Importance of position
A great poker player once said: “Position is not important in poker. Would you say that water is important in swimming? That speed is important in racing? No? Then do not say position is important in poker. It’s more important than that.”
The benefit of playing hands on the button in poker is one of the keys of winning that novices rarely understand, but its importance should not be understated. The dealer button, or just ‘the button’, is the best position in poker. It leaves you last to act on every street. As a result, it is a far more profitable position than any other at the poker table is. The first to act is referred to as ‘Under The Gun’, meaning that as they are the first to act, the range of hands they should be playing with in that spot (out of the blinds) should be much smaller than those they are willing to play on the button (cut-off) or in the seats directly before the button (the ‘hijack’ seat).
The reasons for this are many, but the fact is that you do not have to understand why it is better to act later in the hand – just know that it is. Firstly, when it is folded to you on the button, raising gives you an opportunity to steal the blinds. In cash games and during the later stages of tournaments when the blinds are high, this is very profitable. If you are attempting to steal the blinds from under the gun, you have eight people left to act; but if you steal from the button, you only have two. Even if they call, you will have position on them through each street in the hand.
The second key reason is that being last to act lets you see how everyone is playing their hands before you make your decision. The result of this is that, in general, you will make more on the hands you win and will suffer far reduced losses on those you lose. Many novice players will call with weak holdings from the small or big blind because they think they are getting a discount, but over the long term, players will lose large amounts of money from these spots because they are out of position on every street.
The key point to note is, to fold more in an early position and play more from a late one.