There are 4 main categories of poker play. I consider there to be 5 types of poker players because I feel professional players can change frequently between these 4 types of players therefore making themselves difficult to categorize. These four types of play are derived from the fact that there are passive and aggressive players in terms of how frequently they bet. An aggressive player can be identified because they often make large bets, and usually once they open a pot for a raise will continue betting after the flop falls regardless if the cards help their hands or not. A passive player is just the opposite they usually do not raise preflop hands and often check regardless if they have improved on the flop.
There is also another difference that can separate players hand selection. If they have a very small hand selection prior to seeing the flop they are considered to be tight players. If they have a large hand selection preflop then they are considered to play loose.
From this we can determine 4 different player types the first I will discuss is the tight passive player. This type of player has a very conservative hand selection and may play as few as 10 hands. AA KK AK QQ JJ TT 99 88 77 and AQ. This type of player is very predictable and can easily be avoided when they do enter a hand. Eventually this type of person does tend to blind their chips away. These hands are the hands that I recommend be played from early position all the way through to any other position. However from early position these are the only hands I recommend you play. I consider early position to be the first 2 seats to the left of the big blind.
In my opinion tight aggressive is the best strategy for a beginner to learn to play. It is also the strategy used the most by professional poker players. A tight aggressive style is the hardest to play against because most of the time the player will only be betting when they have good holdings. A TAG players as they are often referred to are considered by most as 'solid players' they won't make many strange bets. When they are betting they are often betting for value and to protect their hand from getting beat.
This is where I bring up the loose passive player. The person is often known as a calling station this is not the type of player you want to become. This person is why poker can be very profitable at times. When this player hits any part of the flop they will continue to put money into the pot. Against this type of player you may also notice that they will draw out on you at times and you need to beware of this as well. The best strategy against this type of player is continue to be aggressive against them especially if the flop contains a lot of draws such as connecting cards 4 5 7, or flush draws 2 or 3 of one suit on the flop.
Now on to loose aggressive this type of player is more dangerous than the calling station but is also difficult to play against because they will bet or raise with absolutely nothing. This can be a
profitable way to play if you can use other peoples playing styles against them. However it takes an advanced play book to be able to use this style well. This LAG player can also be trapped if you disguise a big hand preflop. This player will often trap themselves on many occasions. If you can slow play aces or kings preflop in a hand where your opponent makes top pair you can extraxct some chips.
I have developed a poker hand chart based on position for you to use while you learn to play poker. If you are the first person to enter an unraised pot preflop and you have any of the selected hands above its ok for you to put in a raise. I actually recommend that you put in a raise. Do you have to play these hands everytime you in that position? The answer is no some of the late position hands do not need to be played but often if you put in a little raise you may take down the pot. It all depends on the players in the blinds what type of player are they? Watch your opponents and learn what style of play they are using and think about how you can beat each type of player.
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