Expand My Hold'em Horizons

Question by TRAV Posted
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12 Comments

Hello there! I stumbled upon this site today trying to find out where I'm going to play some Hold'em in Las Vegas. I plan on going down there for Thanksgiving weekend.

My main question today is position. I don't understand how it works, and it's importance.

Secondly is limit vs no-limit, and any advice you can give about both, & how I play is greatly appreciated.

A little background about myself I'm 22 years old and as soon as I could get into Hawaiian Gardens in L.A. I was there. I absolutely love poker, hope to eventually be really good. I dream of one day being in the WSOP. That being said I know I have a looong way ahead of me. I consider myself an OK poker player. My basic strategy is tight. I try to play good cards, face cards, pocket pairs, and depending on suited connectors and how I feel about them in thee moment. Watch players as they receive their cards. Watch when they bet.

In regards to position, I absolutely have zero understanding about it, and although I hate to admit, I don't even know who acts first after the flop. I suppose I've just never fully grasped how it works, even though after sitting at a table for a hand or two I just jump right in thee flow. So if you could explain the importance of positioning, starting from before the blinds are even on the table. Paint me a picture so my brain takes it all in and I finally learn. Every time I look into strategy of poker I hear about position and I just don't have any understanding.

Secondly, I've never played in Las Vegas before so to say I'm not intimidated, I'd be lying. I'd really like to avoid going to the "big fish" casinos, and getting my arse handed to me. If you could recommend some casinos I should be comfortable in, that would be great. In regards to limit vs no-limit. I'm not scared of buying in $300 worth of chips, my fear has always been being baited by a shark and losing my bank roll. That should scare anyone. The only time I played no limit is when I was on a cruise ship, there was a casino and the only hold'em was a virtual table, cash game. $50 min $1/$3 no limit. It was fun and surprisingly I did well. I was even more surprised at the fact that people weren't going all in every hand, Because what what I thought no limit was all about. I was able to pay for all my bills on the ship with the cash I won. So that was nice. But I've told myself that the experience of no limit on a cruise ship is probably way different than in a casino. people were probably just real relaxed. So I've always stuck to $2/$4 or $3/$6 Limit.

So my first time playing Hold'em in Vegas I think I'll get my feet wet with my usual game, and if you talk me into it, & I understand positioning I'll play some no limit.

Hey thanks for reading, any and all advice is greatly appreciated. Cheers!

Last Edited:

Comments

  1. trav, just read your question and it was like you read my mind. am about 45 yrs. older than you, but have just started to play hold'em. I have even more questions than you ha. will try and follow you as the comments come in.

  2. @oldjoe HAHA well I hope thee comments come rolling in....

  3. What's up @TRAV. My name is Ryan and I'm 24 with the same dreams as you. I want to play in the WSOP and be able to play in the biggest games in the world. I didn't take poker too seriously until about 2 years ago and I felt the same way. Intimidated when playing in a casino especially in Vegas. I first want to help you out with places to play in Vegas. I personally liked the Aria, they have many games but good luck getting a seat. Sometimes it is very busy but lots of action and you may find some fish you can win money from. MGM's room I hear is filled with soft players so I'd try those 2 casinos. If you're looking for tournaments, download the Pokeratlas app and it will actually tell you which casinos have tournaments.

    Hopefully I helped you with the Vegas casinos part of your question. As for strategy I want to focus on positio since that is something you want to know. The game I mostly play is NL Holdem so I'll talk about that. Position is key to poker especially in NLH. Basically the closest you are to the button, the better your position is on the table. You see everyone's action and you can decide on your own decisions based on what everyone does. You can play more hands in position and be able to bluff in spots and put pressure on your opponents. That's basically it. I mean I know you were looking for a complex answer but that's it. Unless some professional has something else to say, that is the very basics of position. I'd consider looking at finding strategy books to help you as well as going onto poker forums, like 2+2, to find help from other players. I hope I could be of some help. I'll reply to other things and we can bounce back hands and go over from strategy if you like. Us young new players gotta stick together. Hahah good luck on the tables!

