Shifting Your Thinking From Limit To No-Limit
Any time you play a hand in no-limit holdem, you could be putting all your chips at risk. You have to learn how to manage the amount of chips you put at risk. There is no disgrace in going broke on a hand. It is far more common in no-limit poker than it is in limit poker game.
Some hands that you can play in limit holdem poker should be avoided almost entirely while you are making your transition to no-limit holdem. Hands such as 6-5, 8-7, and 10-9 suited drawing hands where you have to call with a large percentage of your chips to try to make the draw are example of hands you should avoid playing, especially in raised pots.
Pairs from jacks down to deuces need to be played for as few chips as possible before the flop. With less than premium pairs, you're just hoping to make a set on the flop. If you make the set, you will then have a hand that warrants playing strongly, all the while taking into account the other hands that could be out against you.
There usually are fewer people in each pot in no-limit holdem than there are in limit holdem poker guide. You will not be playing nearly as many multiway pots in no-limit holdem as you do in limit holdem, especially as the blinds get higher.
You can win the pot before the flop more often in no-limit holdem than you can in limit holdem. Furthermore, fewer hands are played to the river in no-limit holdem than they are in limit holdem.
You can protect your hand by raising a large amount in no-limit holdem, whereas you can only raise the standard amount in limit holdem. For example, say that you are on the button with two aces. The blinds are $25-$50. The first player in the pot makes it $100 and three players call before it gets to you. In limit advanced holdem, all you can raise the pot to is $150. Then everyone will usually call the extra $50, making a big pot. On the flop there is usually a flurry of action because the size of the pot is giving players who have picked up draws the proper odds to call bets and raises.
In no-limit holdem introduction, you can protect your hand by raising enough chips Before the flop to eliminate some players who otherwise might have called a smaller bet. In this way, you limit the field and give your aces a better chance of holding up. In the pot limit holdem example where four players had put in $100 each, you could raise only $50 more.
But in no-limit holdem, you could raise to $400 or more. Now your opponents are put to the test as to whether they want to play with you with a somewhat mediocre hand. Whereas the pot was giving our limit holdem players good enough odds to call before the flop to try to make their drawing hands, you can put much more pressure on your opponent(s) after the flop by betting enough to make it unprofitable for them to go for their draws.
The bluff is far more important in no-limit holdem than it is in limit holdem. The ability to make a large enough bet to make your opponents fold all but their strongest hands card game is, in fact, a key factor in your no-limit holdem success. In limit poker, since the most you can bet at one time is limited, your opponents will call your bluff bets more often. Learning when to bluff-timing your bluffs correctly-can mean the difference in winning principles or losing.
Understanding your opponents is critical to your success sat no-limit holdem. In fact it is even more important than it is in limit holdem. If you make a mistake in a limit holdem tournament, you may lose a few extra bets. In no-limit holdem, you can lose your entire stack by making one wrong move. If you can read your opponents correctly, you can make very good calls when you know that someone is out of line, or fold a hand when you are sure that you are beaten. Understanding your opponents also helps you decide when the time is right to attempt a bluff, and detect bluffs that you suspect your opponents are making glossary.