Starting Hand Selection: Revisited

[Poker Plan]

Just wanted to say to all the beginners on the board: How certain are you that you are playing the correct cards, playing them correctly and playing them in the correct situation????

Don't lie to yourselves. Can you put your hand on your heart and say "I fully understand and impliment the concepts in 'Pre flop play' in SSHE"?????

If not, I thoroughly recommend you go back and re-read that section alone- however many times it takes- until you have fully digested and understood it.

I have only been playing approx a year- but up until the weekend I thought I knew about hole cards. Boy was I wrong. So yesterday I started 'Pre flop play' in SSHE from scratch. I'll read it 20 times if I have to- but it's ESSENTIAL that YOU understand HOW and WHY the Starting Hand charts have been derived.

It's not good enough to have to ask "can I play X X, from MP1. You need to KNOW how to work this out for yourself.

Yes, post flop is play is more difficult. But if you are not fully conversant with pre-flop principles, you are going to make it more so.

There is a ton of info in SSHE. No wonder experienced players recommend reading it many times. But don't just read it, UNDERSTAND it.

Ian

[ottsville]

Having sound selection of PF hands is great, and a very important part of the game. Understadning what hands play well in which situations is also important. However, you should not focus solely on this nor on this at the expense of developing your post flop play. Even Sklansky and Miller say(p11) "understanding postflop concepts and play is far more essential to maximizing you win rate."

[Poker Plan]

[ QUOTE ]
Having sound selection of PF hands is great, and a very important part of the game. Understadning what hands play well in which situations is also important. However, you should not focus solely on this nor on this at the expense of developing your post flop play. Even Sklansky and Miller say(p11) "understanding postflop concepts and play is far more essential to maximizing you win rate."

[/ QUOTE ]

I couldn't agree with you more.

I just wonder though, how many people "really" understand the pre-flop concepts "before" they move onto the (more complex) Post flop concepts? Or do they consider loosely knowing a chart adequate?

[DeuceSeven]

I also liked Jen Harman's section on limit holdem in the super system 2 book. Starting hand ranges are good, but you also have to adjust to those you are playing against.

[AKQJ10]

Right, anyone can come up with a hand chart that's more or less accurate, but Ed really did a great job explaining the concepts.

"Big hands combine the best features of both kinds of hands with the weaknesses of neither." (Quoting from memory, not 100% accurate.) That sentence alone revolutionized how I look at starting hands.

[modulok]

I found it extremely helpful to make a list of all the starting hands, how they are played, and then make flashcards out of them. I used a program called Virtual Flashcards which made this much easier (no I'm not affiliated in any way). I studied one chart set at a time (loose games first). For example, I'd have AQo in tight games, and for the other side of the card i'd have something like "raise from any position, fold against a raise." After I thought I had some of them down, I bought a several decks of cards, pulled out each of the starting hands, and used those as "flashcards." I practiced until I instantly knew what to do with each starting hand, in whatever position.

I found it helpful to also keep periodically reviewing the hand categories to understand *why* each hand is played how it is. Another extremely helpful thing was to go back after having learned some of the post-flop material, and have an even better understanding of why certain hands were played as they were (AK is rasied because it often makes top pair with best kicker, which can win a great number of pots, despite being offsuit). I'm sure the more I learn, the more I'll be able to be flexible with these charts as well, adjusting them to other factors in the game, such as other people's playing styles, the climate of the game itself, and so forth.

Now, if I could just find a good methodology for studying the post-flop material...

Modulok

[ottsville]

[ QUOTE ]
I couldn't agree with you more.

I just wonder though, how many people "really" understand the pre-flop concepts "before" they move onto the (more complex) Post flop concepts? Or do they consider loosely knowing a chart adequate?

[/ QUOTE ]

I really don't think that it is necessary to fully understand the preflop concepts before moving onto the postflop concepts. I also think that was what Ed/David were getting at when they wrote, " Move quickly through the preflop material, and concentrate on what is important." Knowing the PF concepts will definitely improve your game and allow you to adapt to various situations. However, many players get stuck on PF play, and don't develop postflop play. What good is learning to play AJ PF if you don't know what to do when the flop misses you and you are against four players?

I'm not saying that players should not develop a solid understanding of PF concepts; they definitely should. I just believe that it should not be learned at the expense of developing your postflop game.