  4. @TRAV @oldjoe
    Hello Trav
    So you wanted to know more about position and im going to try my best to explain to you so you can get a better understanding..
    Position is very important in many ways. One important thing is when being in position(Button) you have the best advantage. Since you are on the button you get to react last. By acting last, you know what other players will do prior to making a decision. Also you are able to open your calling range depending on how many players bet and the pot size.
    consider what you would do if you have position on your opponents and there is a bet and a raise before the action reaches you. All of a sudden your hand doesn’t look that strong. Playing from early position, you would potentially be stuck for a significant loss, but because you have the positional advantage you are able to save chips because of the information you have available to you when acting.
    Another factor is in poker, especially tournament poker, you will eventually have to attempt to win pots by bluffing. Making a move is much easier to do when your opponent(s) have already shown no interest in the pot. In early position this is harder to determine, but when you are in late position people are often telling you what they think of their hands when they act before you.
    Position should be your guideline for starting hand selection. The range of hands that you should be playing in early position should be much smaller than those you would play from the cutoff or button. Try adapting your game to that simple premise and you'll see a change in how deep you make it in a tournament or how much more profit you make at the end of the night in a cash game.

  5. @robvegaspoker thanks for pointing out who acts first. It's easier for my mind to thoroughly think about it when it's explained well.

    I wan' t to thank all of you for your responses, you have BLOWN my mind haha. It totally makes sense. Position is Key. And from what I understand it seems that in NL position is more important than playing Limit. When your playing Limit, it seems people call BS till the river and end up hitting on a BS hand, that's called "Limping in" right? I don't know why I'm so intimidated about playing No Limit... any other suggestions if i choose to play No Limit.

    Thanks everyone, greatly appreciated, and if this thread is still open in a couple weeks ill let you know how I did!

  6. @TRAV For N/L best advice is don't play scared just try to play smart, try to get a feel of all the players, who is playing like a shark or who is playing tight. Play aggressive when having a good hand and make wise decisions when someone is betting big. Good luck !

  7. I'm not sure if it's still true but rooms like Excalibur, Luxor and MGM let you buy in for a really small amount in the past ($50 or $60). You could ask what the buy-in is when signing up for a game, and then buy in for the minimum at least once. Or you could just buy in for $100 in any room of your choice (Every room I can think of lets players but in for $100 and I see it all the time).

    Another option is to buy in for more, but still less than the full amount, like $150 or $200. I used to feel intimidated and worried about losing $300 on one hand, and I regularly bought in for $200 which made me feel more relaxed, and I still felt I had enough chips to have a decent sized stack. After several months of that, then I started buying in for $300 when I felt more confident and experienced.

  8. The 1-2 and 1-3 players aren't good. Even at the nittier tables I'll still spot some significant mistakes. I'd have to pay more attention to spot those mistakes, but those mistakes are there. The point is even at the tougher tables, you're rarely facing some scary sharks. Of course if you're new to the game or a weak player yourself, then you will feel outclassed anyway. The really good players tend to play higher though, so you won't see many very good players at 1-2 or 1-3.

    Even if you're up against the better 1-2 players, those players tend to play a pretty straighforward, nitty style and they don't adjust much, or they are not good at making adjustments. A fish will sit to their right and the reg will still tend to play the same game. In other words, it's very rare that you'll face a great loose-aggressive player that spots all your tendencies and continues to exploit them all night. The reg will win money over time because his nitty, ABC style keeps him out of trouble and exploits some mistakes weaker players make. But they're not going to fool you often with sick bluffs on the river or anything like that.

  9. LINQ (formerly Quad/Imperial Palace) has a $1-1 that has a $50 min buy-in. Play is not spectacular but beware of 1-2 grinders dropping down to pick on the newbies. Not a bad game to get the basics (posting blinds/position/acting in turn etc.) down but probably won't make big money there due to short stacks.

  10. The Plaza downtown have even lower limit games (.25/.50 NL) but they are played on electronic tables.

  11. @robvegaspoker Overall good advice. Decide if you are a limit, NL, or tournament player. Holdem or Omaha. Learn it and live it. RE: Locals are rocks, better players, tight, etc. The only reason a local is tight is because his bankroll is hurting and he needs to cash a bet. Locals are some of the worst players. Oh, there may be a couple good ones, but the majority are dumb donkeys. (let me raise my hand here!)

    Go to the Red Rock and watch as hand after hand is a family pot. Raised, reraised, and capped.

    I'll be the scruffy old guy on your left waiting to raise you out. :)

  12. I think this thread speaks to the quality of posters here on PA. A little late here, TRAV, but along with the good advice here, I would suggest picking up a book or two on the game. Most are quick, easy reads, but can really help you establish the mindset of a poker player, not a just a gambler. Let us know how your Vegas trip turns out.