You may have heard some players say that the big blind is one of the worst features of a poker game because of what it entails. Precisely because of the bb, for many being UTG is something so problematic: the fact of having to put the big blind -UTG sits right after the bb – It’s something that no one likes but you can take advantage of it if you know how.
As we will see, the big blind is the player who puts the most into play without seeing the cards. It is the ideal? Absolutely. In fact, a player in this position can be very compromised jp77.
What is the big blind in poker?
Being the big blind is not ideal in poker, but it has a series of advantages that are worth knowing because it is possible to take advantage of it if the big blind falls on you.
Think about this: if you are the big blind, the entire table speaks before you. That’s great because you end up betting having all the possible information. This also allows you to get an idea of where each player stands preflop, starting to profile your biggest threats of the round.
Keep in mind that in poker the positions rotate, so it is advisable that you take advantage of this when you are the big blind .
In poker, the blinds are those that stipulate in each round the minimum amount of pot to play the hand and mark the table positions. The big blind sits to the left of the small blind, and the small blind sits just to the left of the dealer button.
In limit games, the small blind is half the minimum bet, and the big blind is double the value of the small blind For example, in a game with a limit of 6/12 euros, the small blind would be 3 and the big blind would be 6.
What is the small blind in poker?
As we said, the small blind in poker is half of the minimum bet, and both the small and the big blind determine the type of game that will be played. For example, in cash games the blinds do not change and always set the stake at which we are going to play. There are online poker games with very affordable blinds, even €0.01/0.02. They are the games low-stakes. The opposite is high-stakes games, where the concept is the same but the blinds are much higher.
In tournaments, the blinds are decisive. They go up as time goes by, regardless of whether it is multi-table or Sit & Go. Each tournament has a fixed blind time incorporated, which sets the pace as the game progresses. In longer tournaments, the small blind can start very low and rise exponentially as the games get longer.
Big blind VS small blind
The role of the blinds is crucial for the development of the games, and in tournaments and games where their value varies, it is important not to lose sight of them. The positions move, moving one position per turn, so that all players can have a Dealer position, and in tournaments they rise over time, But all this seen on paper is one thing and in practice it is another.
Let’s see for example how the blinds influence the role of a player. Let’s imagine that the blinds are at 25/50. The player who is in the bb must drop 50 chips to continue playing. If no one raises, the small blind must pay 25 and when his turn comes he can fold or call, paying after 25 chips to the big blind. He can also raise, starting another round of betting. And always, always, the player placed in the big blind is the last to bet.
Which one is better? There is no fixed answer to that. Each of the blinds can be exploited in favor of the player who occupies that place in the round. For example, if you have a very top hand, being big blind in a game of Texas Hold’em can work in your favor if you decide to hide your draw until the last moment, since you will accumulate a lot of information about the others.
With two aces, being a bb gives much more play. You will have to pay attention to whether the hand is clean, how others can interpret a raise from you (they will see that you defend the blind), or how by calling you can imply that you want to hide data. In other words, being one of the blinds in a Texas Hold’em game can be beneficial if you learn to use your position to distort the perception of your game.
Another example of how to play with the blinds: when you steal, you have to do it from a position of safety. No one would think of stealing a blind from UTG (first position to speak “under the gun”), and less if there are players left to speak. You can try to put in chips from the small blind to try to take the chips from the big blind, but the hand would have to be clean. It’s possible that you could even take a fisher’s call.
There is a lot of play and many ways to take advantage of the potential of the blinds. The point is to be aware of the position you occupy, the type of game and how you can manipulate the perception of your game by occupying the blinds.