Folding a Poker Hand - When to Fold It in Poker
To be a successful online poker player you need to know when to fold it. Good poker strategy includes decision making both before and after the flop.
Folding it Pre-Flop
To begin with your decisions for poker hands will be determined by what type of poker game you are in. The amount of players around the table will influence what cards you should continue with. Since there are so many variations of poker in online poker rooms you will have to learn more specifically what the best poker strategy is for each game but there are general guidelines that apply to all poker games.
If you don’t have small pairs or higher cards of the same suite you should consider folding it in the pre-flop game. Playing the low cards, the small pairs, is less advisable if you are in a game where a very small amount of players will be around for the flop. You will have another three betting rounds after the flop but a smart player knows when it is time to get out at an early stage.
Useful Tools
If you were to rely only on time to teach you when to fold it in poker, you could be in for a very expensive ride. Luckily there are plenty of ways to read situations without actually having been in them or remember having encountered the very same poker scenario before. Many players rely on pot odds when deciding to stay in the game or not. The poker pot odds give you the chances of your hand emerging as the winner and based on this you decide if you want to continue betting or if it is time to fold it. It is especially the pre-flop decision that can be based on pot odds. Later in the game you need to invest in your poker skills to understand if it is worth it to stay in the game or not.
To know when to fold it you also need to understand the betting and how it relates to your bankroll. Playing in small stakes games is a good idea for someone that is completely new to the game. Folding it means that you will loose some money but if you play in the smaller stakes you don’t risk being ruined each time. Make sure to play in a poker room that lets you track your games and go through them afterwards. This will let you see when you folded it wisely and when you could have stayed in successfully.
Risks involved when folding
Just because you fold it in smaller stakes poker games it doesn’t mean that you are not taking a risk by quitting rather than taking a chance on a less convincing hand. With time, folding it could be a very foolish move. If you know that you are beat at the River bet you should of course fold but in any other case this is a very bad move. Remember that a hand that was strong pre-flop can turn into a weak one so make sure to stay alert and follow the game. It is hard to fold a hand that looked so promising but sometimes this is just what you have to do to become a good poker player. Keep your eyes on the board and learn to recognize when your hand is no longer the best but rather second to the best or even worse!