Poker Strategy - Short Handed

How to Play Short Handed Poker

A lot of people just think that poker is poker. It is hard for people to understand that every single poker game you play in is different. None of them are the same. There are thousands of variables. One big variable is the amount of players that are at your table. There is a big difference between 9 players and 6 players. If you are going to win, then you will need a completely different strategy when you are playing with 6 players then if you were playing with 9. When the table has 6 players or less, it is called a short handed game.

Short Handed Differences

The main difference between a short handed game and a full table game is that there are a lot less cards dealt out. With less cards, that means that you can put a higher value on a wider variety of hands. In a full table game, many players would fold an Ace 10 in just about any position except last. In a short handed game you would raise with Ace 10 in almost any position. It is likely that Ace 10 is the best hand in a short handed game. However, it is likely that Ace 10 is dominated in a full table game.

Another notable difference is that the blinds are moving around much faster. If you are playing in a tournament, that means you are going to have less time to make a move. You will need to be very careful of when you choose to make that move, because the last thing you want is to be blinded out. If you are in a position where you are low stack and you are looking to move all in, then you at least want there to be some sort of fold equity. If you do not have any chips, nobody will fold to you. If you are playing in a ring game, this is not such a big deal. Still, you do not want to be too tight or those blinds will add up very quickly.

Short Hand Strategy

Playing in a short handed game is much more exciting and interesting than a full table. It might not be as profitable (for some playing styles), but there is usually more action. If you are going to make it in this type of game, aggressive play is very important. The more aggressive you are the more pots you will win. Most of the time your opponents are not going to make hands in a short handed game. When they do, you will usually know it. Raising before the flop and then stealing the pot on the flop or turn is a very profitable strategy. The only problem is that you will run into monsters here and there.

Winning at a short handed table takes a lot of practice and experience. You will need to get good at figuring out when your opponents have big hands and when they do not. The player that is the most aggressive while still being smart usually comes out ahead in the end. Tight players do not usually make it very far, as they are very easy to spot. When they do finally get a hand then everybody knows it. The aggressive players not only continuously steal pots, but they also are the ones who get paid off on big hands.