Nathan 'BlackRain79' Williams reveals nine critical preflop strategies for beginner poker players. Learn what hands to play, when to raise, and much more to dominate the early stages of the game.
Nathan Williams: Nathan Williams, also known as 'BlackRain79', is a professional poker player who has over a decade of experience in the game. He is particularly known for his success in small and mid-stakes online poker games, where he has achieved some of the highest winnings recorded. Nathan began his poker career with a modest bankroll and quickly became a full-time professional player in 2007. He has authored three best-selling poker books, which contain strategies that have helped countless poker players improve their game. Additionally, Nathan runs a popular poker blog and YouTube channel where he shares his insights and strategies. He also offers a training course called BlackRain79 Elite Poker University, where he teaches players how to crush small and mid-stakes games. His approach to teaching poker focuses on discipline, hard work, and the understanding that poker is not always the 'fun, exciting thrill ride' depicted in media, but rather a serious endeavor that requires a strategic and disciplined approach.
Preflop Position Importance: Play more hands from profitable positions like the cutoff and button, as acting last post-flop offers a statistical advantage.
Raising First Into the Pot: Always raise instead of limping when you're the first into the pot to show strength and take control.
Raising Against Limpers: Increase your raise amount when facing limpers to encourage them to fold and gain control of the pot.
Three-Bet Strategy: Use three-betting selectively against weak regulars with a high fold-to-three-bet percentage to exploit their cautious play.
Hand Selection: Play a top 20% range in 6-player games and a top 15% range in 9-player games to maintain a disciplined preflop strategy.
Targeting Recreational Players: Focus on winning against less skilled players who play too many hands, and ideally position yourself to their left.
Adjusting Raise Size: Adjust your preflop raise size based on table dynamics to ideally get one caller and prevent too many players from entering the pot.
Handling Aggressive Players: Against highly aggressive players, opt to call more often preflop, especially with middle-strength hands, to keep the pot size manageable.
All-In Preflop Strategy: Only go all-in preflop with premium hands like AA, KK, QQ, and AK when playing against regular, decent players in 100 big blind deep stack games.
Pre-flop Strategy: Explains the importance of position, particularly the cutoff and the button, and encourages playing more hands from statistically profitable seats.
Raising First In: Advises always raising when first to enter the pot to assert strength and take control, suggesting a default of three times the big blind.
Raising the Limpers: Recommends raising against players who limp to claim the pot, with the raise size adjusted based on the number of limpers.
Three-Betting: Discusses the strategy of re-raising pre-flop against weak regulars, focusing on aggressive plays with both premium hands and lighter holdings.
Starting Hand Selection: Provides hand charts for six-max and full-ring games, emphasizing a tighter range for more players at the table and the importance of discipline.
Targeting Recreational Players: Highlights the significance of identifying and exploiting less skilled players, ideally positioning oneself to their left.
Adjusting Raise Sizes: Stresses the need to adjust pre-flop raise sizes based on table dynamics to ideally have one caller and avoid multi-way pots.
Playing Against Aggressive Players: Advises flat calling versus aggressive opponents, especially when in position, to control pot size and exploit post-flop advantages.
All-In Strategy: Suggests only going all-in pre-flop with premium hands such as pocket Aces, Kings, Queens, and Ace-King, in 100 big blind cash games or early tournament stages.
This article is a summary of the video 9 PREFLOP Poker Tips For Beginners (Just Do This!) by BlackRain79Poker published on May 15, 2023 at 15:28:15.
Q: As a beginner, how do I decide which hands to play preflop in poker? A: Adopt a disciplined hand selection strategy using hand charts, which recommend playing the top 20% of your hands in a six-player game and the top 15% in a nine-player game, including all pocket pairs, most Broadway hands, and a selection of suited aces and connectors.
Q: Why is position so important in poker, and how do I use it to my advantage? A: Position provides a significant statistical advantage because acting last post-flop allows you to see your opponents' actions before making decisions. Focus on playing more hands from the most profitable seats like the cutoff and the button, where you're likely to act last.
Q: What's the proper way to apply aggression in poker preflop? A: Be aggressive by always raising first into the pot, raising up limpers, and occasionally three-betting light against weak regulars. This puts pressure on opponents and helps control the pot.
Q: How do I handle opponents who limp into pots? A: Raise up the limpers with any playable hand, adding one big blind to your raise size for each limper to incentivize them to fold and claim the pot.
Q: How should I adjust my strategy to different table dynamics? A: Avoid static strategies by adapting to the table conditions. This includes adjusting your raise sizes to achieve the ideal scenario of having one caller, or even taking down the pot preflop.
Q: How do I identify and target the right opponents at the poker table? A: Focus on playing against recreational players who play too many hands and are less experienced. Use position to your advantage by sitting to their left and engaging in pots with them more frequently.
Q: What's the best way to deal with aggressive poker players? A: Instead of fighting fire with fire, counter aggressive players by flat calling their raises, especially when in position. This keeps the pot size manageable and allows you to outplay them post-flop.
Q: How can I maintain disciplined hand selection in poker? A: Stick to the recommended starting hands based on position and game type. Remember that poker is not always about excitement, and discipline in hand selection is crucial for long-term success.
Q: When should I decide to go all-in preflop in poker? A: In 100 big blind cash games or early tournament stages, only go all-in with premium hands like pocket Aces, Kings, Queens, and Ace-King, unless you're up against a highly aggressive player where you may need to widen your range slightly.