A Dangerous Mistake That Will Cost You Money

Here is a DANGEROUS MISTAKE that I'd say about 97% of people
make when playing Texas Holdem:

THEY DON'T KNOW THE RIGHT METHOD FOR PLAYING IN FIRST
POSITION, BEFORE THE FLOP.

This is the player immediately to the left of the big blind.
It's the first person to act as soon as the cards are dealt.

This position is nicknamed "under the gun".

And with good reason, too.

Because this is THE most DANGEROUS and COSTLY position at
the table.

Here's why:

1. When you're under the gun, you are FIRST to act BEFORE
the flop... and one of the first to act AFTER the flop.

This means you DON'T EVEN GET A CHANCE to get a read on the
other players before you must make your decisions about
betting...

2. The other players can check-raise you, trap you, and get
a READ on YOU much more easily when you're in this position
at the table...

3. You are more likely to get bluffed, pushed around, out
drawn, and BEAT when you're in this position.

Let's examine WHY this table position is so terrible... and
what proven strategies you can use to play under the gun
PROPERLY, so that you don't lose any more money because of
it.

Here's an example...

Let's say you're under the gun at an 8-man table.

You get your cards and look down at an A-10 off-suit. You
decide to limp in, and you call the big blind (50).

The action goes around the table to the other players. The
man on the button (Don) decides to RAISE and make it 300
total to play.

You're not sure if this is a position raise, or if he really
does have a solid hand.

With all the chips already in the pot... plus the 50 you
already put in from your own stack, you decide to call with
your A-10.

There's one other caller, and both the big blind and small
blind players fold.

The flop comes out:

A-3-6

All different suits.

You've hit top pair. Congratulations.

What sucks is that you're FIRST to act, and you know that
Don is probably going to raise you no matter what you do...

But you don't have a read on Don or the other player. If Don
raises, you have to call, right? I mean, you hit top pair in
a raised pot.

So let's say you throw out a "feeler bet", just to see where
you're at.

Don calls, and the other guy folds.

Hmmmm... so now you wonder if Don is SLOW-PLAYING a big
hand or if he's just going to bluff at this.

The turn comes. It's an 8.

You check... and now Don bets 1000.

What now?

You're "pot committed" and you still have top-pair, so you
decide to call.

Now the river comes, you check again, and Don goes all-in
for 3000 more.

You've already got about 1500 in the pot. You're getting
over 2:1 on your money, and you're really not sure if Don's
bluffing or not. So you call...

And sure enough, Don throws over his Big Slick (A-K), and
rakes in the pot.

Ouch.

And the REASON you lost that big pot wasn't just the
cards... it was your POSITIONING.

If you're under the gun and you hit top pair on the flop,
you're just ASKING for trouble...

Because it's very difficult to get an accurate read on your
opponents when you're first to act.

I mean... let's just look at the many ways you can LOSE your
money when playing under the gun:

- If you call the blinds, but then the pot gets raised
before the flop and you fold. (You've lost your blinds.)

- If you call the blinds (and maybe a pre-flop raise) and
the flop is no help to you. You check, and there's a big bet
by another player and you are forced to fold.

- If you bet after the flop but get raised and are forced to
fold.

- If you have a good hand but someone else has a MONSTER and
slow-plays you. (It's much easier for someone to slow-play
you when you're first to act.)

- And more...

Now multiply all of these LOSSES by the number of times you
will be under the gun every single time you play cards.

The result is a TON of lost chips...

But I do have good news:

IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY.

You don't have to lose money every time you're first to act
before the flop...

You just have to know EXACTLY WHICH HANDS TO PLAY and HOW TO
PLAY THEM.

Let's take a look...

In our example above, the biggest mistake made was playing
A-10 in the first place.

Since under the gun positioning is so dangerous, you
shouldn't play anything except PREMIUM HANDS.

The rule is this: TIGHTEN UP YOUR GAME.

Only play these exact hands:

A-K, A-Q, K-Q, and pairs.

The only other hand you may want to play is suited
connectors, but that just depends on your style...
Personally, I don't like to play them here.

OK, now let's look at HOW to play the starting hands. There
are basically two groups:

Group 1: A-A, K-K, Q-Q, and A-K.

