Basic No Limit Hold Em Cash Game Strategy

The basic principals behind no-limit Holdem cash game strategy include your table position, implied odds and the tendencies of your opponents. Selecting the right starting hands based on these factors will help to ensure that your cash game play is profitable. This article looks at no-limit Holdem cash game strategy and suggests ways to profitably adapt your play to the table.

Position

There are two aspects of table position which require strategy adjustments. The first is your position relative to the ‘dealer button’ and the second is your position relative to an opponent who raised before the flop.
If you are one of the first players to act before the flop (early position) you need to be more selective in the hands that you enter a pot with. Since most of the table is still to act there is a higher chance of a raise or re-raise ahead of you which could make your hand unprofitable.
As your position improves with fewer players still to act, your starting hand requirements can go down. Opening a pot from middle or late position carries less risk of a re-raise. In addition you have a better chance of being the last to act after the flop. This has the advantage that you get to see your opponent’s reactions before you act. If everyone checks (showing weakness) then a timely bet can take many pots uncontested.

While the dealer button position lets you act last after the flop there are times when your real position is less desirable from the button. If several players enter a pot and then a player to your immediate right raises you will be out of position relative to the field after the flop. This is due to the fact that players often ‘check to the raiser’ after the flop. When this player bets you will have to decide on your action before the other players in the field act – meaning your position becomes less valuable.

Odds

Implied-odds are at the heart of no-limit Holdem cash game strategy. Because chip stacks are relatively deep compared with the blinds a small investment in a hand before the flop can lead to a very big reward when you hit a flop hard. This makes hands such as small pairs and suited connectors valuable before the flop. Most of the time you will miss the flop and then fold when an opponent bets with these hands – however the times you make a small straight or trips and win a big pot from an opponent with aces mean that they can be played profitably in many cases.

Predict Opponents

Tendencies of you’re opponents is the final factor in no-limit Holdem cash game strategy. This can work in several ways – the basic principal is to adjust both your starting hand selection and your bets after the flop depending on how you have seen your opponents act. An extreme example might be a player who will raise and re-raise with a marginal holding most of the time. When you hit a very strong hand against this opponent the best strategy may be to check and allow him to do the betting for you – raising strongly later in the hand when he is already pot-committed. On the other hand with extra timid opponents you might choose to make small bets yourself though out the same hand, building the pot in increments so as not to ‘scare away’ your opponent.

Conclusion

To summarize, playing solid starting hands from good table position will help to ensure that your no-limit cash game play is profitable. Awareness of the role of implied odds will help you to choose hands that have the potential to win big pots after the flop for a small investment. Finally adjusting your play based on the tendencies of your opponents will let you make an even bigger profit those times you make a strong hand.