1. Poker Strategy Fixed Limit Rules
2. Poker Strategy Fixed Limit Definition
3. Poker Strategy Fixed Limit Credit Cards

• Fixed-limit games, by design, require multiple decisions in every pot. That can lead to either a cascade of poor decisions resulting in missed wins and/or small losses, or a plethora of correct.
• Some strategic adjustments for no-limit players to consider when jumping into fixed-limit games. When playing limit games, press your advantages, call more and chase weak draws less.

Here are some painful lessons from the bottom end of the poker food chain: low stakes, fixed-limit hold'em. Last time I discussed some of the reasons I enjoy low limit hold'em (i.e, $4/$8.

In a split-pot game, there are generally three reasons to raise: (1) you believe you are the only person playing for one half of the pot and have multiple people playing for the other half, leading to a situation where you can raise with impunity; (2) you think you have the best hand or best draw and are raising for value against worse hands that may call; or (3) you feel that you can get a better hand or better draw to fold. Knowing when to raise, and why, can be tricky in split-pot games.

Consider two different raises from a recent session of limit Omaha hi/lo that I played. The table could best be described as very, very tight. Raises were given far more respect than they deserved. In the first hand, I was dealt and limped into the pot after two early-position limpers. One player called behind me before the big blind checked.

The flop came down , making top set for me and giving me the low-end of a gutshot straight draw. It also put a made low on the board. As you might expect, when the action passed to me, I bet out. The player behind me folded, bringing action around to the big blind, who check-raised. She was probably the tightest player at the table. As soon as she check-raised, nobody else wanted a part of the pot. It quickly became heads-up between the two of us.

I called the raise, then raised myself when the board paired sevens on the turn with the . My opponent called, then check-called the river. I showed a full house, aces full of sevens, for high and 8-7-5-4-A for low. My opponent turned over , making three sevens for high and the nut low, 8-7-3-2-A. She also left me scratching my head. Why had she check-raised the flop?

On the flop, the big blind made the nut low, and a pair of sevens for high with no draw to speak of. At first blush, therefore, it appears that she was raising for value. However, because she has almost no chance of scooping the pot and will instead only receive half, her interest lies in building the pot as big as she can. Given the extremely tight table conditions, her check-raise is going to fold weak high draws and mediocre low draws. These are hands that either (a) she would rather see call against her nut low, or (b) she would rather have call because they have zero impact on her half of the pot. The only rationale I could come up with for the big blind's check-raise was that she was afraid of having her low counterfeited by a deuce or a trey falling on the turn or river. That will happen one time out of four, not nearly often enough to be concerned about — especially in a five-way pot!

Later on that session, the same player was involved in another pot against two opponents. I opened the betting with top two pair on a board of . I was called by one opponent before the player from the earlier hand, now on the button, made a strong raise. I had played with her long enough to realize that she wasn't raising any kind of wrap; her most likely holding was a set (given my cards, a set of eights). One early-position player called the two bets cold. I called, looking to fill up on the turn; the other player in the hand called as well.

The turn was the , a card that missed me. We all checked the action around to the button, who bet. She was called by the early-position player and the player on her right, but not by me. I folded. The river was the and brought a bet from the early-position player. That bet was raised by the player on the button's right. The button steamed for a few moments before dejectedly mucking her cards. The early-position player called. He held for the nut low and ace-high. The player on the button's right turned over for the nut low and a pair of fours for high.

If the button was steaming when the third heart hit the river and she was faced with calling two bets cold, she steamed even more when she saw the winning high hand. 'How could you raise that?' she asked the player on her right.

'Why, what did you have?' he responded.

'I had a set! I thought you made a flush.'

In this hand, it's unclear if the late-position player was raising because he thought he was the only person going low and had caught two big high hands around him (a flush and a set), or if he legitimately thought he could knock the button off of her hand. Given that he had no high hand, I'm guessing the former. But this instance clearly demonstrates that there is more than one reason to raise. Sometimes you hope a worse hand calls (or in a split-pot game, that you can trap a third player into putting extra money in the pot); sometimes you hope a better hand folds.

One of the keys to success in fixed-limit betting is to understand what a given decision — like a raise — will accomplish in a particular situation. Fixed-limit games, by design, require multiple decisions in every pot. That can lead to either a cascade of poor decisions resulting in missed wins and/or small losses, or a plethora of correct decisions and modest gains. Over the long run, each adds up in its own way.

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Poker Strategy Fixed Limit Rules

Since stumbling towards retirement nine years ago, Andrei Joseph has played low limit hold 'em in more than 100 poker rooms across 20 states. He would be $37,000 ahead — if there were no rake! Here's the second of two articles from Joseph in which he continues to explore some of the attractions and challenges of what for many poker players is a favorite variant.

