Poker School - Lesson 4 | Play at the Flop

Position on the Flop

Before we talk about playing the typical situations at the flop, let's look at how position affects us and what makes having position important. In the game of holdem, the position is second to only your hole cards in importance. If you're at a good (late) position, you can see how your opponents react to the flop before you need to make your own decision, and that enables you to make better decisions. Some points that make late position valuable :

1. When you're in late position with a speculative hand, you can see if there will be enough players padding the pot for you, and if you get to play on with only paying one bet instead of multiple bets.

2. With a strong hand, you can now see how the betting is done before you, and then decide if you want to make a raise or maybe just a call to get a raise in at a later round of betting.

3. You can check and take a free card in late position. If you check in early position, you will give your opponents the chance to bluff you out or value bet their good hands. You can also raise or bet a cheap street in order to receive a free card on more expensive street.