Poker Forum - Short-Handed Poker

For anyone who likes exciting poker and lots of action, short handed poker is a perfect fit. One of the reasons people like to play online poker is that there are plenty of short-handed tables. That certainly is not the case for land-based casinos. The usual full ring table consists of nine or ten players, while the short handed table usually consists of five or six. Since blinds come more frequently, compared to the full-ring table, players cannot sit still and wait for premium hands. Playing style is completely different from the full tables; it usually takes time to make the adjustments. Looser play and more playing errors can be expected.

Short-handed games are usually very aggressive, with a lot of open-raises and reraises. In a full ring game, players usually only raise when they have premium hands (big pocket pairs, AK, AQ etc.). In a short-handed game, players have to open up considerably and gamble more. Paying attention and understanding their opponents becomes even more important when playing at a small table. Some weaker hands like the small pairs, middle pairs and ace high become very playable in short-handed games. Waiting for premium hands in a short-handed situation will lose many blinds during the process. Also, when these tight players get involved in betting, the opposition will know they have something and the result is the tight players will win the minimum.

Short Handed Hold’em is a tough game to learn and you’ll need plenty of practice to become a competent player. What is the incentive for players to learn a tough game? The chance of winning big money in a short period of time, while playing an exciting brand of poker. If there is a weak player at your table, you get more chances to play head's up against him.

As mentioned, it usually takes time to adjust from a full ring game to a short handed game. Trying it out at low limit is probably a good idea.

Most online poker rooms offer short handed games. We recommend the following rooms based on their reputation and the chance of facing weaker opponents:

Party Poker
Pacific Poker
Titan Poker