How to Adjust to Different Styles in Texas Hold`em

When discussing Texas Holdem poker, you may have heard a particular type of game or player being described as: tight, loose, passive or aggressive. What do these terms mean, and how can you use them to your advantage in your Texas Hold em game?

Texas Hold'em Poker -Tight vs. Loose Games

Tight vs. loose refers to how many players are likely to see the flop and how willing they are to put in chips after the flop. The tighter you are, the fewer flops you see. Since there are not that many strong holdings in Texas Hold'em poker, you should only be playing between 15% and 25% of the hands that you are dealt. However some players play many more hands than this. Players who play very few hands are said to be tight, whereas players who play a lot of hands are considered loose. Remember, player styles have nothing to do with Texas Hold'em rules.

Which type of game should you be looking to play in? A good game has a mix of tight and loose players. As long as you can identify which players are the loose ones and which are the tight ones, this is a game where you can gain an advantage. If a game is entirely composed of tight players, it will be difficult to make any real money, since players will only be putting chips in when they have very strong hands. If you do find yourself in one of these games, you should be willing to bluff more, as you will rarely encounter resistance. When you do encounter resistance, you should back down immediately, as your opponent is likely to have a strong hand. If a game is very loose, you should play tight and stay disciplined. When your strong hands are run down by very weak starting hands that improve on the turn or river, you are likely to get frustrated and want to play weak holdings yourself. This will negate your advantage. Over the long run, you will make more money by starting with stronger hands than your opponent.

Texas Hold'em Poker -Passive vs. Aggressive Games

In Texas Hold'em, as in any other poker variant, aggressive players like to bet and raise, passive players prefer to check and call. It is always better to have passive opponents, as they tend to be easy to read; when they bet, they have a hand, when they don't bet; they are weak and can be forced to fold with aggressive betting. If you find yourself in a game with many aggressive players, the best thing to do is wait for a strong hand and trap your opponents, that is to say, appear weak when you have a strong hand and let them bluff their chips off to you.

It is ideal if you can get loose, aggressive players on your right, since you will usually get to see what they do before you act, this since Texas Hold em rules constitute that the player to your right will almost always act before you. This way you can: trap, get away, or try to take the lead in a hand accordingly to your hand strength. Similarly, against tight, passive players, it can be an advantage to act first, as you can show strength which will often scare them away.

Your ideal poker strategy is to shop around until you find a table with a good mix of tight, loose, passive and aggressive players. If a game has a bias, it is usually better for you if the game is biased towards loose, passive play, and will be most challenging if the bias is toward tight, aggressive play. Regardless, using the strategies above will help you compensate for any bias in any game you might find yourself in.