Poker players talk a lot about position, and newcomers in the world of poker gaming will be surprised to hear the word “position” mentioned so many times in relation to the game.
What is Position at a Poker Table?
Position simply means the seat occupied by players at a poker table in relation to their opponents. For instance, if a poker player remarks that he/she has “got the position” on an opponent, it means that the player is sitting to the left of the opponent and can make his/her move after the opponent, which is very much to his/her advantage. However, position is often considered to be the seat occupied by players in relation to the dealer or the button.
Beginners often make the mistake of taking their position too lightly. A poker player’s position at the poker table is often responsible for his/her gains or losses, owing to which all poker players must understand table position with reference to the dealer or button before wagering real money on a game of poker.
Types of Poker Positions
Here are the poker table positions in brief.
· The seats closest to the button and to its left are considered to be early position
· The seats close to the button and to its right are considered to be late position
· All the other seats are considered to be middle position.
Late positions are much more profitable than early positions, with the button being the luckiest position of them all because the player on the button is always the last to make a move after the flop.
Early Position (EP)
The three poker players to the left of the button are considered to occupy the early positions, which is the most unfortunate situation to be in because these players have to make the first move without knowing the nature of the moves their opponents might make.
Since these players have to act without first getting any information about the other players, they are advised to play only if they have strong cards.
Middle Position (MP)
The poker players in middle position are those who are neither in the early position nor in the late position. These players have already seen some of their opponents make a move, but have no idea what moves the others might be planning.
Although they can afford to adopt a loose style of play, they still have to be careful.
Late Position (LP)
The late position is the position that all poker players crave; these are the three positions closest to and to the right of the button.
Players in the late position have observed all their opponents act and are therefore in a position to make the best decision regarding betting, folding, or raising.
Successful poker players are well aware of the importance of position and modify their game according to their table position. Unfortunately, beginners tend to get carried away during the game and forget their table position, a mistake that has an adverse effect on their game. The most commonly advocated strategy is that players in early position should only play their strongest hands.