Position
As the term suggests, position in poker refers to the seating position of the player on the table, or the order in which the players are seated around the table, which then further implies the various poker strategies applicable from that particular position. Now, players who act first, are said to be in an early position, whereas players who act later in the game, are said to be in a later position.
Another connotation is when a player is considered to ‘have position’ against all the players who have played before him/her, but is believed to be ‘out of position’ against the opposing players who will act after him/her. But most games are played in the clockwise order, so the player has position against all the players to his/her right, and is out of position to all players to his/her left. The exceptions to this arise in cases where a player has the button, or even during the first betting rounds, in games with blinds.
A late position is favorable as this gives the player the advantage of knowing how other players have acted, giving him/her more information to make a better decision. This is a benefit early position players have to forfeit. Another advantage is that in a game when early players fold, the chances of the late position player having the best hand increase.
The least favorable position of all is of course the blinds, as you are required to not just contribute to the pot but also make all the bets first in the rounds following the flop. The advantage of the big blind position in the first round betting is cut down as it is considered the highest money losing position on an average.
The importance of position in poker strategy cannot be stressed enough, as this can aid a player’s game immensely. Some common notions with regard to position is that one should always place oneself to the left of aggressive players, and keep the passive or softer players to the right. This is of course so that you know what actions the aggressive player will take, before making a move yourself.
While positioning is of vital importance in a game of poker, tournaments and casinos do not, usually, offer a choice of seat to each player. Instead, they are all meant to sit as per the availability.
Forrige begrep: Position bet, Neste begrep: Post dead
