How to Play Pre-flop
You have found a good table and made your buy-in. It is time to start playing. There are three things to consider when deciding how to act in the pre-flop:
1: Your pocket cards
2: Your position at the table
3: The actions of the other players
You should be familiar with the concept of table positions already. Here is picture and the chart we introduced earlier:
Players
|
EP |
MP |
LP |
Blinds |
| 10 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
| 9 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
| 8 |
1 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
| 7 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|
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Table Position Examples
►There are 10 players at the table. There are two players to the left of the player on the button and after them comes you. That makes your position an early position.
►There are 10 players at the table. The player to your right is the player on the button. That makes you the SB.
►There are 7 players at the table. Your are sitting to the right of the player on the button. That makes your position a late position.
►There are 7 players at the table. There are two players to your left and after them comes the player on the button. That makes your position a middle position.
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You begin by identifying your starting hand, then your position and finally you consider the actions of the other players. They can act either before or after you and this distinction is vital to the starting hand chart presented further down the page:
Actions before you: Actions taken by other players before you have had your first opportunity to act. The paying of the SB and BB do not count as opportunities to act seeing as they are always paid. Actions before you are in other words actions taken after the BB has been paid.
Actions after you: Actions taken by other players after you have had your first opportunity to act. These are in other words actions taken by other players in between your first and second opportunity to act.
Here is a printable version of the complete limit cash game strategy handout (including the chart below).
Very strong hands: AA, KK, QQ, AKs, AKo
| Actions before you |
Early Pos. |
Middle Pos. |
Late Pos. |
SB |
BB |
| Does not matter |
Cap |
Strong hands: JJ, TT, 99, AQs, AQo, AJs
| Actions before you |
Early Pos. |
Middle Pos. |
Late Pos. |
SB |
BB |
| Everyone folds. |
Raise |
| One player calls BB. |
Raise |
| Two or more players call BB. |
Raise |
| One player raises. |
Fold |
Raise |
| One player raises. The raise is called. |
Call |
| Two or more players raise. |
Fold |
If your position is UTG it is always the scenario "everyone folds before you" that applies.
Average hands: AJo, ATs, ATo, KQs, KQo
| Actions before you |
Early Pos. |
Middle Pos. |
Late Pos. |
SB |
BB |
| Everyone folds. |
Fold |
Raise |
| One player calls BB. |
Fold |
Raise |
| Two or more players call BB. |
Fold |
Raise |
| One player raises. |
Fold |
Call |
| One player raises. The raise is called. |
Fold (KQs Call) |
Call |
| Two or more players raise. |
Fold |
Speculative hands: 88 to 22, KJs, KTs, QJs, JTs, T9s
| Actions before you |
Early Pos. |
Middle Pos. |
Late Pos. |
SB |
BB |
| Everyone folds. |
Fold |
Raise |
| One player calls BB. |
Fold |
Call |
Check |
| Two or more players call BB. |
Call |
Check |
| One player raises. |
Fold |
Call |
| One player raises. The raise is called. |
Call |
| Two or more players raise. |
Fold |
Marginal hands: KJo, KTo, QJo, QTo, JTo, A9s to A2s, K9s, 87s, 98s
| Actions before you |
Early Pos. |
Middle Pos. |
Late Pos. |
SB |
BB |
| Everyone folds. |
Fold |
Raise |
| One player calls BB. |
Fold |
Call |
Check |
| Two or more players call BB. |
Fold |
Call |
Check |
| One player raises. |
Fold |
| One player raises. The raise is called. |
Fold |
| Two or more players raise. |
Fold |
You must also consider how players act after you. You may occasionally have to fold a hand you have already invested in, depending on the strength of your cards.
| Actions after you |
Very Strong hands |
Strong hands |
Other hands |
| One raise |
Raise |
Raise |
Fold |
| More than one raise |
Raise |
Call |
Fold |
As you can see in the chart, the very strong hands should be played with maximum aggression regardless of your position and the actions of the others. The strong hands are leaning towards aggressive play as well but you need to weigh in the actions of the others. The average hands are much more sensitive to the actions of the other players and your position though they still allow for some aggressive play, given that your position and the actions before you are appropriate. The speculative hands are interesting because they should be played passively when others are playing passively but otherwise folded with one exception: you raise when everyone before you folds and your position is not an early position. In general you can only hope to profit with a speculative hand if one or more players are limping in or otherwise joining the pot in a passive manner because this signals questionable hands at the same time as it improves your pot odds. The marginal hands are even more extreme in this respect with a greater disposition for folding but otherwise following the same principles as the speculative hands.
How To Play Pre-flop Example 1
Your pocket cards are AT. That makes your hand an average hand. There are ten players at the table. There are two players to the left of the player on the button and after them comes you. This makes your position an early position.
Your correct action: Fold.
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How To Play Pre-flop Example 2
Your pocket cards are QJs. That makes your hand a speculative hand. There are ten players at the table. You are the SB. Three players have called the BB and the others have folded.
Your correct action: Call
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How To Play Pre-flop Example 3
Your pocket cards are AKo. That makes your hand a very strong hand. With such a hand your position does not matter and nor do the actions of the other players.
Your correct action: Cap
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How To Play Pre-flop Example 4
Your pocket cards are TT. That makes your hand a strong hand. There are 8 players at the table. There are three players to your left with the last one being on the button. That makes your position a middle position. The player to the left of the BB has raised and the next player, the one to your right, has called that raise. All of which are actions taken before you.
Your correct action: Call
The player to your left re-raises after you. The player to his left calls and so does the player on the button. The SB calls and the BB calls. The player after the BB caps and the one after him calls, just like he did last time. There have been a total of two raises after you. Seeing as the cap has been reached you have only two options: call or fold.
Your correct action: Call
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