Stressing the Importance of Pre Flop Plays
What people often see on television are the plays made by individuals on the flop, and while its importance in a Poker game cannot be denited, the fact is that a lot of the crucial decisions are made beforehand. To be successful in a real game, you need to know how to play before the table cards are turned up.
For instance, take the matter of tells. It is an important Poker strategy, and one that will figure prominently in every high stakes game, from cash games to heads up. Most people look for the signs on the flop, the turn or river. However, the fact is that the best place to start looking for tells is at the beginning, when the starting hands are handed out by the dealer.
The reason is that you will be able to see the way someone reacts, from a slight twitch of the hand to a flicker of the eyes, when they receive their hand. For the most part, players on a table give away very strong signs early on if they got hold of a strong hand or a weak one.
By looking for this before the flop, you will be able to adjust your Poker strategies easily. Simply put, you will have an easier time making the proper fine tuning at the latter stages of the hand if you have information before the flop.
By using the information that you gather from the Poker players before the flop, you will know, based on your reads, who is more likely to steal the blinds, and who is the one who is going to bluff.
For example, if you read that the player on the small blind got a weak hand, when he makes a bet on the turn, you know that he is in likelihood bluffing. If you had not been paying attention to the pre flop, you will not know what kind of Poker hand he currently holds. You will also have an idea on the player who is most likely to hold a strong hand, based on the way his eyes moved over to his stack after seeing his hand.
The Poker strategy and tactics that you will be able to use successfully in a game will depend on a number of factors, and as you can see, one of the most crucial ones will be the way you play before the flop. Take as much info as you can at this point, and you will be a step ahead of your opponents long before the cards are turned up.