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No Limit Texas Hold'em is the most popular poker game in the world, and it is played in both tournament and cash game form. This page links to strategy articles for No Limit Hold'em cash game players, although many of the principles can apply to No Limit Hold'em tournament strategy as well. No-limit hold 'em Texas hold'em is easily the most popular poker game played in card rooms in the United States. Hold'em comes in four betting structures: limit, no-limit, pot-limit and spread-limit. No-limit hold'em (NLHE) is the rising star of poker games. You can win or lose entire stacks in a single hand of No Limit Hold’em, and this excitement accounts for much of the popularity of the game. It’s not just a contest of having the best hand when all the chips go in the middle though.

• No-Limit Hold’em is the most popular way to play poker around the world. The example hand in this article just below this overview assumes no-limit betting rules. No matter which betting structure is used, Texas Hold’em.
• By Steve Beauregard. $1/2 No-limit hold’em and $1/3 No-Limit hold’em are the most commonly spread game found in North American poker rooms. While Stud and limit hold’em games used to dominate the card room scene, the popularity of the World Series of Poker broadcasts on ESPN starting in 2003, (along with the World Poker Tour broadcasts), transformed the poker landscape.

The World Series of Poker has a way of reminding us that there's more to poker than just no-limit hold'em, even if NLHE is just about everyone's favorite game to play.

Suddenly we're all locked in following updates in deuce-to-seven no-limit draw events, the 'dealer's choice' and mixed-game tournaments, and asking Kevmath if today's razz final table is going to be live streamed. (It will be, won't it, Kev?)

Speaking of razz, I liked the point Adam Owen made to conclude the discussion of razz strategy he and Ian Shaw had with Remko Rinkema yesterday.

'If I were to teach a complete beginner the rules of a poker game, I would start with razz,' said Owen, who went on to note how the game 'teaches you lot of good principles for poker,' including how 'to bluff, to steal, and to resteal.'

That observation got me thinking about other lessons or 'good principles for poker' players can learn from non-NLHE games, including ones that directly apply to no-limit hold'em.

Like many these days, hold'em was the first game I played seriously, although I began with fixed-limit hold'em before moving over to no-limit. Truthfully, five-card draw was the first poker game I learned as a kid (a good one for learning hand rankings), but hold'em was the first variant I played seriously — that is, for money that was meaningful, and while making a genuine effort to learn and improve.

All of the other variants followed, with pot-limit Omaha and razz emerging as a couple of favorite non-NLHE games for me. As I began to learn and study other games, I soon realized how they do open your 'poker mind' up to various 'good principles' that apply to most poker games, including no-limit hold'em.

Here, in brief, are five lessons about no-limit hold'em (and poker, generally speaking) that non-NLHE games can teach you.

1. Pot Odds (Limit Hold'em)

I mentioned learning LHE before NLHE, so this was a lesson I was able to carry over when first starting out with no-limit — being able to calculate pot odds.

Understanding pot odds involves comparing the size of a bet to the size of the pot and from that figuring out the 'price' being offered to you to call the bet. LHE is a game that constantly presents 'pot odds' problems to solve — and rapidly, too, given the usually quick pace of the game. The problems are usually not too complicated, and come so often they provide new players a lot of practice honing the skill.

Say you're in a $2/$4 LHE game. You're in the big blind and watch the cutoff raise (to $4), the button call, and the small blind call. You can readily see there is $14 out there (including your big blind) and you need to call $2 more to stay in the hand — 7-to-1 pot odds.

It's only you check-calling bets from the original raiser on the flop ($2) and turn ($4), then you check again and your opponent bets $4 one more time. Now there's $32 out there and it's $4 to call — 8-to-1 pot odds.

These calculations become second nature in LHE, and help you make them in NLHE as well.

No Limit Hold Em Book

2. Draws v. Made Hands and Equity (Pot-Limit Omaha)

This one took a little time to learn, but pot-limit Omaha presents many postflop situations where you're playing big draws that sometimes have even better 'equity' than made hands. Flopping a big 'wrap' draw in PLO might afford you as many as 16 or 20 outs, making you a favorite versus most made hands.

Face that situation enough times, and you begin to appreciate the power of big draws. Say in NLHE you have and are looking at a flop. You're actually a small favorite versus a player holding for top pair of queens, and if that seems a likely holding for your opponent (or something of equivalent strength), you might well play the flop more aggressively.

