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Texas Hold 'Em Thievery - Stealing the Blinds
Stealing the blinds is a necessary part of any poker player's repertoire or bag of tricks. Stealing the blinds is nothing new to an experienced Texas Hold'em player. If you are new to the game of Hold'em, stealing the blinds is the act of raising before the flop with a junk hand. This is usually done when many players have folded around to you, but that is not a requirement. The idea is that by raising before the flop, everybody will fold their hands and you will take the blinds.
Blind stealing is definitely a more useful strategy in no-limit Texas Hold'em tournaments, but it can work in cash games to. We caution you against trying to steal too many blinds in a low limit Texas Hold'em game unless you know for a fact that the table is very, very passive (rare). In Texas Hold'em tournaments, the blinds and antes increase very quickly. This means that you must be an aggressive player because you don't have the luxury of waiting for good hands. You must force the action. While everybody else is waiting for strong hands, you can engage in some blind stealing.
You have to pick the spots where you plan to steal the blinds very carefully. Below is a discussion of the primary factors to consider when making a play for the blinds and antes.
Stack Size - Do not attempt to steal blinds with a small stack. Other players will recognize that you have a small chip stack and will think that your aggressive play is just you making a final stand with your short stack. The blinds are far more likely to call you when you have a short stack. This is especially true if they have relatively large chip stacks. The time to steal blinds is when you have a large stack of chips. If you are on the short stack, wait until you have a decent hand and simply go ALL IN.
When you have accumulated a large stack of chips, now is the time to be aggressive and steal blinds. When you use your large chip stack to bully other players you are really just applying the old saying of "it takes money to make money." You are using your big stack to turn it into an even bigger stack.
Table Position - This is a recurring theme in the Sports Betting Acumen poker pages. When it comes to poker, your position at the table is very important. You are going to have a much better opportunity to steal the blinds from late position than from early position. In fact, we recommend that you make your blind stealing plays from the button (dealer). Sometimes, this can be a little obvious. When you have gained more experience, you can try to steal blinds from the 2nd to last position. The advantage of stealing blinds from the dealer position is that you only have to contend with the two blinds rather than all of the other players at the table.
The Big Blind - You should always be aware of who is in the big blind before making a play to steal the blinds and antes. Is the player in the big blind the type who will defend his blind at any cost? If so, or if the player is loose and aggressive, you are wise to not try to steal the blinds. It could be a fatal mistake. You are better off just waiting for a premium hand before raising.
If the player in the big blind is a tight player then, by all means, take the blinds whenever the opportunity presents itself. Tight players will fold more often than not in the face of a substantial raise. You will get caught once in a while, but in the long run it should be a profitable play.
Your Image - Good Texas Hold'em players, and there are many, will profile you very quickly. If the players at your table believe you to be a solid, tight player, then you need to find some spots where you can be aggressive. It is actually much easier to steal the blinds when you have a tight table image. The other players are much more likely to believe you have a good hand and, thus, will be more likely to surrender their blinds.
If, on the other hand, the other players have profiled you to be a very aggressive player, when you try to steal the blinds, they will just thinking that you are bluffing one more time and will be less likely to fold. If you are an aggressive player, you should be careful when stealing the blinds, and try to do with only semi-junk hands (ex: J-8 rather than 8-4).
To be a successful poker player you should try to vary your play so that the other players aren't able to profile you. Like everything else, this takes practice to build confidence. Mix in your blind stealing when players least expect it. Mastery of this skill will help take your poker game to a higher level
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