Group 2: A-Q, K-Q, and all other pairs.

Got it?

Now stick with me here, because this is VERY SIMPLE to
understand and will save you a lot of money at the Holdem
tables.

When you're under the gun, you should always CALL THE BLINDS
(LIMP-IN) when you get any hand in Group 2.

That means if you get any pair between 2's and Jacks... or
A-Q or K-Q... you should CALL.

Period.

The goal is to hit something good on the flop. If someone
makes a reasonable raise before the flop, you can feel
comfortable calling it with one of these hands.

I love playing small pocket pairs, because if you spike your
card on the flop (giving you a three of a kind or a "set"),
your opponents will usually never see it coming.

Now let's talk about Group 1 hands. The monsters:

A-A, K-K, Q-Q, A-K

The way you play these depends on whether the table you're
at is LOOSE or TIGHT.

Here's the rule:

If you're at a LOOSE table (where a lot of pre-flop raises
occur), you should LIMP-IN (call) with your monster.

If you're at a TIGHT table (where not many pre-flop raises
occur), you should RAISE the pot before the flop.

Here's why...

If the table is LOOSE, and you limp-in before the flop, the
pot will most likely get RAISED and the action will come
BACK to you.

This is good. It means more money in the pot for your
monster hand.

But if you make a big bet, there's a good chance you will
NOT get raised. Because you're first to act and everyone
will know you probably have a good hand.

If you limp-in and the pot gets raised, you should probably
make a RE-RAISE. Always try to get as much money in the pot
whenever possible with your monster hand...

But you DON'T want more than 1-2 callers, because that would
increase the odds of catching a bad beat.

Now if the table is TIGHT, you want to make a RAISE before
the flop. You don't want a bunch of players to all limp-in
and see a cheap flop...

Instead, you want to narrow down the field to 1-2 players
and get some money in the middle before the flop. Period.

Playing first position before the flop is just plain
tricky...

You're first to act pre-flop, in early position after the
flop, you can't get as good of a read on your opponents, and
you're at risk to getting slow-played.

So just remember, the next time you're under the gun, follow
these three simple rules:

1. Only play premium hands: pairs, AK, AQ, or KQ.

2. With AA, KK, QQ, and AK, you should RAISE at a tight
table and LIMP-IN at a loose table.

3. With the other starting hands you should just LIMP-IN.

Play by these easy rules and you'll stop losing money and
start MAKING money from this very dangerous position.

And you'll have a MAJOR ADVANTAGE over everyone else at the
table who DOESN'T know this strategy.

How To Consistently Beat Sit And Go's.

It's so simple...

And so obvious...

Yet no one seems to get it!

What's this easy-to-use secret for beating Sit and Go
tournaments online?

The answer is this:

PATIENCE.

I know... I know... you were expecting something more, um...
"secretive".

But the truth is, winning at Sit and Go's is pretty damn
easy.

And that's why every time I turn on the computer these days
I feel like a kid in a candy store... ready to clean out the
amateurs at the poker room of my choosing.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

What I want to discuss here is why PATIENCE is so critical
for Sit and Go success.

First, let's get back to some basics. There are four types
of poker playing styles:

1. Tight-Passive
2. Tight-Aggressive
3. Loose-Passive
4. Loose-Aggressive

Your style should be tight-aggressive.

Don't confuse "styles" with "preferences". If you want to be
a good card player, you DON'T get to DECIDE to be
tight-aggressive.

You MUST be tight-aggressive in order to be really good.

Period.

Of course there are DEGREES of each playing style, and
that's what accounts for the differences between one pro and
another... the DIFFERENT DEGREES of tight-aggressive.

OK, now let me ask you:

What does "tight-aggressive" really MEAN?

Here's the answer:

It means that you play TIGHT in terms of hand selection, but
AGGRESSIVE when you enter a pot.

Be careful... "tight" and "aggressive" are not opposites.
"Tight" and "loose" are opposites.

And so are "aggressive" and "passive".

TIGHT refers to hand selection. AGGRESSIVE refers to
betting.

OK... so this is how playing styles relate to Sit and
Go's...

The NATURE of Sit and Go's makes them OVERRUN by
LOOSE-AGGRESSIVE style players.

