Tournament Strategies
After receiving pocket cards, you are immediately faced with a choice: play your cards and either raise or call the blinds, or fold.
Practice Matters
If your opponent just calls and you turn a queen or jack,
If your opponent just calls and you turn a queen or jack, he will never see it coming and will tend to pay you off. You also have a backdoor flush draw, which will win you a huge pot from time to time. You can easily fold if your opponent raises your flop bet, as you will know you are behind. I generally like leading when I have a hand that is usually behind but has some equity if called. I tend not to lead with total air or weak made hands. If you lead with a weak made hand, you will find yourself in some tough situations later in the hand.
It’s best to make these leads into players who are quick
It’s best to make these leads into players who are quick to give up on their hands. These tend to be the older, tighter players. I would not suggest this play against young, aggressive players because they will tend to raise you rather wide. You must figure out who will let you get away with these steals and who will be quick to abuse you.