Position at table matters

Friday, August 25, 2006 People often ask me the question, "How do you play King Jack, off suit?" My answer is always the same: "It depends." The most important consideration when deciding how to play any poker hand, aside from the strength of the hand, is your position at the table. Position can be broken down into three categories — early, middle and late. At a nine handed table, the first three seats to the left of the button would be considered early position. The next three are middle position, and the last two seats, as well as the player on the dealer button, would be considered late position. The absolute best position to enter a pot from is that final dealer spot. When you play a hand from the button, you have the advantage of seeing all of your opponents' actions before deciding what you want to do, and you get to keep that deadly weapon throughout the entire hand. How cool is that? Now just for a second let's pretend that you aren't playing poker, but instead you're seated at a blackjack table. In blackjack, the dealer immediately has a huge advantage because you have to act — hit or stand — before he does. Let's say you're dealt 7-6 for a 13 and the dealer is showing an 8. Well, any book will tell you that you need to hit on a 13 against an 8. So you tap the table and ask for a card and it's a big fat King. Busted! The dealer then turns over his concealed card and reveals a 5, meaning that he started with that same 13 that you did. One big difference; the dealer didn't have to run the gauntlet and risk busting, like you just did. Add to that the fact that if your 13 improved to a 17, the dealer would still have an opportunity to beat you if he drew a 5, 6, 7, or an 8. Similar principles OK, so why am I discussing blackjack in a poker column? It's because similar principles hold true when factoring in your position at the poker table. In Texas Hold'em, the most popular form of poker in the world, you must remember that your two-card starting hand will miss the flop more often than it will hit. That being true, there are going to be many situations where the pot is up for grabs, and that the first person to bet at it will likely pick it up. Having position in these types of situations is a great benefit. Let's say you have one other player in the pot with you, and you have that precious dealer button. The flop comes A-J-4 and your hand is 10 8. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that this flop completely missed your hand. Since we know that more often than not, the flop will miss your opponent's hand, too, you may still be able to pick up this pot when you are in the power position. If your opponent checks on the flop, you can simply bet right there as a bluff. If he doesn't have the ace, and has any poker sense at all, he'll fold his hand, making you the winner. Now if your opponent bets right out on the flop, you can safely fold your hand and save the bluff bet you were planning. Check-raise The only real equalizer to someone having position on you is the deadly check-raise; whereby an opponent checks to you with a strong hand, trying to conceal it, and then pounces on your bet with a big raise. It's never a good feeling when that situation occurs, but it happens to everyone sooner or later. Though the check-raise play definitely offsets some of the button's edge, it's also very risky and can be expensive. For a check-raise to work, you have to know, or have a very strong suspicion, that your opponent will in fact bet if you check. If he doesn't bet, then you've just given him a free card that might just cost you the pot. So knowing how important position is to your overall success, it makes sense to play more conservatively when seated in an early position and more aggressively when in a late position. And if you decide to play a hand from an early position, it had better be a premium hand. On the button? That's where you can really be creative, stretch your starting hand requirements, and play with power. Visit www.fullcontactpoker.com/news to submit your questions and comments to poker champion Daniel Negreanu. © 2006 Card Shark Media