The reasons are simple:

1. You can play a Sit and Go virtually anytime, anywhere,
and with anyone.

This means there's very low risk in LOSING, since you can
easily just move on to the next game. It's not like in
"offline" poker when once you get knocked out you're DONE.

2. The money seems less "real".

Let's be honest... We all know the feeling of making a
deposit into an online poker account and thinking to
ourselves how it doesn't quite feel like REAL MONEY. Am I
right?

3. There's no "embarrassment".

Online poker is virtually 100% anonymous. If you make a
stupid move, you're not worried about what the other players
THINK of you. Who cares?

After all, the other "players" are really just silly little
avatars on an animated screen.

OK, so those are three (there are many more) of the reasons
why Sit and Go's (and pretty much all of online poker) are
dominated by the playing style LOOSE-AGGRESSIVE.

Loose-aggressive is also known as the "manic" playing style.
And what's the FASTEST way to beat a manic?

Yep, you guessed it...

PATIENCE.

The reason is because MANICS are constantly playing too many
hands (loose) and doing so aggressively.

What happens is that it's difficult to get a READ on them
because you never know whether they're bluffing or not...
unless you call their bets... which you can't do because you
don't have that great a hand.

Has this ever happened to you?

Have you ever been up against a player who seemed to be
playing VERY aggressively and you just couldn't figure out
if they were bluffing or holding great cards?

And then when you got FED UP with it and DID make
a call, he had you beat?

My guess is that it HAS happened to you... just as it's
happened for me.

The key thing to know is that THERE ARE certain steps you
can take to defend this. (I even wrote an entire chapter
about this topic in my eBook.)

But fortunately in Sit and Go's, this isn't really much of a
problem. Because you're usually not up against just one or
two manics. You're up against an ENTIRE TABLE of them.

That means you shouldn't be CALLING anyone's bets.

Instead, YOU should push the action when you have a monster
hand... and ONLY when you have a monster hand. And that, of
course, requires...

PATIENCE!

It's actually much easier this way. Because with a table
full of manics, you can rely on getting action with all your
great hands.

(I should point out here that I'm generally referring to Sit
and Go's where the entry fee is less than $50. When the
stakes are higher the quality of play is usually more
intelligent. Usually.)

OK, so what I'm about to tell you might take some of the
"fun" out of Sit and Go's. But it will increase your profits
dramatically...

Here's what your Sit and Go "experience" should look like
when the field is from 8 or 10 players down to 4 or 5
players.

************************************************************

If your hole cards are...

A-A, K-K - Go all in pre-flop if you're in early position.
If in late position and there was a raise, go all-in. If
people were just trying to limp in, make a raise... and then
bet very aggressively after the flop.

Q-Q, A-K - If you're in an early position, bet big (but not
all-in). If you're in a late position, use your read on the
other players to determine whether or not you think you have
the best hand. If so, bet huge or go all-in.

All other pocket pairs - Limp-in. If you spike trips, go
all-in. If not, fold.

Suited connectors - Limp-in if the blinds are reasonably
low. Fold suited connectors under 7-6.

Ace-X suited - Limp-in if possible. Only bet if you hit the
flush.

All other hands - Fold.

************************************************************

What you've just seen will be completely different than most
"starting hand strategies" out there.

And that chart is NOT for all types of no limit Texas
Holdem. We're ONLY talking about games that match these
three criteria:

1. Online poker Sit and Go tournaments
2. Low stakes (under $50 entry)
3. While there are more than 4 or 5 players at the table (in
an 8-man or 10-man Sit and Go)

DO NOT use that starting hand advice for any other poker
games... because that's NOT how you should play your
starting hands in general.

So why would Sit and Go's be so much different than other
poker play?

Like I said before, the reason is because Sit and Go's are
heavily dominated by loose-aggressive players... and THIS is
how you beat those guys.

Why exactly does this strategy work?

It works because you're only playing monsters.

Now... if the players at Sit and Go's were SMART, they'd
OBSERVE that you're only playing monster hands... and they'd
FOLD as soon as you went all-in.

I mean... it only makes logical sense, right?

Indeed, this is how it works in live games. But not online.
Because for online poker there's another important factor
working to your advantage...

