Any Texas Holdem strategy, and whatever holdem tactics you employ, are probably going to revolve around growing your stack. Growing your stack is one of the oldest holdem tactics around. By growing your stack you exponentially increase your power in the game. You can bully, your all-ins mean so much more, and you can afford to call / check people to force them to play honest.
Strategy + Tactics = Success
Employing holdem tactics is important if you are ever going to become successful at Texas Holdem Poker. Going in with a game plan – a strategy – will enable you to have a long-term plan to stick to and follow. This will allow you to focus on your game and the steps you need to take in order to win the money, or the tournament if you are playing that.
Having an arsenal of holdem tactics you can call on at any time to help you achieve the goals of your strategy is what makes the difference between someone with a plan and someone implementing their plan. Being acutely aware of the situations you can take advantage of in order to get what you want is beneficial and a desirable trait to have.
Holdem Tactics To Increase You Stack
1) Steal blinds
Almost anyone worth their weight will speak of stealing blinds. Its the crux of any good strategy. Stealing blinds involves you betting aggressively when no one else seems to be taking the lead. Often times everyone will just fold because they do not have very good cards and do not want to challenge you. Then you get to pick up the blinds. The beauty of this tactic is that you do not need good cards to implement it; no one will ever know.
2) Grab antes
Less players know or focus on this method even though it is even more effective then stealing blinds. In holdem tournaments, after a certain time has passed or at a certain table and beyond, antes are required to be posted. This means that not only do the small and big blind players have to put chips out before they get cards, everyone has to! Smart players will amp up their game as soon as the antes hit because picking up pots and pots of antes, even if they are just $ 25, will add heaps to your stack over the long term.
3) Reraise and reraise
Reraising is a method that is directly in your control. If you have good cards and you seriously think you have the nuts and can take the pot, raise and reraise. And reraise again. If you in a pot going to the turn, the river and plan to have a showdown and you seriously think you have the win sealed up (or you've calculated some favourable odds), do not hesitate to bet big. When you take the pot it will pay off way more. Great players make the most of every hand, especially the good ones.
4) Never check or call
Never checking when its your turn to bet and never calling another players raise will enable you to increase your stack over time. Checking and calling are weak moves. They communicate weakness and a sense of being unsure. You do not want to be saying this to the other players at the table. You want to say 'I have strong cards, I'm in and you better not mess with me.' If you're going to be in a pot, raise. This will increase the pot size and increase your stack more when you do win. It also enables you to do other things, like steal blinds and antes, a lot easier because the other players will be more afraid of you.
5) All-in just to be mean
You can all-in to bully players to fold. A lot of players do this because it is so effective. Players that go all-in will win every time, bar once! The trick to doing all-ins is to do it smartly. Do not just start going all-in out of nowhere. First, build a bit of an aggressive reputation at the table by following the previous points. Next, make sure you have a fairly good stack so that even if someone does call you and you lose, you're not completely out. Third, try to target certain players, those you know are very tight or that have a small stack. Fourth, bet as early as possible, so the likelihood of them having a good hand made already is not probably. Before the flop is the best (also the scariest).
These holdem tactics are are good way to craftily grow your stack. Winning massive pots and taking the gold with great cards is not the only way to get chips. You can win chips even when you do not have good cards by playing aggressively.