Tier 1 - Premium Hands (Top 2%):

• Pocket Aces (AA)

• Pocket Kings (KK)

• Pocket Queens (QQ)

• Ace-King suited (AKs)

These are monster hands. You should almost always raise with these, regardless of position. They're strong enough to win without improvement, but can also make powerful combinations.

Tier 2 - Strong Hands (Next 5%):

• Pocket Jacks and Pocket Tens (JJ, TT)

• Ace-King offsuit (AKo)

• Ace-Queen suited (AQs)

• King-Queen suited (KQs)

These hands are very strong but vulnerable. Raise with them in most positions, but be cautious if you face heavy resistance.

Tier 3 - Playable Hands (Next 8-10%):

• Pocket Nines through Pocket Sevens (99-77)

• Ace-Jack suited, Ace-Ten suited

• King-Jack suited, King-Ten suited

• Queen-Jack suited

• Suited connectors like Jack-Ten suited, Ten-Nine suited

These hands have potential but need the right situation. Position matters greatly here.

Tier 4 - Marginal Hands (Next 10-15%):

• Small pocket pairs (66-22)

• Ace with weak kicker (A9-A2)

• Broadway cards offsuit (KQ, QJ, JT)

• Lower suited connectors (98s, 87s, 76s)

These are speculative hands. Play them selectively, primarily in late position or when you can see the flop cheaply.

Tier 5 - Trash (Everything else - roughly 65%):

• Unconnected, unsuited low cards (72o, 83o, J4o)

• Weak offsuit hands with no coordination

Fold these immediately. Don't get creative. These hands lose money in the long run.

Position

THERE WILL BE AN ENTIRE LESSON ON POSITION, BUT FOR NOW, THINK ABOUT IT THIS WAY:

The later you come in the betting order, the more powerful you are in the hand. In Early Position (first 2-3 seats after the big blind) you act first throughout the hand, which is a major disadvantage. Play only premium and strong hands here.

Why? Because 6-7 players still act behind you. Play tight here: Tier 1-2 hands.

Middle Position (next 2-3 seats): You have slightly more information. You can add some Tier 3 hands to your range: suited face cards, faces and aces, suited connectors like JTs or T9s. Still proceed with caution.

Late Position (button and cutoff - the seat before the button): This is where you print money. You act last post-flop, meaning you see what everyone does before making your decision. This is huge.

In late position, you can play a much wider range.

The Blinds: You've already invested money, so the math changes slightly. You can defend your blind with more hands if the raise is small, but don't fall into the trap of "defending" with garbage just because you've posted a blind.

Here's a practical rule: tighten up in early position, loosen up in late position.

Other Key Factors

Beyond hand strength and position, consider these factors:

• Stack sizes:

  • Deep stacks (100+ big blinds): You can play more speculative hands like small pairs and suited connectors because there's room to win big pots when you hit.

  • Short stacks (20-40 big blinds): Stick to stronger hands. You don't have room to maneuver or waste chips to see cheap flops.

• Table dynamics:

  • Tight table: Everyone's folding? You can loosen up and steal blinds with marginal hands in late position.

  • Aggressive table: Multiple raises? Tighten up. Only play premium hands unless you want to gamble.

  • Passive table: Lots of calling, little raising? You can see flops more cheaply with speculative hands.

• Opponent tendencies:

  • If the player to your left is very aggressive, tighten your range—you'll face more pressure.

  • If players behind you are weak and passive, you can expand your range.

• Are you in a raised pot or unraised pot?

  • Unraised pot: You can limp or raise with a wider range.

  • Facing a raise: Tighten significantly. You need a stronger hand to call or re-raise.

  • Facing a re-raise: Unless you have a Tier 1 hand, strongly consider folding.

Mistakes that cost beginners the most money:

Mistake #1: Playing too many hands I cannot stress this enough. The biggest leak for new players is entering too many pots. Remember: folding is not losing. Folding is saving money for better spots.

Mistake #2: Falling in love with Ace-anything Ace-Six offsuit is not a good hand. Neither is Ace-Three or Ace-Eight. Just because you have an ace doesn't mean you should play. Aces with weak kickers get you into trouble—you make a pair of aces and lose to someone with a better kicker.

Mistake #3: Ignoring position Playing Jack-Nine offsuit in early position is asking for trouble. The same hand on the button against timid players might be fine. Position transforms hand values.

Mistake #4: Overvaluing suited cards Yes, suited cards can make flushes, but you'll only complete a flush about 6% of the time by the river. Don't play Queen-Three just because they're both hearts. Suitedness is a bonus, not a reason to play garbage.

Mistake #5: Playing for the blinds you've posted You posted the big blind, someone raised, and you have 9-4 offsuit. Fold. Don't throw good money after bad. That blind is already gone—don't lose more trying to defend it.

Final advice: Start tight. Play only Tier 1-2 hands for your first few sessions. Once you're comfortable and understand post-flop play better, gradually add Tier 3 hands in good positions. As you gain experience, you'll learn when to expand further.

Remember: poker rewards patience. Wait for good cards in good positions, and you'll be ahead of 80% of recreational players right from the start.

Fold a lot, and when you do play, play with confidence.