Don’t be afraid of short-handed games
There hasn’t been much discussion in poker books dealing with the topic of playing in a short-handed game that is, playing against a small number of opponents. Most Texas Hold’em games are played with nine, 10, or even 11 players seated at the table.
In a game like this, you can afford to sit tight and wait for premium hands before entering a pot. Since you have to pay a blind only twice per round, the pressure to play a lot of hands just isn’t there. When you’re playing short-handed, however…
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Useful poker terms:
- UNDER THE GUN - The position that has to act first in a round of betting.
- MISDEAL - A hand dealt incorrectly that must be re-dealt.
- STRING BET - An unethical and often illegal means of raising whereby a player puts a call-size stack of chips into the pot and, after observing the reactions of the players, then goes back to his stack and puts out more, thus raising.
- FREEROLL - [1] A poker tournament that does not charge a buy-in fee; players must earn buy-in credits through previous play at the same establishment. [2] Having a lock on part of a pot (sure to win a greater fraction of the pot than one is betting) and playing to win more or all of it.
- BUTTON - A distinctive token held by the player sitting in the theoretical dealer's position, when a house dealer is used. The button rotates around the table so that every player has an opportunity to be the last to act. Also, "THE BUTTON" can refer to the player who currently has the button. ("I was the button and called the blind".) Synonyms: BUCK, PUCK.
- LIVE [CARD] - In Stud, a card probably not held by other players.

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