First, the quick rules of how $2/$4 Hold-em works. There's a "real" dealer, and there's the "dealer button", which represents the
order that the cards will be dealt. The person immediately after the button is called the "small" blind, and that person has to
"ante" up a dollar. The person to the immediate left of the person who anteed up the one dollar has to put in two dollars; that's
the "big" blind. Then the real dealer deals two cards to each person; the button dealer gets the last card. Next, the person after
the big blind gets the first opportunity to either call the $2 "bid", "raise", or throw the cards in. Everyone gets their opportunity
until it gets around to the small and big blinds. If no one has raised and the small blind wishes to stay in, it'll cost at least
another dollar. If no one has raised and the big blind wishes to stay in, the total amount owed has already been put in, so that
person can "check" (sometimes known as "stay"), or can raise. If there is raising going on, the maximum amount it can go to is
$8.
Next comes the "flop", which is 3 cards. Then the betting begins again, starting with the person who was small blind. If someone
bets money, it has to be at least $2, but can't be more unless someone raises. Once again, the maximum amount the raising can
end up being is $8. Many people will check, but often at least half the people will throw in their cards in this round.
The next card is known as the "turn", and in this round, the bets have to be at least $4, with the maximum raising amount able
to end up at $16. This is usually the do or die round, in that a person gets to determine if they think they already have the
winning hand, or if they're willing to shoot for that one last card that they believe will be the winner.
The final card is known as the "river", and it's the card where dreams are made or broken. Once again, betting has to begin at
$4, but unlike other rounds, if there are only two people left and they decide to raise each other, raising is unlimited
until someone runs out of money; otherwise, the maximum is, once again, $16. If at least two people go to the end, then the
person who made either the first bet, if it's not raised, or the person who made the last raise, has to show their cards first. This
is when the game tests people's sanity, where great cards are beaten by even better cards, or someone wins with a ridiculous hand that
someone else can't believe.
And now, here's where the tips start to come in. To all you no-limit players; this is a MUCH different game than what you're used to
playing. If you come into a $2/$4 game with a lot of money and think you're going to push people around, you're wrong. Sure, you'll
win a hand or two, but you're going to lose way more than you started with. The why is simple; to stay in a hand usually only costs
$2.
Some people are more inclined to stay in a hand with bad cards at only $2 a pop than they would in no-limit. In $2/$4, a 3-5
"non-suited" hand might be worth it to someone to stay in until at least the flop, just to see what transpires. Even if someone who
has a pair of aces raises, it still might be worth it because the cards are close enough to flop right into a straight draw, or so
many people believe. It's also fairly easy to flop into two pair. And if that happens, kiss those aces goodbye. So, it's rarely a
good thing to raise before the flop, because the best of cards can so quickly turn bad, especially if a lot of people stay in the
hand. And, two things will happen; if a lot of people stay in the hand before you and you raise, at $2 more they'll probably stay
for the flop. If they bailed early, then raising may drive out the one or two people who stayed, and you end up with nothing for
your great hand, and you'll be frustrated.
For the same reason, raising with a small hand is a bad deal before the flop. If a lot of people stay in, your odds of doing
something spectacular with your small hand decrease drastically, and you've just thrown away good money.
Another thing that's bad to do is play too many hands. Some people start with a lot of money, and then play every hand, looking for
that one card on the river to make themselves successful. Yeah, it can happen, but it happens rarely, and it'll cost a lot of money
to get there, especially if you're playing a lot of bad beginning hands. Doing it every once in awhile isn't a bad thing to do, but
playing too many hands will just send you home much sooner.
Another tip is not to raise late in the game when you know you have a bad hand. An okay hand, as in having at least a pair, may win
you a hand or two, but if you have nothing, raising in $2/$4 will get you killed. One especially dumb thing I've seen happen often
is someone raising when they're the last person to play, even if they have a pair, without the almost guarantee that they have the
best hand. It's best to just check and hope you end up the winner instead of raising, only to learn that someone else has just
check-raised you because they were hoping to trap someone into raising so they could get more money. It's a fools move that's made
because they haven't been paying attention to how other players have been playing.
And that's the next to the last tip here; watch how other people at your table are playing. There are some people who are aggressive,
some who play every hand, and some who rarely play a hand at all. The ones who rarely play are the most dangerous, because if they
play it means they think they're actually going to win, and at least 50% of the time they will. The ones who are aggressive are
fascinating to watch because they're giving away their strategy pretty easily; I win a lot of money from those guys because I realize
they'll raise with a pair of twos, thinking it'll bring them victory every time.
And the final tip brings me back to what I said about my winning percentage. Most of the time, when I go to play poker, it's a
hours upon hours type of thing. I usually enjoy the company, and the banter at the table of a $2/$4 game can be fun and carefree.
So, it's an outing for me more than my going in to conquer the masses. The thing is, in a limit game, no mind can play for hours
and hours at a time and keep its concentration level sharp without breaks, many of them, and a couple of long ones.
I'll admit that, when I go to play marathon hours, I rarely take a break, only to go to the bathroom; sometimes I don't even eat.
That's bad, of course, but I know what I'm about. I've often been up over $200 at three hours and probably should leave, but I came
for the entertainment, and if I play a few more hours and can end up with what I started at, or a couple of dollars ahead, I'm happy.
Even if I'm some dollar behind, I'm usually okay with it, because I had a nice time. But I rarely totally bust out; I like leaving
with a few dollars in my pocket, as it makes me feel like I had at least some bit of control.
Remember this; Hold-em limit poker is supposed to be about fun. If you can't afford to play, don't start. If you're going to play
$2/$4 poker, you want to have at least $50 you can afford to lose; it goes up incrementally if you start playing higher dollar amount
games, including the no-limit games. I've heard tales that even Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, goes to poker rooms and
only plays $2/$4 games, because he likes the fun part of it. And that's the most important thing; just have fun.