Poker Position

The simple answer in defining poker position is that it is where you are sitting at the poker table in relation to the button.  Your betting odds definitely improve with your poker position. The button is the disk or puck like object that designates which player the dealer is. The button is considered the best poker position in Texas Holdem because the player sitting on the button gets to act last in the betting rounds after the flop, turn, and river.

Since he gets to act last he gets to observe the actions of all other players at the table, which is a significant advantage in which information and “tells” can be obtained. Poker position at the table is one of the most important elements in formulating a strategy in Texas Holdem poker and the better your position, the better your betting odds. A pocket hand from a late poker position such as the button may be played entirely differently than it would be from an early position. Some poker hands that a player may have folded from an early position may be played with aggression from a later position depending on the reads and acts of the players sitting in the earlier positions. Poker position is so important that you will hear a couple of terms to remember.

A player that is considered “out of position” is sitting under the gun or in one of the other earlier slots while a player “in position” is on the button or sitting in one of the other later slots. Too many poker players habitually get themselves and their bankrolls into trouble by overplaying their hands out of position. When you are sitting in an early poker position you should fold more often than not, except when you truly have a strong hand that can stand up in the face of a raise/challenge.

Another tough position to be in at the poker table is first to act after the flop, also known as the blinds. Your betting odds decrease when you are in the blinds. The small blind is the player to the immediate left of the button/dealer. If he did not fold his hand before the flop, he acts first after the flop. As is the case when sitting under the gun during the come in round this position has the disadvantage of being followed by all of the other remaining players in the hand.

Being first to act after the flop is not a good position to be in but the players that best handle this challenge are the ones that will come out with the most chips at game’s end. Ultimately the earlier in position that you sit the more careful you need to be but as you being to graduate into later positions you can turn up your level of aggression accordingly.

It is a fact of life in Texas holdem poker that you are going to lose money over the long run of your career from early positions and the betting odds will not be good. Play carefully from an early poker position and save yourself money.