This lesson in equity is one that comes up in fairly easy-to-see ways in razz, too, where a player can be technically behind but be drawing to something better — see 'Make Razz Great Again' for more about that.

3. Position (2-7 Triple Draw)

Position is obviously important in no-limit hold'em, but go play some deuce-to-seven triple draw to appreciate even more the benefits of acting last.

Why is position even more obviously important in 2-7 triple draw? Because not only are you getting to act last on the betting rounds, you get to see your opponent(s) draw before you have to as well. In a lot of cases, knowing how many cards your opponent has discarded (or if he or she is standing pat) is more meaningful information to have than a leading bet provides.

Badugi — also a triple draw game — also obviously helps reinforce this lesson about position which you can carry back to your NLHE game.

4. Blockers (Stud, Stud Hi-Low, Razz)

In stud games like seven-card stud, seven-card stud hi-low, and razz, you're constantly keeping track of everyone's 'up cards' so as to know what cards have already been dealt and thus cannot subsequently be drawn by you or anyone else. Or you should, anyway. (For some help in this area, check out Ashley Adams' recent article 'Remembering Cards in Seven-Card Stud.')

Keeping track of 'what's out' helps you decide whether or not to pursue flush or straight draws, the likelihood of others having certain hands or being improved by new cards, and so on. All of these up cards essentially function as 'blockers,' as do your down cards.

Blockers can also occasionally be significant in no-limit hold'em, as you use the knowledge of your two hole cards to help narrow opponents' ranges. See Carlos Welch's article 'Five Examples of Using Blockers to Improve Hand Reading' for some specific examples of blockers' importance in NLHE.

5. Bluffing and Reading Others' Bluffs (2-7 NL Single Draw)

Finally, bluffing is obviously an important element in all poker variants, but deuce-to-seven no-limit single draw is a game that can really open your eyes to how bet-sizing and position — when coupled with a player deciding to stand pat — can quickly create a believable bluffing story.

Last week Jason Mercierwas discussing 2-7 NL single draw strategy with us right here on PokerNews, then this week he went on to win the $10,000 2-7 Draw Lowball Championship and fourth career WSOP bracelet.

Mercier noted how frequently 2-7 NL draw involves bluffing and/or sussing out whether or not your opponent is bluffing. 'In this game,' says Mercier, 'it is almost always about asking yourself, 'do I have the best hand, or does he?'

Learn 2-7 NL draw and play for a while, and you'll likely find yourself bluffing more often than you do in NLHE (or 'snowing,' as it's often called in both 2-7 NL and 2-7 triple draw). You'll also more frequently have to piece together evidence to decide whether or not your opponent is bluffing — all of which helps when you go back to NLHE and those bluffing spots arise for yourself or your opponents.

What are some other non-NLHE games that can teach 'good principles' for no-limit hold'em?

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  Jason Mercier

If you play Limit Hold’em the same way you play No Limit Hold’em (or vice versa), you’ll lose money. The gameplay is the same in both versions of the game. You still get two hole cards, there’s still a three-card flop, a turn, and a river.

But other than gameplay details, they’re almost like two totally different games. In fact, you can be a great no limit player and a lousy limit player at the same time, and vice versa.

In this post, I look at some of the differences between Limit Hold’em and No Limit Hold’em.

1 – You Shouldn’t Limp in Limit, But It’s a Good Move in No Limit Games

If no one else has gotten involved in a pot in a Limit Hold’em game, it’s almost never correct to limp. But some of the best no limit players in the world often limp.

Some of the best no limit players in the world sometimes limp with premium hands like pocket aces but also limp with suited connectors like 8/9 suited.

Also, in limit, if you limp and someone else raises, the most aggressive move you can make is to re-raise. This only serves to increase the size of the pot. And for the rest of the hand, you’re out of position.

In no limit, though, you can limp in, get raised, and re-raise any amount you like up to the total number of chips in front of you. You can use this tactic to trap your opponents when you have a huge pair like aces.

In the poker book Super/System, Doyle Brunson suggests limping with pocket aces from early position in the hope that someone will raise you. When they do, you can re-raise all-in.

Finally, if you do some research into the concept of implied odds, it will become obvious why limping can make more sense in a no limit game. The potential of doubling through in no limit is much bigger than it is in a limit game.

2 – Drawing Hands Are Played Differently in No Limit Hold’em

In a limit game, you might get into the flop cheap with a big ace and a suited smaller card. Let’s say you have five opponents in the pot with you. On the flop, you get two more cards of the same suit, so you have four cards to a flush.

