1 2 No Limit Holdem Strategy
Posted : admin On 3/30/2022Limit Holdem Rules
This time around we're going to get a bit more specific and provide you with some tips on how to beat the smallest buy-in no-limit hold'em game that you will find in most live casinos in Las Vegas and the rest of the world, $1/$2 game.
Don’t Call All the Time. Most new players struggle with calling too much when they are just getting. Don’t limp into pots ever. And don’t call preflop three-bets unless you are trapping with an ultra.
No-Limit Hold'em Example Hand. Let's take a look at an example from a nine-handed $1/$2 No-Limit Hold'em cash game. The $1/$2 notation means the small blind must post a forced bet of $1 before each hand, and the big blind must put in $2. Traits Of The Best 100 Big Blind Cap Game Players The 2-5 No Limit Hold’em level of cash games, is the beginning point where a significant amount of money can be made. At lower levels, the lack of stack depth and higher relative rake, cut into profits to a large degree. An intelligent player at these stakes in poker can make enough money to grind out a living if need be. Higher Level Poker. The following are more advanced strategy articles written by Jack Wilcox, who was a winning cash game player up to $400NL.They were originally posted on his Higher Level Poker training site for small/micro stakes players. These strategy articles make use of player stats like VPIP/PFR.
How Much Should I Buy In for?
The first important tip we can give is to buy in for the maximum every time, unless the game is uncapped and doesn't have a maximum. It is completely reasonable that you might feel a bit timid with the idea of plopping down $200 or $300, but this will give you the best chance in the game. At first, your instincts might tell you that buying in for the minimum amount will help you to get your feet wet while losing as little as possible, but if you've gained enough confidence in yourself to finally take the leap into a live game, remember to also exude hat same confidence when sitting down. Even if you are going in a casino playing for the first time, your mind should always be focused on winning and doing everything you can to boost your chances of doing so. Buying in for the maximum is the first step in doing this.
*Note that some rare $1/$2 games will have an uncapped buy-in. In those cases, we would suggest buying in for 100-200 big blinds, or simply looking to find another game with a bit more structure.
There are a few reasons why you want to buy in for the maximum. In general, most $1/$2 game play in two very distinct ways; either very tight or loose-passive. In the former, it's often hard to win a big pot without coolering someone else at the table, and in that case you want to be able to win the maximum. In more loose-passive games, having the larger stack when you buy in for the maximum will allow you to have a bit more maneuverability. For example, say you buy in for $100 in a $1/$2 no-limit hold'em game. You call a raise of $8 preflop, then fold on the flop. A few hands later, you call another preflop raise for $8, but this time, you call a bet of $10 on the flop, then fold on the turn. Just like that, you have lost over 25% of your stack. If you buy in for the max, you will be able to wade through these small hits to your stack.
Also, having a larger stack means the passing of the blinds won't take so much of a toll on you. One round in a standard $1/$2 no-limit hold'em game costs for $3. If you buy in for $100, that $3 is 3% of your stack, whereas if you buy in for $200, that $3 is 1.5% of your stack.
Preflop Aggression
Often, cash games and tournaments differ when it comes to preflop aggression; many lower-limit cash games play passively while tournaments have heightened aggression due to the increasing blind levels. In tournaments, taking down blinds and antes can be crucial for one's tournament life, especially as the stakes continue to grow. In a $1/$2 cash game, the blinds always remain the same and there are no antes.
It is often best for lower-limit cash games to play a tight-aggressive game. Playing more premium hands and playing them strongly is a great way to start off on the right foot and have success. Splashing around in too many pots with more marginal holdings is not something a beginning player should do. We all see Phil Ivey and Phil Hellmuth on television playing some pretty creative hands, but we must remember that we are not Ivey and we are not Hellmuth.
Avoiding the Unusual
As a last bit of advice, let's take a look at common raise sizes for these games. If you're going to be playing the tight-aggressive form of poker that we recommend, it will be good to familiarize yourself with an amount you should be raising to when you pick up pocket aces. Oftentimes in a standard $1/$2 no-limit hold'em game, preflop raises are to an amount of $10-$15. Once in awhile, you'll have someone who makes an even larger raise size to $20-$25, but that is unusual. If a player makes an oversized raise, it is usually the sign of a scared player who has a monster hand and wants to protect it. Don’t get tricky with these players. Just sit back and wait until you have a premium hand and happily invite them to put a lot of money into the pot.
Cashing Out
After your done playing, hopefully you'll have the welcomed problem of having to find a few racks for your chips in order to carry them to the cage. In most $1/$2 no-limit hold'em games, a winning session of around $50-$200 is normal and should be considered successful, especially if this was your first attempt at playing in a live casino. Don't be intimidated by others saying that this isn't successful, or the ones who look like they are winning several hundreds of dollars — those days will come. It's much more important to focus on your play and making the best decisions possible at the table than the end result.
We hope these tips helped you a bit. If you have an adequate bankroll and follow some of these tips, you will see your profits benefit in the long run! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to post them below in the comments section. Enjoy your first trip to a live casino and we hope you win big!
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There are common mistakes that no limit hold’ em poker players commit that cost them money. The list of 10 Common No Limit Hold’ Em mistakes below is not strictly geared towards the beginning poker player. If you find yourself in a downswing, it may not be just variance. Take a look at the list below to be sure you plug up any leaks.
