Poker Tactics - Position is a Factor

Once a grizzled old farmer expounded to me, at the poker table, "Position is everything".  He was trying to make a point about the position in the betting order can be a key factor in winning hands.  And the way he played, it seemed like he relied on it.  He liked to play very aggresively - raising before the flop and re-raising at will.  It made for a hard time for the other farmers - they liked to play conservative for their Friday night poker game.  These gents liked to play a slow game for the evening.  They were unhappy with his constant bets and raises, they preferred to win or lose $10 in an hour and not $10 in a minute.

Position is a term used to refer to when you bet in relation to the big blind and small blind players.  Sometimes position means that you get to see what the other players actions are before you get to make your move.  Sometimes it helps in bluffing - when you are the last to bid and you can see everyone else call then it makes it easier to convince them that you may have the best hand.  Sometimes you can bet first and even raise which may scare off players with medium cards waiting for a flop.

Poker is both an art and science. The science is in the probabilities and the statistics, and in the psychology of the other players.  The art is when to apply it this knowledge to your poker game.

Position can be useful but it can also be a dangerous to your poker chip stack.  Position is not a substitute for good cards.  Just like bluffing can be over-used it is the same with position.  It can be useful for some situations but use it at the wrong time and you will regret it.

I have learned from playing against the statistical players online that rarely do people - people that win at poker - stray from betting on good cards.  They don't bet unless they can make something from the cards that they have in the hole.  Perhaps they learned this the hard way, donating to other players until they learned their lessons, or perhaps they looked at the poker odds, read a few good books on poker, or just had a common sense approach.

If you are going to run against good players, and if they play a lot that is going to be true, then you need to understand that good cards are the foundation and the rest is just window dressing.

Position can help you when you need to convince others that you have a good hand but you don't when you are bluffing.  You look like you have just check-raised everyone and since they will assume you are a good player so then it fits.

Position helps when you don't have a good hand before the flop and you want to scare people off.  If you make a big first bet, then when the other good players see that they may leave before they see your cards. And then they may regret letting you have any easy win. 

Position can help you when you have lasted in a game to the turn or the river and you are still not sure if you have the better hand.  When you have an OK hand, say for example a middle strength pair and you are not sure if the other lasting players have aces etc, then position helps you if the other player has to bet first.  He or she has to declare his intentions and you have the advantage.  From then on in you get to see what the other person bets and you can use this either to trick them into betting more when you have the best hand or for you to bluff them after watching a check from them.