Poker Strategy Fixed Limit Definition

Here are some painful lessons from the bottom end of the poker food chain: low stakes, fixed-limit hold'em.

Last time I discussed some of the reasons I enjoy low limit hold'em (i.e, $4/$8 and below). This time, let's talk a little strategy. If you follow the basic advice outlined below, you will distinguish yourself from the majority of your opponents and dramatically increase your chances of success.

First, and most importantly, listen to Archie Bell & the Drells: 'Do the tighten up, come on and tighten up, you can do it now.'

Throw away , throw away , throw away . If you are dealt pocket jacks and there are two raises in front of you, fold. If you hit the low end of the flop and there is action, get out.

This advice is tough to follow. You want to play. I want to play. I want the action. You may have driven hours to get to the darn casino. Play! Play! The bozo across the table just won playing . It is my turn for a big blind special.

No! It is your turn to fold and be patient.

Learn to distinguish between bad play and bad luck. This requires both some knowledge of poker and sober self-assessment. Learn some odds — it will contribute to a positive outcome.

I have played enough poker to have been dealt pocket aces many times (220-to-1). Only once have I been dealt pocket aces at the same time as someone else.

Many low limit players will automatically call preflop with any two suited cards. What are your odds of making a flush by the river with that starting hand? The answer is around once every 15 hands. Compare those odds to your preflop call with and a flop containing two more hearts. Now what are your odds to make a flush on the turn or river? The answer is a little more than once every three times.

How much are you required to bet? How much will you win? Do you see why it is called 'competitive algebra'?

Learning to play LHE well also sometimes appears to contain elements of psychotherapy. Look at your behavior, assess it accurately, and change the parts that are hurting you.

The default mechanism that is prevalent among many losing players includes a tendency towards superstition ('oh, seat 8 is hot'), blindness ('he hit runner-runner again' while not recognizing the times that happened in your own favor), and nonsense ('if you hadn't gotten up to go to the bathroom, those would have been my cards') — not science, statistics or rationality.

But you will spurn fake news and instead embrace rationality, empiricism, and a brutally honest assessment of the factors impacting your results.

Learn what the rake is and understand its importance. Few players actually calculate this. Some don't even notice the money going down the rabbit hole. A typical low limit game will deal around 35 hands per hour. If you don't believe this ask the dealers how many hands they get out in a 30-minute shift. Particularly if they keep their own tokes, they are trying to move the game along.

For simplicity's sake, let's assume a rake of up to $5 (and perhaps a dollar more for jackpots and/or promotions). Not every pot is raked to the maximum, but even if the average is a total of $4 per hand (for example), that means that $140 is coming off the table every hour. If the table is full with 10 players, then it is costing you at least $14/hour to play.

Add tokes when you win a pot, and you need to win at least $17/hour to break even. Difficult yes, but possible. Especially in Las Vegas late at night with less than sober tourists.

Which brings us to table selection. Some broad generalizations include that tight retirees dominate daytime versions of low limit. As evening approaches more liquor and younger players appear. If you are playing at a vacation destination, the play will be looser. Your opponents will include those who have already decided to lose hundreds of dollars as 'the price of entertainment.' Fine by me!

That's when you will see and hear the most amazing stuff at the table. Someone calling your preflop raise with will crack your pocket aces. Resist the impulse to berate your opponent. Quietly tell yourself that you want players like this at the table. That money is coming back. You just hope it comes back to you!

If you are running bad, don't imitate your opponents' poor play. Patience. More patience. If you are playing blackjack, you must play the cards you are dealt. Here, unless you are in a blind, you can toss away poor cards — and at no cost. Take advantage of this. Patience.

Read a book. Almost no one else has. I recommend Winning Low Limit Hold'em by Lee Jones or Small Stakes Hold'em by Ed Miller, David Sklansky, and Mason Malmuth.

Read these and you will gain insight into the value of position and timely aggression. You will learn when to play big pairs and when to play suited connectors. You will learn when to let go of your hand, how to deal with maniacs, and why your opponents really will hit their lucky card on the river more than you will (because by only playing premium hands, you will win more often without having to hit that two-outer). The money invested on these books will be recovered in your next session.

Finally, keep an accurate tally of what has happened. Saying to your pals, 'I win sometimes, I lose sometimes' or 'I had a good session' or 'wow, I really got beat last Friday' can be a thin attempt to delude yourself. Especially given the impact of variance, having accurate, sober statistics over a period of time is the true measure of whether you are making progress.

(Thanks to my pal Ashley for being my mentor and for driving.)

Poker Strategy Fixed Limit Credit Cards

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