Holdem Starting Hands: Pre-Flop from Early Position

Fact: Any two cards can take down the pot in a given hand of no limit Texas Holdem.

Sounds like the poker version of the American dream, right?  The truth is that this is the very feature of the game which leads many weak players to their downfall.  

Playing too many starting hands is a classic rookie mistake.  Advanced poker players, on the other hand, have a strategy for carefully choosing their Texas Holdem starting hands before the flop.

Advanced poker strategy for Pot Limit and No Limit Texas Holdem

A major aspect of all Texas Holdem strategies is playing your position. An effective poker strategy must distinguish between early, middle and late position.  This article focuses on early position pre-flop strategy - when you’re seated one, two or three seats to the left of the big blind.

Reminder: The first betting round in Texas Holdem starts with the player seated to the left of the big blind.  All consequent betting rounds start with the player seated directly to the dealer’s left.  The term ‘early position’ in pre-flop strategy therefore refers to the three players seated to the left of the big blind.  See our Texas Holdem rules page for more information.

No Limit Texas Holdem – Starting Hands

No limit Texas Holdem poses a problem to whoever is seated in early position, since there is truly no limit to the aggressiveness players can display.  

If you simply call the big blind from early position with a mediocre pair of cards, there are still 9-7 players yet to act.  Any one of them can make an aggressive move that will render you hopeless, forcing you to fold.  This is how many beginners lose big blind after big blind, and eventually their entire stack.

Here’s a common scene in the early stages of low-stakes no limit Texas Holdem tournaments: several players go all-in at the first few rounds in an attempt to double up fast.  

This loose-aggressive play demonstrates why choosing which Texas Holdem starting hands to play is so important.  When you simply call or make a small raise from an early position, there’s a good chance you’ll find yourself up against an “all-in” call.  

In a loose-aggressive table such as this, unless you are prepared to go all the way with your starting hand, you’re likely better of folding.

Limit Texas Holdem – Starting Hands

Pot limit Texas Holdem games aren’t very different in this respect, though the players acting after you are limited in the amount they can raise.  The latter fact enables you to widen the range of Texas Holdem starting hands you can play.  That said, you’ll still be punished for playing too many hands from early position – though the consequences may not be as cruel - so don’t go overboard.

How to decide which Texas Holdem starting hands to play

When it comes to choosing Texas Holdem starting hands to play from early position, poker pros employ a number of guidelines.  We’ve put together an advanced poker strategy that should suit your typical game, i.e. not too loose or too tight, and not too passive or aggressive.  

These simple guidelines, outlined below, will help you decide which of your Texas Holdem starting hands are worth playing. Be warned, however, that you must stay flexible and change up your game according to the situation.

From early position in a 10-player game, these are the Texas Holdem starting hands you should play if there was only a call to your right:

Raise: AA, KK, QQ, JJ, AKs
Raise or call: TT, AQs, AJs, KQs, AK
Call:99, JTs, QJs, KJs, ATs, AQ
Call in a loose and passive game: T9s, KQ, 88, QTs, 98s, J9s, AJ, KTs

Pre-flop Texas Holdem starting hands from middle and late position

Read more from Gambling City’s advanced poker strategy guide:

When to play your Texas Holdem hands form middle position.
Starting your Texas Holdem poker hands from late position.