| In blackjack however, you must play every one of your hands, whether you've got the 20 or the 13. In Hold'em, you simply raise with the pair of Kings and fold the 8/5. That brings up the next similarity between Hold'em and blackjack. In blackjack, there are certain two card hands with which you must hit, double down, stand or split correctly to have a decent chance of winning. Likewise in Hold'em, there are certain two card hands with which you simply must call, raise or fold to have a decent chance of winning. It's really not an arbitrary thing -- at least not if you want to win. Right there is where your edge can begin to take shape in Hold'em poker. You see, in blackjack when a player refuses to hit his 12 against a 3, he gives an edge to his opponent -- the dealer. When a Hold'em player refuses to fold his J/9, he also gives an edge to his opponent -- you! And believe me, plenty of Hold'em players can't bring themselves to throw away a J/9. To win at Hold'em you must have stellar discipline regarding those 169 starting hands. Raising, calling and folding with the proper two-card hands will minimize the jam you may find yourself in once the flop comes down. That part of the game is primarily mechanical, much like blackjack. There are many small details to observe at the blackjack table, but most players fixate on things that can't really help their game. Want an example? The other night, three of us were sitting at the blackjack table watching the dealer shuffle. At the completion, she called out "rolling" to the floor and offered the six-deck pack for a cut. I sliced it about in the middle, the dealer placed the cards in the shoe, she "burned" the first card and waited for us to make our bets. First base then pointed to the discard tray and said, "Can I see the card?" "Showing the burn card", the dealer announced as she displayed the 8 of hearts for everybody to see. First base seemed satisfied with that and placed a $50 bet. This is a common request at the blackjack tables, yet I doubt that any of the requesters know what to do with that information. Here's another typical scenario. One player has A/3 against the dealer's 8 up and the next player has 6/4. The person with the 6/4 immediately gets a second bet ready for doubling down which is the proper play for his hand. But first, the A/3 takes a hit which is a 10 to give him a hard 14. With that, he takes another hit and busts with the second straight 10. Now the player with the 6/4 reconsiders and figures that a small card must be "due", so he just hits rather than doubles. Does he understand what he's doing? Most likely not! Let's discuss the value of seeing the burn card first. Why do some players ask to see the burn card in the first place? Some say they just want to know what their first card would've been if that card hadn't been burned. Others say they'll bet smaller if the burn card is a little one because the cards tend to run in streaks -- and they figure they're more likely to be dealt a small card. Still others say they'll bet bigger when the burn card is a little one because that leaves more big cards in the shoe for them to receive. Remember when you were a kid playing poker on your kitchen table for pennies? How did you feel when the dealer made a mistake, and you wound up getting something other than your correct cards? If you're anything like I was as a youngster, you probably felt jinxed. |
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