Texas Hold'em: Table Position ♠ ♣ ♦ ♥

I undervalued position for a while when I started playing, but it's actually one of the most valuable aspects of poker to understand in able to make profitable decisions.

Some starting hands that might be considered average could easily be folding hands out of position. It's important to know where you are relative to the button position. Preflop, UTG(under the gun) acts first. After the flop, the small blind acts first. Under the gun is overall the worst position because you act early, and the button is the best because you act late.

• EP = Early Position
  Avoid playing weak/average hands in these positions. A big mistake beginners make is they call in early position just to get faced with a raise when it comes back around. Generally speaking, the less people acting after you the better.

• MP = Middle Position
  In comparison to EP, you can play a wider range of hands in MP. It also depends on your opponents. If you call, are you likely to be raised? If you raise are you likely to be 3-bet(re-raised)? Is your hand good enough to continue if these cases do happen? These are some questions to be asking yourself in middle position.

• LP = Late Position
  The best two seats in the table are the "cutoff"(right of the button) and the button. These are versatile positions. You can steal blinds, play an even wider range of hands, bluff, semi-bluff. For example: you are on the button, and you're playing 3 handed(you and 2 opponents). They both check and it's your turn. Being aggressive here regardless of your hand usually pays off unless they are slow playing(checking to disguise their hand strength) or they know you are bluffing. The more coordinated(connected/suited/paired) the board texture, the more likely your bluff will work.

In all, the later your position is, the more information you have before your decision. Likewise, the early positions are giving info, so this is not an ideal spot to be.
Did they check/call? This could be a sign of weakness.
Did they bet/raise? This could be a sign of strength.
How much did they bet/raise, and how long did they take to make the decision? These could be indicators.

Taking advantage of good position alone can win pots. The sooner you pay attention to position, the better!

I hope everyone learned something from this, if there are any questions feel free to ask! ☮