Poker seating and the position one has at the table is one of
the most important and least talked about aspects of poker. It's
especially relative to the Texas Hold'Em poker game because it
is positional in nature. Where a player sits each hand
determines the amount of information he or she can gain on other
players. This can have a big effect on your poker strategy and
how a hand is played. This article will reference how to play
poker from a table of 10 players and discuss playing from the
dealer, early, middle and late positions.

Dealer Position -- This position, also referred to as "on the
button", is the most coveted because once the flop takes place,
the dealer is the last to act. This means you can watch and
gather information on all the other players before making your
decision. Aggressive play is expected from this position,
especially when all others have checked. Almost any hand except
trash hands like 9 2, 10 4 offsuit can be considered for play
here.

For example, your opponent has Jc, Jh. You have Qd, Kd and are
the dealer. Your opponent raised $20 before the flop and you
called. The flop shows 2d, 3d, 5d. You both check the flop and
the turn shows 8c. Your opponent checks, you raise $20 and they
call. On the river the Js comes up and your opponent raises $50.
From watching you figure they may have trips. You raise to $100,
they call and you win with a King high flush. Had you been in
your opponents position of having to bet first, you would have
been hard pressed to figure what the dealer had.

Early Position -- This is made up of positions 1, 2 and 3 to the
left of the dealer and are the least advantageous as you are the
first to act after the flop and have no information on the other
players. Here one should play only the strongest hands like
paired A's, K's, Q's, J's, Tens, or suited AK, AQ, AJ and KQ.
Anything outside of these one should consider folding and
waiting for a better opportunity, especially with an aggressive
table. One thing that can be done from an early position is
bluffing. Betting from an early position can imply that you do
have a strong hand, but bluffing too often will result in others
picking up on it and can be disastrous, particularly when
aggressive bettors are at the table.

Middle Position -- Positions for the middle are 4th, 5th and 6th
to the left of the dealer. Because the disadvantage is not as
great as with the early position, you have greater flexibility
to play more hands. Hands like paired 5's thru 9's, suited
connectors from 5 6 on up, unsuited connectors 5 6, 6 7, on up.
There are more hands that can be played but this covers the
majority that can be easily remembered. Being in the middle, it
is better to raise than call if no one is in the pot, if you
have a playable hand and you feel some players will fold.

Late Position -- The 7th, 8th and 9th seats at the table to the
left of the dealer make up the late position. Here you are in an
excellent seating area of the table. You can gather a great
amount of information about the players and their hands. In
these positions, one should be aggressive if not many have
entered the pot. If there are a lot of players, scale back the
aggressive play unless you have the type of superior hand as
discussed in the early position. Another advantage of the late
position is that you can easily play cards like 5 8, J 7, Q 8.
For example, supposing you have 5 8 in the late position and the
flop is 2 6 7 unsuited and everyone else checks. Raising at a
non-aggressive table would be the correct thing to do as it
gives you a chance to gain control of the pot as well as keeping
other raises in check from those who would try to steal the pot.
But remember, it is not a license to play trash hands.

Poker seating is an advanced player concept, but the basics are
simple enough for anyone to remember and take advantage of when
the opportunity does present itself. Good luck!

About the author:
Tom Howze is a webmaster for 9 sites that relate to online
gambling, World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour events and
updates. For more information, please visit HREF="http://www.justgambleforfree.com/world-poker-tour.htm"
target="_blank"> 2005 World Series of Poker .

Author : Tom Howze
Site : www.goarticles.com

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