Play A Hand Of Texas Hold 'Em! Quiz

Answer: Bid four times the Big Blind

You are in a perfect position to "steal" the Blinds. No one else is in, and you have a good hand.

To fold would be to throw away a good.

To call would allow the Blinds to see a "cheap" Flop.

A-T off-suit is a hand you should probably throw away this early in a tournament from under the gun, but it is a pretty good hand from the button with no callers. It's nowhere near good enough for an all-in. Your straight possiblity is there, and the flush possibility is all but non-existant. Any pair will give a caller the advantage, and a Pair higher than a Ten will be very tough to beat. A common mistake beginners make is to push all-in or risk more chips than they need too. a solid 4x's Blind bet will make callers pay for a draw, while risking less than 1/15 of your stack.

Answer: False

Any player holding "Big Slick" (Ace-King) will have a better Two Pair than you do. Remember, two Aces, and three Kings are still unaccounted for.

A pocket pair of Kings, Aces or Tens will also give another player Three Of A Kind, which also beats your hand.

Any player holding QJ has already hit the straight.

You no longer have a any chance of a Flush draw, while any player with two pocket spades now has "four to the Flush".

To hit a Straight, you still need Queen-Jack, with only two cards left on the draw.

Other players still have the Straight draw possibility (or may already have the Straight), and we must assume that there is a decent chance one of the Blinds is holding high cards as they both called the raise.

Answer: Raise to 300

Even though there are many ways you might lose this hand, there is still a decent chance you do have the best hand at this point.

The Blind actually bid less than it cost him to see the flop, indicating he does not have a powerful hand. He may be slow-playing, but it is not adviseable to slow-play without the "nuts" or a nearly unbeatable hand. He is probably trying to "tickle", or semi-bluff. At any rate, he has made the mistake of not wagering enough to make you fold.

Folding is a mistake because you possibly have the best hand, and 60 chips is cheap, considering your stack and the odds of winning the pot.

Calling is a mistake, because if your opponent is drawing for the flush, you will make it easy for him, and may allow the Small Blind to stay in.

Pushing all-in risks more chips than is necessary, and still gives a caller better than "pot odds" to hit a Flush if he has two Spades in his pocket. If your opponent really does have a better hand and calls, you are likely done. If he is looking for the Flush and hits it, your game is similarly over.

300 (It is not the only amount you may bet in this situation) is a solid bet. It stops bluffers dead in their tracks, and still leaves you with 1120 chips should you see the need to fold. It also has great potential to let you know where you stand: If you get reraised you are likely beat; whereas a call may give you information based on your opponent's body language as he calls. 300 matches the pot amount, and requires the next bidder to bet a good percentage of the total pot just to stay in. It leaves you a decent stack in relation to the blinds if you are re-reraised, and it just may take the pot down right there!

Answer: True

Looking for "tells" is an integral part of the game. There are good actors out there, but the fact that the room is cool, and the caller is sweating profusely would indicate he is not acting. Sweating may also imply he is physically ill, which may impair his judgement. Either way, you are looking good.

Answer: A Flush

Since a Ten did not come on the Turn there is no reason he would have been relieved to see the Four if he were holding pocket Tens. The fact that you have one of the tens, makes it even more unlikely he has the other two.

A Straight Flush is not possible according to what's on the board.

Your opponent would not be likely to have been drawing for a Pair of Fours in this situation.

Answer: Any of these are possible

If your opponent is holding T-4 he just hit Two Pair - Tens over Fours.

If your opponent is holding A-4 he just hit Two Pair - Aces over Fours.

If he is holding 4-4 in his pocket, he just hit Three Of A Kind - Fours.

Answer: No

There are too many possible ways your opponent has you beat. Combine this with your unsavvy opponent's behavior and you cannot assume you have the best hand. In fact, there is a strong possiblitly you are beat as the cards stand.

Answer: Check

Your opponent is obviously a rank amateur. He has made the mistake of trying to "trap" you. (He has obviously been watching too much "World Poker Tour" on TV.)

Assuming he is holding at least a Flush, you only have four "outs", or an 8.5% chance of making a Full House on the River. Even a 200 chip bet would put the "pot odds" far beyond justifying a call (although some players would call 200 to "protect their children" - the chips already invested in the pot). Instead of making you fold or earn the draw, he has given you a free look at the River.

Raising in this situation would most likely play into your opponent's plan, and would indicate you have also been watching too much T.V.*

*Many great players would normally go all-in here even with the worst hand because of the fold possibility and the outs. Readers of Doyle Brunson's book: Super/System (The Bible of Poker) may point this out. However, early tournament strategy and cash game strategy are very different. Even Doyle points out the way he won his '76 and '77 Main Event bracelets was to abandon his cash game strategy and emulate Johnny Moss's style of trying to stay alive and not buy so many pots until the field narrows. Further, your opponent in this scenario seems to be a calling station who will only make Post Oak Bluffs. Even Mr. Brunson says he NEVER tries to bully a calling station out of the pot. You have to play bad players straight - up.

Answer: Go all-in. Your opponent is "pot committed" and it is very unlikely he has you beat, given his nervousness after the flop

Your opponent only has 320 chips left, he is definitely pot committed.

If he has the Ace of Clubs and either remaining Ten, you tie. Given his previous body language, he probably does not have the tying hand anyway.

Four Of A Kind and Straight Flush are now impossible. The only hand that can beat you is Full House - Aces full of Kings. If your opponent had A-K, he would have probably bet bigger after the flop or re-raised you. He also would not have been so nervous that he was dripping sweat after your raise.

Given your opponent's reaction to the Four on the Turn, he could have Full House - Aces full of Fours. This plays to your advantage because he would definitely call a raise here with a Full House.

Judging from your opponent's relief at seeing the 4s, and his strong bet on the River after trying to trap you, he most likely has the AAA44 Full House, or the Spade Flush. You have him beat either way.

Calling, while not horrible, would rob you of the opportunity to take more chips and put your opponent out. The odds are too good, at this point, not to push all-in.

Answer: Yes

You now have a Full House - Aces full of Tens. Congratulations! If you pushed all-in, you have just gone from 1500 chips to 3080 chips in just the first hand!

I hope you enjoyed playing.