John C. Steele - Poker Mastery: A Strategy Guide to Mastering No Limit Texas HoldEm Poker

Copyright (c) 2012

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical without permission in writing from the publisher or author.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. The publisher or the author disclaims any personal loss or liability caused by utilization of any information presented herein.

Visit the authors website:

http://www.GamblingProTips.com

ISBN: 9781623094706

More Books by John C. Steele:

Roulette Secrets Revealed

The Science of Blackjack: Card Counting Secrets and Strategies

Ultimate Sports Betting Strategies: Bet Like the Pros

How to Win BIG at Baccarat

Casino Crapsmology: Learn to Play and Win at Craps

Slot Machine Junkie: How to Win at Slots Consistently

Getting Started

If you have never played a hand of poker before, then this book is for you. However, it is also designed to help normal players who are struggling with the game. Poker is a unique game in that it is deceptively simple. The basic rules are very easy to learn, but the advanced concepts are quite hard to master.

This book will help you get started in mastering No Limit Texas Hold Em. This is the perfect game to choose because it is played everywhere. Some forms of poker such as Stud and Draw are only played in certain areas. You will also have difficulty in finding stud and draw games at many of the online sites. No Limit, on the other hand, is running all the time. Read this book and then go out and start winning the games with the strategy you will have learned.

Part 1

No Limit Texas HoldEm Fundamentals

No Limit Hold Em Basics

No Limit Texas HoldEm is the most popular poker game in the world. This section will give you an overview of the basic rules. Once you understand the basics we will move on to more advanced concepts.

Because it is so easy to learn, there are many players who imagine they are ready to sit down and play for real money. This is what makes the game so great to play. Anyone who has taken the time to study No Limit strategy can easily profit off of the novice players. You gain an advantage over other players when you understand the various concepts involved in the game. The first step is to understand how the game is played.

So, lets get to the basics.

Everyone is dealt two cards face down. These are called your hole cards. Five cards are then dealt out, face up. These cards are community cards. The five cards are dealt out in three parts: the Flop, the Turn, and the River. The flop consists of 3 cards. The River and the Turn are each a single card.

Hole Cards

The Flop

The Turn

The River

No Limit Hold Em is played with blinds. These are forced bets, called blind because you put the bet out before you see your cards. There are two blinds: a small blind and a big blind. The big blind is twice the small blind.

There are 4 betting rounds: Preflop, Flop, Turn and River.

In No Limit HoldEm you can bet as much as you want. This is the primary difference between Limit HoldEm and No Limit. In Limit poker you are only able to bet a fixed amount. This is not the case with No Limit. The ability to bet as much as you want is one of the reasons that skilled players have a tremendous edge in No Limit.

If you have the best hand on the River you can move all in. For example: You are playing at a table and have $200 dollars. On the river you have the best hand, also known as the Nuts. If there is $20.00 in the pot, and the blinds are $1/$2, in a Fixed Limit game you would not be able to bet more than $4 dollars (which is one Big Bet). In No Limit you could bet as much as $200 dollars. The only limit to the amount of money you can bet is how much you have in your stack.

This is a very important point. In No Limit you have the opportunity to win someones entire stack. The best players will make more money playing No Limit than any other game.

A Sample Hand

Lets look at a sample hand. This will allow you to understand the basics of position, betting, and action. Concepts such as bet sizing, position, pot odds, and bluffing will be discussed in detail later.

You are the big blind. This means you put out a forced bet. For this example we will be using a $1/$2 No Limit Cash Game. In a $1/$2 No Limit game, the person in the big blind will be forced to put out $2 before the cards are dealt. The small blind will be forced to put out $1.

Other players have three options.

1. Call. This means that they put out $2. This is also known as limping in to the pot.

2. Fold

3. Raise. They may raise as much as they like. If they raise, anyone who wants to continue must call that raise.

You are dealt Ace Ten of diamonds.

It folds around to the person in the Cutoff. He limps in. This means he calls the $2. The Button also calls. The small blind completes (he puts in an extra dollar).

There is now 2+2+1+3= 8 Dollars in the pot. You have the option to either Check or Raise. You check your option.

The Flop comes:

The small blind acts first. They check. You are next to act. You check. At this point you have a big draw, but there are still people left to act.

The next player to act is the Cutoff. They bet out $5. The Button calls the $5. The Small blind folds. It is up to you. Since you have both a Straight draw and a Flush draw, you call the five-dollar bet. You might check raise, fold, or call. These different options will be discussed later on.

There is now $23 in the pot.

The Turn comes:

You now have the nuts (the best possible hand). However, there are other hands that can draw out on you. Anyone with a set can make a Full House if the board pairs. Also, there is now a backdoor clubs draw.

You are first to act. In this spot you choose to check-raise. So you check. The cutoff bets again. This time they bet $19 dollars. The button calls. There is now $61 dollars in the pot. You are now forced to either call, fold, or raise. You decide to raise and bet $50 dollars. You do not make it too big, because you want a call.

The action returns to the cutoff. They think for a while and then shove all in for $100 dollars. The button folds. You call. The cutoff has King Queen.

The River is:

You take down the pot. Your opponent has two pair.

The board reads.