02-11-10, LearnTexasHoldem:

Rush Poker Tips and Basic Strategy

Rush Poker is a unique feature at Full Tilt - it's not another poker variation but rather an extremely fast-paced playing format for holdem and Omaha. All players at a certain level are placed in a pool, sometimes containing hundreds of players at the same time, and you don't get to play the same ones twice in a row. Once you fold a hand in Rush Poker you are instantly moved to a new table, get a new hand and a new set of random opponents from the pool.

The game also features a Quick Fold button, meaning you don't even have to see how the hands play out - as soon as you get rid of the hand you get a new one. The only exception is when you are the big blind. This is obviously perfect for action junkies, but at the same time it encourages really tight play since you seldom know what kind of opponent you are up against.

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Rush Poker Strategy

Mapping out a basic strategy for Rush Poker should be fairly easy for any reasonably experienced poker player - as soon as you've played for a while you realize that this is about playing a real tight game. Why, for example, should you take any chances and raise with a marginal hand when you can just throw it away and get a new one right away? That is the question, and most Rush Poker players seem to have figured this out.

The games are generally tight - usually less than 30% see the flop on average even in low-stakes 6-max games. Most players don't even bother to try and steal the blinds with marginal holdings, so when someone raises from the button or cutoff it's more common that they have a legitimate reason for it than in regular games.

Obviously you also come up against a fair share of fish at the low-stakes tables (the biggest games are NL$200 by the way), but expect a tighter-than-average game. How do you counter this tight play? Should you follow the old doctrine "loose table - tight game, tight game - loosen up"?

Actually that could be counterproductive, unless you happen to know some of the players you're up against. This isn't usually the case. As far as I know, Rush Poker doesn't work with Poker Tracker or any other of the hand history tools so far either. On the other hand the lack of information goes both ways. So just bring out that old Sklansky hand ranking chart, play fundamental poker and get your money from the fish when the opportunities present themselves.

Here's a video demonstrating the concept:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Rush Poker - The Bottom Line

There are both pros and cons with this concept. Most players who have tried it can confirm that it's really fun, if somewhat shallow. That's because of the simple fact that you only very rarely (if ever) have a decent read on your opponent, so trying to "analyze the situation" and try to make fancy plays is just a waste of time. Just play your best basic poker and have fun.

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