Late Position Play in Texas Hold'em

Playing late position gives you a gold mine of information because the rest of field has to acts before you do. This is a tremendous advantage. For example, if the pot has been raised and re-raised before it gets to you, you can abandon all but the very, very best hands -- AA, KK, QQ, and maybe a suited AK.

But late position doesn't just give you the opportunity to fold. Hands that you would never play in early position become quite playable in late position because you don't have to worry about another player having a hand that dominates yours (see PokerSavvy Key Concept: Domination). So hands like A9, KQ, and KJ not only become playable, they're actually raising hands. And if no one has entered the pot yet, they give you the opportunity to take control of the action.

Please keep in mind, however, that position and previous action remain critical factors. If you continually play A9 behind early-position raises, you will lose money. You may win on occasion, but in the long run, you'll come up loser.

In late position, you also have the opportunity to play drawing hands (see PokerSavvy Key Concept: Drawing Hand). When you find that several people in front have limped in (simply calling the big blind without raising), you too can contribute with your drawing hand and hope to hit a good flop.

Now onto the blinds.