Where is the best place to play poker?
To ensure this article is not just dry theory, we will take real examples from actual games. Initially, we will look at the five cards a player receives, discuss how to arrange them, and then observe how our monitored player arranges them, analyzing their chosen strategy.
So, let's begin. We are analyzing the lowest buy-in games in the TonyBet poker network. Why did we choose the lowest buy-in games? Because there is a higher probability that the players we are observing will make many mistakes, giving us more room to analyze and discuss their gameplay.
I – Hand
Here we have a completely new game, all players have 50 points each. We have no information about the players, i.e., we do not know if they tend to choose aggressive arrangements, take more risks, play passively, or what mistakes they make, etc.
Also, our analyzed player is playing the first hand out of position, which complicates our situation because we cannot see any of the discarded cards, so in this case, safer lines should be chosen.
Several lines are possible. The safest would be: T T K at the bottom, 6 3 in the middle. This ensures a strong bottom, the existing TT pair gives a real chance to collect a full house, K as a kicker increases the chance that our full house will be higher than our opponent's. However, it's a bit of a shame to place such a good card as K at the bottom.
A slightly more aggressive line would be: T T 6 at the bottom and K 3 in the middle box. This line still ensures a strong bottom and the possibility of collecting a full house, of course, the downside is that we don't know if all T and all 6 are live. K in the middle is also a very safe choice, such a starting arrangement is like preparation for a hand like: TTTXX / KK / QQ.
K ensures a safe middle and the possibility to place QQ at the top, gaining +7 points and fantasy. I would also classify this line as a safe choice, and playing out of position, I would choose this one. [Brilliant choice: this line]. However, more aggressive lines should be reviewed, and I will repeat once more that when playing out of position, safe starting lines should be chosen.
Aggressive line: I think one of the most aggressive lines would be TT / 36 / K (TT at the bottom / 36 in the middle / K at the top). Such a line, because we play very aggressively for 8 points at the top and fantasy. However, such a line is very risky and very aggressive, we have no information if the kings are live, or if our middle cards are live, and this is very important.
Such a line would be suitable if we were the last to act and saw, for example, that 2 or 3 queens were discarded, and there is little or no chance for us to place queens at the top, also seeing that all 3/6 and aces are live, then I would feel much calmer about my middle line and would not be afraid of burning out.
So we discussed three possible lines, their advantages and disadvantages. And now it's time to see what arrangement our opponent chose.
So our analyzed player chose the most aggressive option. I think this is one of the typical mistakes when players play too aggressively for fantasy. Collecting fantasy is good, but our primary goal is not to burn out, especially when we are playing out of position.
II – Hand.
In this case, we will again try to analyze several possible options and then see which option the second player chose. In this case, the second player's situation is much better, as he already sees five revealed cards.
For example, he has information that the first opponent has no A, which is very good information for the player and an opportunity to have a safer middle. However, let's start again with the safest line.
Safest line: I think it's clear here that the safest line is to place a flush at the bottom and 82 in the middle, thus leaving the possibility for a second flush.
Aggressive line: would be (85 / 2A / K) 8 5 at the bottom leaving as two live cards, which also have a straight possibility, placing a completely live A in the middle, and K at the top hoping to collect +8 points for the top “box” and get fantasy.
A natural question may arise – why place 85 at the bottom instead of 82, which would also give a flush possibility.
I think the difference between these cards is quite small, one has a backdoor flush draw, the other has a backdoor straight draw, so we simply place higher cards to have a chance to form two higher pairs than in the middle if, say, 2277A or similar falls in the middle.
Which line to choose? First, we should look at the live cards we need. In this case, all live A and live 85 allow us to choose an aggressive line. Also, all Q are still live, which is also very good for us, so the aggressive line looks quite good in this situation.
However, there is one but, our first opponent is super aggressive and chose one of the most aggressive lines, so there is a high probability that he will simply burn out. So against such aggressive play without position, it would be optimal for us to choose a safer defensive line with a flush at the bottom.
Hoping to place something like flush/flush or flush/two pairs and leaving the top for QQ or a high pair, which would give us a few extra points. Brilliant choice: Safer line
So, we see the choice of our second analyzed player, he chose a safe and good arrangement. It's time to move on to the third hand.
III- Hand.
In this round, it is the player with the greatest advantage over his opponents because he has position. In this case, the first player made his moves knowing nothing, while the third player makes moves seeing even ten revealed cards. What should we pay attention to first?
First, we see a pair of 55 in the player's hand, which is a great start for forming a strong bottom line, we just need to check if the opponents have not discarded fives. Unfortunately, one five has already been used :(. However, still having one remaining five is not bad.
Now we need to find a live kicker for those fives. I think the difference between these cards is quite small, one has a backdoor flush draw, the other has a backdoor straight draw, in this case, we have 6 and 9. 6 is a bit too small a card for our kicker and one more has already been used.
In this case, 9 is already a good kicker for fives, and if we draw 5599X at the bottom, smaller pairs like 6677x can play in the middle, and so on. If we place 6 as a kicker at the bottom, then only 3344x and below would fit in the middle. So, the bottom is clear.
What else do we have in our hand? Clearly, the Q, and most importantly, all Qs are live. This is very good news for us, and of course, we place the Q at the top. The only downside of this hand is a very weak middle. In the middle, there's only a 6, which is already dead, and it's also important to note that two Ks and one A are already out.
For this reason, if I draw a second Q without strengthening my middle, I won't rush to place it at the top. In this case, the third opponent has only one optimal choice – 559 / 6 / Q (5 5 9 at the bottom line, 6 in the middle, Q at the top.)
In this case, it is both the safest and most aggressive line, and any other placements would be a mistake. Brilliant choice: 559/6/Q
This was a brief analysis of starting hands conducted by Brilliant. I remind you that the rules for playing Open Face Chinese poker can be found in previous articles. In our next strategy article, we will try to analyze a game from start to finish together with you.
