Seeing Clearly from the Blinds
Playing out of position can leave you more confused than George W. Bush at a MENSA meeting. Acting from the blinds can be a tricky proposition because your position throughout the hand changes. Although the blinds are last to act preflop, they are forced to act first on the flop, turn, and river.
You’ve heard it before: In poker, position is power. The player in position is able to act after his opponents, which provides him with a huge advantage. Knowing what the other players are going to do, before you are forced to act, presents you with the most information possible. This results in an increased likelihood of you making correct decisions.
It’s difficult to win a hand when your opponents have position on you post-flop. Your goal should be to limit your decision-making when playing out of position. The best way to accomplish this objective is simply by staying out of trouble.
A common mistake amongst players is to call too often from the blinds. Don’t play trash hands just because you’re getting a discount to see the flop. Losing those additional chips every round can really add up quickly. This will lead to a slow and steady leak of your chips to the rest of the table.
Habitually calling raises, when in the blinds, is another recurring mistake made by many players. Putting yourself in a situation where your opponent was the pre-flop aggressor gives your opponent position on you post-flop, and is a recipe for disaster. That forces you to play a large pot out of position, which is more difficult to do than sitting through an entire Lifetime Original Movie.
If you are going to limp from the small blind, or call a raise from either blind, do so only when there are several other players in the pot. This increases the likelihood of you getting paid off when you make your hand. Limit your range of hands to ones that either hit big or completely miss. You should not be looking to flop top pair in these situations. You want to make a hand of at least two pair or a monster draw that gives you a minimum of twelve outs.
A frequent error people make is playing too passively from the blinds. If there are a few limpers and you have a solid hand, but it plays poorly against several opponents, raise. Any hands that are looking to make top pair, or be an overpair to the board, fit into this category. In these situations, your goal should be to take it down pre-flop or get heads up against just one opponent.
By being aggressive, you can create a scenario where it can actually be advantageous to be out of position. Acting before your opponent on the flop, having been the pre-flop aggressor, frequently allows you to win with a continuation bet. It’s also important to protect some of your hands by reraising pre-flop. When a player raises in front of you, especially if there are callers in between, reraise with your premium hands. By putting your opponents to the test, you will often either win the hand pre-flop or square off against just a single player.
Playing too many hands from the blinds is a common leak that needs to be plugged. Allowing your opponents to have position on you post-flop is an enormous disadvantage. Avoid playing out of position as much as possible; however, if you’re going to engage the enemy from the blinds, arm yourself with the weapon of aggression. Remember, small leaks in your game can turn into huge floods over time.
Nick Brancato is a top Internet poker pro, instructor for WPT Boot Camp and a private coach. To learn more, visit www.wptbootcamp.com or contact him at NickBrancato@gmail.com.