And in a limit game, if everyone checks, it would be the right move to bet this hand. If everyone folds, you win the pot. If not, you get more money in the pot with a good probability of hitting a big hand.

But in a no limit game, a lot of deceptive players might check-raise in this situation, which makes a bet from you unprofitable. Making a bet or a raise with a flush draw can turn into a bad calling situation in a heartbeat.

Your goal is to force your opponents to make hard decisions. Don’t put yourself in a situation where YOU have to make a hard decision.

3 – The Size of Your Chip Stack Makes More of a Difference in a No Limit Game

In the example above, you might be okay with committing to a hand like this with a short stack. You can go all in or make a small bet on the flop when everyone checks to you.

Either way, you have a good probably of doubling up here. If you get multiple callers, you might even triple the size of your stack.

I experienced this phenomenon just last night. I’d lost 80% of my initial stack in my first hour of play, but I went all in with a short stack and hit my flush on the river. Since I had two callers, I got paid off.

And I still had some money in my overall bankroll to try a different table if I lost my entire bankroll.

In fact, one of my opponents went all in with me three different times and lost every time before I left the table. Since he’d taken most of my chips earlier in the session, I felt great about this.

No Limit Texas Holdem Strategy

4 – It’s Harder to Protect Your Hand in a Limit Hold’em Game

If you get a big hand preflop in no limit, you can make bigger bets and raises to protect your hand. You can make these bets and raises both preflop and on the flop. And you should protect your hand.

Don’t let your opponents draw out on you unless they’re willing to pay for it. You protect your hand with a simple move, too. You just place big bets and make big raises.

Trapping opponents can be fun and satisfying, but protecting your hand in No Limit Hold’em should be an integral part of your strategy at the No Limit Hold’em table.

5 – Implied Odds Are More Important in No Limit Hold’em

I mentioned implied odds earlier, but here’s a more detailed explanation.

Since players can make bigger bets and raises at any point in a no limit Hold’em game, the implied odds are always better in No Limit Hold’em than they are in Limit Hold’em, where the sizes of the bets and raises are limited.

This applies to tournaments, too. Many players are super tight in the early rounds of a no limit tournament, but keep in mind that you can see a lot of cheap flops with the intention of doubling your stack when you hit.

6 – Math Is Arguably More Important in Limit Hold’em Than in No Limit Hold’em

If you can’t calculate implied odds and pot odds accurately in limit Hold’em, you’re in trouble. On the other hand, that math is still important in no limit, but it’s arguably less important than reading other players and mixing up your play.

For example, in a no limit game, it’s probably a good idea to fold even an open straight draw in a no limit game. If you do play a drawing hand like that in no limit, it’s a good idea to try to steal the pot early with it by semi-bluffing.

On the other hand, because of the limited amount of exposure you have to your bankroll in a limit game, it makes sense to call down to the river with an open straight draw, but only if you have multiple other players in the hand.

The main thing to remember in Limit Hold’em is that you’ll fold less often. This is because raises increase the cost to you to play linearly in Limit Hold’em.

In No Limit Hold’em, the risk increases exponentially because of the much larger bets and raises you’ll face in a no limit game.

7 – Lower Value Starting Hands Increase in Value in a Limit Game

No Limit Hold'em

In a No Limit game, preflop, the big pairs are important because of the potential to get so much money in the pot with the best of it. Most pots in a no limit game are fought out between two or three players.

In limit Hold’em, though, it’s cheaper to get into the flop and easier to get out of the hand, so you’ll see more players per pot.

This means that it makes sense to play drawing hands more often. It’s cheap to get in, and since you have multiple opponents putting money into the pot, you’ll be more likely to get paid off when your hand hits.

Suited connectors are a better deal for you in Limit Hold’em than they are in No Limit Hold’em, unless you can get into the pot dirt cheap before the flop with them. And that’s unusual in no limit.

Conclusion

No Limit Hold'em Tournament

When it comes to playing real money Texas holdem, limit and no limit are two entirely different games, even though the mechanics of play are basically the same.

No Limit Holdem Tournament Strategy

The strategic adjustments you need to make to succeed at one over the other are dramatic and shouldn’t be underestimated.

Free No Limit Texas Hold'em

You can find books that cover Limit Hold’em as a separate subject from No Limit Hold’em.

You should read such books and put into practice what you’ve learned from them.