Stealing blinds is one of the most important aspects of a poker game, and you should always look to pick up uncontested pots whenever possible. All of these small pots will add up and over time these pots can turn an unprofitable poker career into a profitable one.
In tournaments these pots will allow you to maintain a solid stack and advance further in the tournament. If you play too few hands during a poker session, you are a much easier target for the skilled players. In cash games these pots will allow you to increase your ROI, and help you maintain a solid table image.
When should I steal Blinds?
The main reason to steal a blind and the best time to steal blinds is when you notice lesser poker players at the table. The weak poker players should always be picked on as much as possible whether playing a poker tournament or a cash game. If you look to run over the weak player at the table and steal their blinds, then you will have an easier time throughout the course of a poker session. When you play a tournament or a cash game and you identify the weak and tight players at your table right away, you make your session easier. If you can properly identify weak players, then you can effectively steal their blinds and build up a stack. If you are in position against the weak players at your table, it should be even easier for you to do build up a stack.
Steal blinds when you are in late position and playing against weak opponents.
Another great time to steal blinds is when you are on the button or in late position, and the pot hasn’t been opened for a raise yet. If you put in a late position raise, often times you will force folds from the blinds and take down the pot. The button is the ideal spot to steal blinds simply because you only have to get through two players to win the hand. The odds are in your favor to steal the blinds on the button, and you should look to do so with a wider range of starting hands than you are accustomed to. Opening up your pre-flop range of hands in late position will allow you to be in a powerful position. This powerful position translates to you winning uncontested pot after uncontested pot. Even if you are called before the flop, you can get away from a hand, risking very little, or you can continuation bet the flop and win the pot.
Stealing blinds in Poker Tournaments
The main reason why poker players progress through large tournament fields is because the best players can pick up a ton of uncontested pots. When you are winning hands without showing your hand you build up a stack in a hurry. Also, when you aren’t showing your hand players may call you later in the tournament with a weaker holding when you have a monster hand. When you are winning pots without showing your hand, it creates a mystique about you, and also strikes fear in to your opponent. That fear and mystique will allow you to reach the deeper portion of the tournament.
Stealing blinds strategy is most often used in poker tournaments.
The best time in a poker tournament to win pots pre-flop is when the blinds are worth stealing. If the blinds are worth stealing, that means you are at the middle to later stage of a tournament. Once reaching that level, stealing blinds is extremely important for your success in the tournament, and you should always look to do so whenever possible. Often times playing pots from the button or small vs. big blind hands are overlooked, but these hands are very important. Shoving your stack in to win a pot has to be calculated compared to your opponents stack, and you have to make sure when shoving all-in to steal a pot that you have enough fold equity for your opponent to release a mediocre holding. You can open your range up to suited hands with a king, any ace high, and most middle hands like Q10 and k9.
When you are gathering fold equity and applying pressure to your opponent to make tournament life decisions you are going about stealing the blinds correctly. The key is to never have to make a decision for your tournament, but rather force your opponent to always make that decision. If you are applying that type of pressure it means that in comparison to your opponents stack, you are forcing them to make sure that if they call and lose the hand, they know their tournament is in serious jeopardy. Shoving your stack in will most certainly apply the maximum amount of pressure to your opponent, and also it can help you progress through a poker tournament. If you can always apply pressure and never put the decision to yourself, you are stealing blinds efficiently and should progress to the later stages of poker tournaments.
 Did you Know?
Blind stealing in poker, especially in the tournament field, is one of the most used techniques to win money from your opponents without playing a hand.
Read other articles from our Advanced Poker Strategy section.
Posted by M.B |
