Playing from the Blinds #1
“Most players are net losers from the blinds.”
If you do not immediately know why that statement is true, then take a moment.
When you are in the blinds, you place a forced bet before you see your cards. Since even aggressive players fold more than they call or raise; it makes sense that you are playing from behind when you must bet blind. Also many players defend their blinds in the mistaken attempt to save their forced bets and therefore often compound their losses.
In no-limit texas hold’em you should play very tight from the blinds. Especially if you are new to the game. Many players make the mistake of playing too loose from the blinds. The lure of the blinds is that you are often getting very good odds to play the hand. For example: You are the 50 big blind and there is a raise to 100 with two callers. All you need to do is to add another 50 to your bet into a pot of 350; seven-to-one is awfully good odds no matter what you are holding. So you play the hand and you hit part of the flop. Here comes the problem.
When you play a hand from the blinds, you are out of position after the flop and for the rest of the hand. Position is so important that it must be a consideration when you decide to play hands out of the blinds.
-this is Beginner’s Poker Blog Post #166
