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Casinos> Gambling Articles > Selecting a Poker Seat to Gain an Advantage
Selecting a Poker Seat to Gain an Advantage
When playing any type of poker, you want to choose a seat
that will give you as much as an advantage as possible. This has nothing to do
with luck. When you choose a seat at a poker table, you want one that will give
you an advantage over your opponents. The amount of advantage you have will
have a lot to do with the characteristics of other players.
Your position in the betting sequence is very important.
Certain positions allow you to gain knowledge before you act. The more
knowledge you possess, the better decisions you will make. The closer to the
end of the betting sequence you are, the easier it will be to decide what
action to take. Many experiences players believe that money moves around the
poker table clockwise. Money follows the betting sequence. Players who take
action at the end of a clockwise betting sequence have a distinct advantage
over players who act before them. However, remember that positions rotate each
time a hand is dealt, so your position advantage moves also. Each player’s
position is essentially equal because of this.
In order to profit from the idea that money moves around the
table clockwise, you have to become a sinkhole. In other words, the money must
stop when it reaches your position. Choosing a seat will not turn you into a
sinkhole. You become a sinkhole only if you possess the knowledge to play your
betting position well. It has nothing to do with where your seat is in
comparison to your opponents. Playing well means you must use caution in your
early position and grow more aggressive in your late position. This is a great
goal that can be achieved from wherever you sit.
Though you can meet your goal from any seating position,
carefully choosing a seat can often give you a unique advantage for every deal.
This has to do with your position in relation to your opponents. It has nothing
whatsoever to do with the positional advantage of the betting order. Never put
undue emphasis on money flow. It depends a lot on your position to other
players, which is not the same as your position in betting order.
If you choose a good seat, you will gain two types of
knowledge. It helps you gain an informational advantage and also a strategic
advantage.
Before you have to act on your own hand, it is best to gain
as much knowledge as possible. In order to do so, it’s preferable if two types
of players act before you. These are aggressive and loose players. This helps
you gather information. If a player calls or raises, you gain a wealth of
knowledge. In some cases, you gain a strategic advantage late in the hand from
the player on your left that will overshadow any early advantage you might have
gained if he was on your right.
Some poker players want to follow a loose player in hopes
that they can raise when he gets into the pot and have a heads up on the loose
player. That will only be feasible if the game is tight and the players are
weak. If you are in that type of game, your seating position has no influence
on the end result.
When you are in a loose game, you don’t want to get a heads
up. You want as many of your opponents as possible adding their money to the
pot and your want them to have very bad draws. However, if there are
experienced players in the game, they’ll realize what you are up to with
isolation raises and will pick you off as soon as possible. Isolation is
definitely an over-rated concept.
Use the tips in this article and choose the seating position
at the poker table that will give you the best advantage in the game and keep
the money stopping at your position of sinkhole.
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