NO ONE'S PAYING ATTENTION!

The truth is, many players are either drunk, hungover,
stupid, or playing multiple tables at once. Or all of the
above!

They're not paying attention to your betting patterns.
They're just playing the CARDS, not the PLAYERS.

I call my strategy for patiently waiting for monster hands
and then going all-in:

"Tight-Aggressive Squared"

The reason is because my strategy is like the playing style
tight-aggressive... but on STEROIDS.

Why go all-in so much?

It's like I said... you WILL get action. Maybe not every
single time, but enough times to make it well worth your
while.

For Sit and Go's, all you need to do is double-up ONCE
before the field gets to 4 or 5 players.

THEN you can start playing aggressively. What will happen is
that the 4 or 5 players LEFT IN THE GAME will usually be the
smarter ones. And some of them WILL notice by now that
you're playing tight.

SO THEN what you do is steal blinds. It's easy.

Everyone tightens up when there are four or five players in
a hand because they want to make the money... and they want
to be VERY CAREFUL to make it into the top three.

That is when you steal some blinds and add to your chip
stack.

Then, after that point you'll be in third place and will be
in the money.

I have a ton of strategies for getting you into FIRST place
too (after you get down to three players), but I'll have to
save those for a different newsletter.

You know, when I first came up with this strategy of
"Tight-Aggressive Squared" I wasn't COMPLETELY convinced it
was the best way to win at Sit and Go's.

At the time, I had been trying a lot of things. The idea of
just being EXTREMELY PATIENT and then going all-in with
monster hands seemed a little TOO SIMPLE.

Right?

Then one night, I was at a 10-man Sit and Go. I went all-in
with a big hand early and doubled up. It was the only hand I
got really involved with.

Then... with 9 players still at the table... my Internet
shut off. I didn't know what happened. All I know is that
the Internet just plain STOPPED WORKING.

I normally would have called someone... but it was past two
in the morning.

I messed with it for like fifteen minutes and then just gave
up. Oh well... it's just one Sit and Go.

Anyway... I started working on something else on my computer
for awhile until all of the sudden the Internet came BACK
on.

I logged into my poker room to see what had happened with
the game. Immediately the screen POPPED-UP and the action
was to me...

I was still in the game, it wasn't over yet!

Not only that...

But there were only three players left!

I was in third, but still had some remaining chips to play
around with.

I immediately went all-in and everyone folded. Then I did it
again and everyone folded. And a few hands later I did it
AGAIN.

I picked up three enormous sets of blinds and was right back
in the game. The reason everyone was folding was because I
hadn't played a hand in 25 minutes. They were probably
wondering what the hell was going on!

Anyway, as it turned out, I actually WON 1ST for this Sit
and Go. First place baby... and my Internet only worked for
about 1/5 of the game!

After I was done I started thinking about what had just
happened. I realized that by PLAYING in a Sit and Go you can
often do MORE DAMAGE THAN GOOD when there are lots of
players at the table.

And of course, I became 100% convinced that the "magic
equation" for success is:

PATIENCE + AGGRESSION

Your goal for these games should be to place in the money as
much as possible. Period. So why risk chips on silly hands
early on?

They're just not worth it...

The other thing about this strategy is that it's a HUGE
time-saver. Because it doesn't require hardly any work until
there are 4-5 players left. It makes it MUCH easier to play
multiple tables at once... or do other things while the Sit
and Go plays in the background.

OK, so here's your "Tight-Aggressive Squared" Sit and Go
strategy:

1. Be patient, be patient, be patient!

Only play the hands I showed you earlier. Only bet before
the flop with Aces, Kings, Big Slick, and Queens.

2. When you catch a monster, go all-in. Don't do this if you
think someone has you beat (i.e. there's an obvious straight
or flush draw on the board).

I'm talking about only playing hands when you know you have
the best odds of winning.

3. When the field gets down to four or five players
(depending on how high the blinds are and how many all-in
showdowns you've won), shift gears completely and STOP using
this "Tight-Aggressive Squared" strategy.

That, my friend, is the "secret" to Sit and Go's.

It's obvious... but not-so-obvious.

But it is DEFINITELY simple.

And you can start implementing it IMMEDIATELY...