Poker Strategy
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Welcome to FTR’s Poker Strategy section! We currently have 508 free Poker Strategy articles in our ever growing archive.
These strategy articles contain as much information as you would find in multiple poker books – for free! Make sure you take advantage of this free poker strategy and poker training, on all of the topics shown below. Whether you’re a beginner, seasoned professional, cash game grinder, or tournament specialist, there is something to help take your game to the next level.
FTR has been featured by many poker websites and magazines over the years. In Bluff Magazine, Lee Jones mentioned that FlopTurnRiver.com has absolute golden information you can use to improve your game. Poker pro Chris “Wallace” Fox also recommended FlopTurnRiver.com as a free poker training site in Poker Pro Magazine. We also have many reader testimonials from our members saying FTR made them a winning poker player.
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Categories in Poker Strategy
Beginner Poker
112 Articles
Basic strategy concepts to teach new players how to play poker.
Cash Games
58 Articles
When the value of your chips actually means something.
Heads Up
6 Articles
Learn how to battle and beat your opponents, mano y mano.
Limit Hold'em
38 Articles
Strategy articles that help you bet, raise, 3-bet, and cap your bets.
Live Poker
38 Articles
Learn how to transition from online play to your local casino.
MTT
35 Articles
We teach you how to make the final table and lock up a big score.
No Limit Hold'em
182 Articles
What are the two most powerful words in poker? I’m all-in.
Omaha
14 Articles
When two cards just aren’t enough.
Open Face Chinese
4 Articles
Learn how to get those Queens up top for Fantasy Land.
Poker Dictionary
1,236 Articles
Learn the lingo and terms used by poker players.
Poker Psychology
67 Articles
The power of the mind in poker: There is no spade.
Poker Rules
14 Articles
The rules of the road. Learn how to play various forms of poker.
Poker Tools
37 Articles
Improve your game by learning how to use the tools of the trade.
Poker Videos
98 Articles
Watch and learn from the best in the world.
SNG
41 Articles
For the players who only have two decisions, shove or fold.
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Featured Poker Strategy Articles
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Most Recent Articles in Poker Strategy
Hyper’s 6-Max Limit Hold’em Guide Part 2
Hyper put together a sequel to his initial guide on 6 max/short handed play. Click here to read version 1 of his 6 Max Limit Holdem Guide. Short-Handed Limit Holdem Guide v.2.0 Hyper’s Limit Guide, Specializing in Shorthanded Play: Version 2.0 This guide is an...
6 Max 2-Table by Renton High Stakes $400 – Part 1
90 minute session (2 parts). I attempt to fully explain my thought processes, and digress on hypotheticals during the idle time. Part 1 of...
chardrian’s Analysis of a $26 Freezeout on Full Tilt
Sometimes, it’s valuable to go over your completed poker tournaments with a hand-history viewer to analyze spots that you are unsure about and identify errors in play. You can use a replayer that automatically cuts out hands that you folded preflop so that you can focus on the important hands.
ISF – Manipulation 202 and Questions
If you read my posts in the forums, you’ll notice I’ll throw around this word manipulation without too much explanation. In my earlier blog, I did write an article about manipulation where I talked about it in terms of bet sizing. Well, my old blog is gone now, and as...
Chardrian’s Guide to Small Stakes Live Limit Poker (Part 8)
When playing Limit Hold’em, it’s important not to play too many hands. You’ll want to carefully consider your raising and limping ranges depending on the tendencies of the other players. There’s no use bluffing preflop — you should enter the pot with solid value.
Common Response to Questions About Spots in 3bet Pots
I decided to write this entry because I feel like I'm responding with the same answers to the same questions over and over and over about playing in 3bet pots. I think this forum could definitely benefit from this article and it will make it much easier the next time...
How to Make Actual Adjustments While Playing
Talking about making adjustments to your play is easier than actually making them at the table. Read through this example of how to make an adjustment to learn how to pull them off when you’re playing. Studying examples of successful adjustments will help you learn to execute them under pressure.
Chardrian’s Guide to Live Small Stakes Limit Poker (Part 5)
Big broadway hands are valuable in Limit Hold’em because of the chance of dominating an opponent who is playing worse hands. Suitedness adds to their value. Medium pocket pairs are also usually worth playing despite being often difficult to play properly.
An Easy Guide to Exploiting Your Opponents
By paying close attention to your opponents’ actions at the poker tables, you can get pretty solid reads on their play. Using this information, you can make some of your ranges stronger while making others weaker in order to seriously exploit your foes.
Chardrian’s Guide to Live Small Stakes Limit Poker (Part 1)
Ok, to start this off, I figured it would be a good idea to give a little background about myself. I was a 2nd year law student at the University of Wisconsin when the poker boom began in 2003. Like many young(ish) males at the time, I got caught up in the wave of...
Applications and Limitations of the Alpha Value
The alpha value is one of the most important numbers in a discussion of poker because it gives you a lot of information with a simple calculation. However, it's often applied incorrectly because of a lack of understanding of what it can and should be used for. Our...
Bluffing Frequencies and Exploiting Opponents
Appropriate for lower stakes players, this article demonstrates how to calculate your unexploitable bluffing frequency and your competitor’s unexploitable folding frequency. It also explains how and when to apply these unexploitable strategies to your advantage to maximize your winnings!
Short Stacked and Dangerous
It’s one of the scariest feelings in poker – You’ve just lost a huge pot to a three-to-one underdog and given up most of your stack. As you watch the opponent sort your chips and integrate them into his pile, a sickening realization creeps up on you… You’re short stacked, playing against opponents with more the five times your chip count.
FTR SNG Strategy: Maximizing value in HU situations Part 3
Heads-up play in a Sit and Go tournament is different from normal play at a larger table. Your ranges will need to be very wide. By winning more than your fair share of HU duels, you’ll be able to increase your ROI and profits in any SNG especially multi-table SNGs.
Order of Winning Poker Hands – Razz
In Razz Poker, sometimes also known as Bizarro Stud, it can be confusing to the beginner to know what beats what. Unlike standard poker in which the best hand usually forms something nice, like two cards of the same rank together with 3 cards of the same rank to form...