1. Playing marginal hands out of position
Unless you are a solid post flop player, you risk getting into trouble by playing marginal hands out of position. Say you raise KJo under the gun. It folds around to the button who re-raises and you call. Flop comes AK6 rainbow.
The good news is that you hit your hand. Bad news, he may have hit his too, but he likely hit it harder than you. You showed strength raising from early position and he still re-raised pre-flop. Again, unless you are a skilled post-flop player, you stand to lose a lot of money in these situations. See our starting hands chart for an example range of hands that are playable in each table position.
2. Lack of pre-flop aggression
About half the time you put money into the pot, it should be by way of a raise. For instance, if you put money into the pot in 30% of all hands played, then in half of those instances you should be raising.
If you are using PokerTracker, the two metrics you want to look at are VP$IP (voluntarily put money in pot) and PF Raise % (pre-flop raise percentage). Your VP$IP number should be twice your PF Raise %. In the example above, you should see VP$IP=30% and PF Raise % at least 15%.
3. Not charging speculative hands
If you raise QcQsin position pre-flop and are called by the BB. The flop comes 6h4h2d. Flop is checked to you and you make a 1/2 pot continuation bet and get called. The turn is a 9c and it is checked to you again. The worst thing you can do in this spot is to check behind and give your opponent a free card to beat you.
You have a solid holding at this point and are likely ahead of your opponent. You are ahead of everything but a set a 53 (AA/KK as well, but unlikely). You should bet out here. If we assume he is on the flush draw, then he has roughly a 4:1 shot at making the flush with one card to come.
If you make a 1/2 pot sized bet here (say $10 into a $20 pot) then your opponent will be getting 3:1 odds from the pot. He will have to call $10 to win $30. It would be mathematically incorrect for your opponent to call here as his odds of winning is worse than the odds offered by the pot. See “Pot odds and how to calculate them.
Note: If your opponent thinks he can draw more money out of you on the river with his made flush (implied odds), then it makes his call correct. In that case you can bet more, 3/4 pot to compensate.
4. Inconsistent bet sizing
A big mistake that new players make is not keeping their bet sizes consistent. A classic example of this is betting low pocket pairs weaker than high pocket pairs. In order to disguise your hand you should keep your bet sizes consistent, say 3 or 4 times the big blind plus one BB per limper.
If you are at a table where you are raising 4xBB +1BB per limper and you consistently get 5 callers then feel free to increase your opening raise amount. You do not need to be consistent with your bet sizes if you can randomize your varying bet sizes. This will make it difficult for your opponent to know the meaning of your bet.
5. Not mixing up your play
Similar to the last point, if you only raise pre-flop with your premium hands (AA, KK, QQ, AK) then you are giving away too much information. To keep your opponent honest you should open up your range a bit, maybe AA-99 and AK-AJ. And/or add in some suited connectors 98s, 87s, etc. You don’t need to raise these add-in hands consistently, just enough to mix up your play.
In the example above, if you raise only super premium hands against someone who is using PokerTracker you will only see action when he has a premium hand too. He will see your PF Raise % is about 3% and he will know that you are very strong when you raise pre-flop, especially when out of position. He will only engage you when he is strong.
6. Bluffing calling stations
You can’t bluff someone who isn’t going to fold, so stop trying. If you are up against an opponent who rarely folds, don’t try to bluff them with complete air. Your hand needs to have some showdown value if you plan to proceed with aggression. If you are entering pots with solid starting hands, then you are likely to be ahead at showdown most of the time against these opponents.
7. Playing big pots with small hands
You should not be building the pot post flop with one pair hands. Say you raise pre-flop in position with JJ and are called. The flop come 963 rainbow and the pre-flop limp/caller bets into you. Proceed with caution. I would call and see what the turn brings. You can re-raise to see if they are bluffing, but if they call I would consider shutting it down. No need to build the pot any further with a one pair hand.
8. Poor bankroll management
In poker, you will experience winning streaks and losing streaks. If you are not properly bankrolled for the table stakes you are playing at, you risk going bust during a prolonged losing streak.
One great way to build your poker bankroll is with a poker room bonus and rakeback.
9. Not reviewing your play
Another big mistake that beginners and intermediate players alike make is not taking the time to review their play. There are tools like PokerTracker that allow you to see tons of detail about your play: how aggressive you are in different positions, do you protect your blinds, do you attempt to steal blinds sufficiently, are you overplaying top pair? This will allow you to learn from your mistakes.
You can also participate in peer review with some poker friends to get a different players perspective. You can send your online hand to us for posting in our hand analysis section and leave it to the wisdom of the community for help. .
Best Strategy For 1-2 No Limit
10. Slow playing monsters
Don’t limp your premium hands. You can limp them on rare occasion to mix up your play, but as a general rule, raise them up. Say you are under the gun with AA and you limp. You get 4 more limpers and you are going to the flop 5 players deep! Do you like your chances?
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If you are in late position with AA and it is limped around to you, raise it up to thin the crowd. You need to push out those small pocket pairs. Those small pocket pairs will stack you when they hit their set, or fold when you continuation bet the flop. So get them out now.