Starting Hands
A big part of Texas Holdem Poker is table position. Because the dealer button moves clockwise around the table after every hand, you are always in a different position. Being in a different position every hand makes it necessary to treat the cards you are dealt in early position differently from those in late position.
Early position, in Texas Holdem, is the 3 players to the left of the big blind, late position are the 2 players to the right of the blinds. By deduction, that makes everyone in between, in middle position. (This is true of most Single and Multi Table games, although, today some Online Texas Holdem poker sites have introduced hybrid structures) Why you ask do you have to play the same hand differently from different positions?
The answer is logical and probably won't surprise you. Texas Holdem is all about information. The more information you have about how everyone else is going to play the hand, the easier it is for you to make a more informed decision about how you are going to play yours. (Learn more at Know Your Opponents)
Logically, in early position, since you are one of the first to act, you have to be much more selective about your starting hands since you don't know what the players behind you are going to do. Especially, in NL Texas Holdem, the last thing you want to do is call the big blind, someone behind you puts in a nice raise and you are forced to fold that hand, wasting your money.
In late position, since you are one of the last players to act you have had the luxury of watching what most of the other players are going to do, making your decision an easier one.
You might decide to call a bet from this position because there is less likelihood you are going to be raised with only 2 or 3 players to act behind you. For this reason, the cards you play in early position are usually of much higher rank and quality than those you might play from around back. (See Rank of Hands tab)
Lets cut the chit chat, and Just Play Texas Holdem.
The biggest mistake most Texas Holdem players make is bleeding their money away by playing too many hands. A good Texas Holdem poker player really won't be involved in too many hands, unless he is running hot. Always be aware of what position you are in and take it into consideration when deciding, whether or not, to put you're hard earned chips into the pot. The following is a general idea of cards that can be played depending on where you are: (Also see Pre-Flop Odds ) .
In early position- you really only want to play AQ or better, which is AA, KK, QQ, JJ, 10's. You can raise with some of these hands, but might limp with pairs JJ's or lower. You can call with AK or AQ. It's hard to stand a raise from anything less.
In middle position- as discussed you can lower your standards here since you have a little more information. You can play all hands from A-10 and above (this includes suited connectors from 67s on up) if you are the first to act. You can call with 99's, 88's, 77's and even lower. But these pairs should be folded if the pot is raised from behind, unless there are a lot of callers for one extra bet.
In late position- you can call with most suited connectors and small pairs all the way down to 22's. If the pot has not been raised in front of you, you may be tempted to raise, regardless of your hand. This is called a position raise. It can be an important part of your success over the course of a Texas Holdem poker tournament, but it's something that should be used selectively, unless you really have a hand. Remember if everyone in front of you has folded there is a far greater chance that someone behind you has woken up with a hand. Before trying to bully the blinds keep this in mind...
If you simply want to play then click on how to get started.