Knowing When to Fold in Limit Holdem

  Most of us would love to win every hand we play when sitting down to a game of Texas Holdem. Having a positive attitude and some optimism is one thing that can make the experience a very positive one, but if you play to win on every hand, you will quickly have the sort of financial problems that can only be solved by giving up your house and opting for a "free range" lifestyle.The simple fact is that you're not going to win every hand you play, or even the majority of them. The biggest money players on the planet only play between 25% and 35% of the hands they are dealt. To win at the game of Texas Holdem a player needs to pick their spots and make the most of them. To play the game in this manner means that you're going to have to lay down a number of hands. So under what circumstance should you fold your cards?  Folding Before the Flop  So you have been dealt your hole cards and you are wondering whether or not you should match the Big Blind in order to stay in. The first thing you should do when deciding whether to stay in or to fold is mentally separate the competitive nature of the game from the financial aspect of it. When looking at your cards, ask yourself if it is actually worth $10 (or whatever the bet to you is) to see the flop based on the cards that are currently in your hand. There are a number of mathematical techniques that players use to figure this sort of thing out.  Pot Odds are utilized as a means to reduce the decision to an unbiased, unemotional calculation of numbers. For those of you using the Pokerbility software or something of that kind, the unit itself will perform the necessary computations. For those times when you are playing live games, or if you just don't have the knack of quick pot odds calculations down yet, there are some rules of thumb.  Before the flop you want to play premium hands. This gives you a nice head start when it comes to the rest of the hand. Of course most of us are not going to get a pair of Aces and Kings on every deal, so we must usually make do with some marginal hands. In this case you will want to put your suited connectors in play. If the game becomes a multi-way pot, small pairs (such as 7s and 8s) are good cards to see the flop with. If you have been dealt some large, unsuited cards, such as Ace/Jack or King/Ten, play them if you are in a heads-up situation. Garbage hands can be seductive if they have an overcard in the mix. I would suggest you not yo fall into this trap and fold such hands as Queen/3 or King/4.  Folding at the Turn  Sometimes this decision is obvious. If you went forward in a multi-way pot with a pair of 8's and the flop produced only overcards, the thing to do is fold - especially if one of your opponents is smiling a bit too broadly as they call and raise.  When it is less obvious, the same sort of financial questions you ask at the flop should also be part of your decision on the turn. Is what you are holding worth another big bet? If you are working with a drawing hand, this would be a good time to take a quick count of your outs and figure out what your pot odds are.  There are more subjective hints that tell you what you should or should not do. If at this point you are holding a middle pair, or the highest pair with a weak kicker, you should consider folding if somebody else has begun to raise. In most cases the middle pair is beat at this point, and your high pair with the weak kicker very well may be competing with an equal pair that has a better kicker.  Folding at the River  In most cases if you have gone all the way to the river, you might as well keep going. Experts seem to agree that folding at this point is a bad idea. To every rule there is an exception though. If you were going for a drawing hand, and missed it at the River, this would be the time to hit the eject button and leave the hand. Also if the action around you is pretty fast and furious with people raising each other all over the place, unless you are going in with a premium hand, you may want to fold. You are probably beat. If it turns out that by folding your small pair you have put the best hand down in the face of tremendous action, then the fold was worth the insight you have just gained into the type of people you are competing against.  Your best chance to fold with no damage is before the flop. What you do here will set the tone for the rest of the hand. Staying in beyond the flop will invariably cost you several big bets. If you haven't got the cards to support this action, then you may be throwing good money after bad. This is why good player plays so few starting hands.  There is of course gamesmanship involved in Holdem, but when you play a low number of hands, you give power to your entire game... especially the bluffs. So do not be shy about putting your cards down before the flop.