Keen on improving your Hold’em chances of winning with pocket pairs (2 hole cards of the same rank, could be face down pairing also)?
Then, you’re at the right place, poker lover! This article aims at giving you practical poker tips for playing pocket pairs that is sure to be a hit with beginners and those favoring low limit games!
What mostly happens with beginner poker players is the tendency to fall into a trap because of lack of game strategy or poker knowledge, however losing and learning from it should be encouraged as this takes the learning curve to a positive level. One mistake to be avoided is small pairs valued at greater amount, just like the trap of suited cards being given the same honor. New players have been observed to overplay these hands and get excited with the pots with cards that ideally should have been discarded on the flop or pre-flop. But, since this is a temptation for even top players when the going gets heated up, it is understandable for newbies to make this mistake when playing in pairs or with suited cards.
Statistics that advanced Full Tilt Poker players may throw at beginners may not always make sense till beginner poker players start understanding the reasons based on calculation of pot odds and thus, seeing the wisdom in letting certain cards go.
Small pairs appear attractive firstly because they are already there; secondly, it looks like a good proposition for those who think they may not get another chance on the flop to get a set and finally, because hitting a set on the flop is perceived as a likely chance, by the beginners. Thus, they tend to get involved in such hands, particularly so for low-limit games of Hold’em poker.
However, it is important for beginner poker players not to concentrate simply on the pair but consider other variables that determine the duration of their game in the pot on which they should base their decision for playing a specific hand – or not.
In a nutshell, this means playing on in the rare instance of getting pocket pairs, which is pure luck if you get them before the flop as you can build a good hand after the flop with these.
They are similar to other poker hands and only serve you well if you play the game right, which means they should ideally develop into more than a pair at the flop, to give you an incredibly strong hand.
Of course, this all depends on what kind of cards you have in your pocket. A pair of deuces, while nice, will probably be smacked by something else at the flop. A pair of aces though can be very well justified in riding those to the river.
With low pocket pairs, it’s in your best interest to bet aggressively before the flop. You likely have the strongest hand at the table, but its potential for developing into a killer hand is low. What you want to do here is use your relatively strong, but overall weak hand, to swoop in and scare up a small pot for yourself. Be aggressive and intimidating, and you can get a nice little addition to your chip pile.
Finally, when you are playing at the best online poker sites and have a high card pair, play slow and cautiously on the flop so you have a better idea of what cards are being packed by your opponents; since these give you a killer hand potential, allow your opponents to contribute to a big pot win you can sweep in nicely!