Learn Texas Holdem

No-limit Texas hold'em is one of the most complex forms of poker. This complexity arises on one level from the fact that there are no limitations on the size of your bets, so you can be very creative with your bet sizes on every street. This gives rise to another level of complexity which is that there are a variety of strategies that open up to you due to the fact that it is possible to relieve their opponent of their entire stack on one hand.

For example, bluffs are very difficult (although not impossible) to pull off on the last card of a limit game because players know they need pay only one bet, a very small percentage of the pot, to see if you are bluffing or not. For another example, a play that may lose money in the short term with the idea of a big gain later rarely makes sense in limit games because there are no big gains due to the limits on the bet sizes. You can win a large pot or have a very successful winning session in a limit game, but you cannot bust someone on one hand unless they are already very short on chips. A play that can work beautifully in a no-limit Texas hold'em game is known as advertising.

What is Advertising?

Advertising in both online Texas Holdem and live games is intentionally letting players know what your hand was in order to set up a certain image that you can use against them later. The play is typically used when opponents are either giving you too much credit or not enough. That is to say, if you are either getting your bluffs called too often or if you are getting no action on your good hands, it may be time to advertise.

How Does Advertising Work in No-limit Texas Hold'em?

Very simply, you play a hand counter to the image you are unwillingly projecting, and then show your opponents. For example, let's say you are facing some very tight opponents, and every time you get a big hand and bet, your opponents all go away, giving you a much smaller pot than you had hoped for. An advertising play might be to raise the next time you get 7 2 off suit. Make small bets on every street to try to steal the pot. If you encounter heavy resistance, given the fact that your opponents have been showing you respect, you should probably abandon the hand and wait for a better advertising opportunity.

If your opponents just call you down or fold, you have a great opportunity. If they call you on the river, you can sheepishly show your 7 2. If not, you can boldly flip over your rag hand as you rake the pot. The point is not whether you win or lose what should be a small pot. What's important is that opponents will now credit you as a player who will bet with garbage, and will pay you off when you bet (just a little bit bigger this time) with a real hand. Conversely, if your opponents are always calling down your bluffs, it won't hurt to flip those pocket aces over when you bet with them and don't get any action.

What Else Should You Know About Advertising?

Advertising plays should be used sparingly. You want to give your opponents just enough information about you for them to make mistakes. Also you might consider making an early advertising play counter to what you know your playing style to be. If you are a loose player, try playing tight for the first few hands till you get dealt a monster, bet big and then show as you take down the pot. If you don't like to bluff, take a shot with that 6 3 suited in the first round and show your opponents either way. What's beautiful about this move is that for an investment of only a few dollars bluffed into a small pot, you can get paid off on much larger pots all throughout the session.