Texas Holdem Position Quiz

If you’ve read many books or web pages about being a winning Texas holdem player you’ve probably been exposed to the idea that position is important, but do you know why?

We’ve put together a quiz designed to help you learn more about what you can do while playing Texas holdem based on your position and the answers have explanations to help you see how to make decisions at the table.

One of the main reasons position is so important while playing holdem is because the game is based on limited information. Because you don’t know what your opponents hold or what’s going to land on the flop, turn, and river, you’re always working with limited information.

When you have position on your opponents you get more information than they do before you have to act. You know what they do before your turn, so you have more information.

The opposite is also true. When you have to act first your opponent has the advantage of additional information.

When you have position it also lets you take a free card at times and apply maximum pressure on your opponents at other times. If you have position and are drawing to a straight or flush, you can decide to check behind your opponent’s check to see a free card or bet, representing a stronger hand.

Each choice will be better in different circumstances, depending on your opponent and your table image. Sometimes a bet is better because you might win the pot immediately without being forced to hit your hand. But you might hit your hand by seeing a free card.

The bottom line is you’re going to show more profit over the long run playing with position in comparison to playing out of position. This is the main reason you can play more hands profitably as you move around the table from early to middle to late position.

Keep these things in mind as you read the quiz questions and answers below. And keep your mind open to learning how to make decisions in similar situations as you read the answers.

Quiz Questions

Quiz Question 1

From early position in a no limit Texas holdem game what group of hands can you play? Choose all that apply.

1. High pairs and high suited connectors
2. Middle pairs and high cards
3. Low pairs and mile suited connectors
4. It depends on the ability of the other players at the table

Quiz Question 2

From early position in a limit Texas holdem game what group of hands can you play? Choose all that apply.

1. High pairs and high suited connectors
2. Middle pairs and high cards
3. Low pairs and mile suited connectors
4. It depends on the ability of the other players at the table

Quiz Question 3

You’re in late position in a no limit Texas holdem game facing a raise from early position and you have a pair of nines in the pocket. Both you and the opponent who raised have deep stacks. What do you do?

1. Fold
2. Call
3. Raise the size of the pot
4. Raise all in

Quiz Question 4

You’re in the same situation as in quiz question 3 except you’re playing limit Texas holdem. What do you do?

1. Fold
2. Call
3. Raise

Quiz Question 5

What hands can you play in an un-raised pot from the small blind in no limit Texas holdem?

1. High pairs and high suited connectors
2. Middle pairs and high cards
3. Low pairs and mile suited connectors
4. Everything
5. It depends on the ability of the other players at the table

Quiz Question 6

You’re playing in a limit Texas holdem game with pocket kings and the pot has been raised and re-raised before the flop. It’s your turn to act. What should you do?

1. High pairs and high suited connectors
2. Middle pairs and high cards
3. Low pairs and mile suited connectors
4. Everything
5. It depends on the ability of the other players at the table

Quiz Question 7

One player limped from early position an you raised from late position with the ace of clubs and queen of clubs. The limper is the only one who called your bet; the flop has an ace and two clubs, and your opponent check to you. You’re playing limit Texas holdem. What do you do?

1. Check for a free card
2. Bet

Quiz Answers

Quiz Answer 1

While most questions about Texas holdem can be answered with it depends, in this case that is a secondary answer at best.

It’s true that in a few games you might be able to play a few more hands profitably; it’s difficult unless you’re at the top of your game. From early position you’re forced to act first throughout the hand so your opponents have an advantage.

This advantage is difficult to overcome unless you have a strong hand to start with. Many inexperienced no limit players play middle pairs from early position hoping to hit a set, but the problem with this is often someone acting after you raises before the flop. When this happens you either have to fold, losing the money you bet, or make a call that isn’t correct.

Even if you do hit a set it’s often difficult to get the maximum return because you’re out of position. You have to check and hope your opponent raises or bet and hope they call. It’s best to avoid all of these situations by waiting for a better hand and / or better position.

Quiz Answer 2

In limit Texas holdem it’s even more important to play only strong hands from early position. At least in no limit you have a chance to win a large pot when you hit a big hand like a set, but your top pot amounts are limited in limit play.

You may also be able to play unsuited ace king, and ace queen, but never play anything worse than that.

Middle pairs and high cards, especially hands without an ace or an ace with a weak kicker, often end up costing you money because when you have a hand it’s often second best. This means you stay in the hand until the end, investing money on each betting round and lose in the end.

Quiz Answer 3

The answer depends somewhat on what you know about your opponent who raised.

You hit a set on the flop roughly one out of eight times you have a pocket pair, so if you can win more than eight times the amount you have to call you can show a profit.

If you don’t know anything about your opponent you can usually call in this situation. But when you don’t hit a set you need to check and fold. Every time you invest more money in the pot after the flop when you don’t improve it costs you more money in the long run.

You have position throughout the hand so when you hit a set and your opponent makes a continuation bet you can call and hope they bet again on the turn or raise and try to get them to commit their entire stack on the flop.

Quiz Answer 4

In limit Texas holdem the maximum amount you can win is often much less than in no limit play. As you learned in the answer to the last question, you have to win more than eight times the amount you have to call when you hit a set in order to show a long term profit.

This is almost impossible to do in limit play, so you need to fold in most games. If multiple players remain in the hand to see the flop it may tip the long term profitability chances your way, but it also increases the chances that you may still lose sometimes when you hit a set.

From late position you can play pocket nines in un-raised pots for a profit in both limit and no limit play.

Quiz Answer 5

The small blind is one of the biggest leaks in Texas holdem player’s games. Because you only have to invest a half bet in an un-raised pot to see the flop many players simply play everything.

But this is a big mistake. And the mistake is compounded when you hit a hand on the flop and remain in the hand, only to learn you hit a second or third best hand. If you see the flop for a half bet you must fold with all but the best hands.

You’re forced to play the entire hand in the worst possible position and you’ll rarely have any idea what your opponents hold.

The best way to play the small blind in no limit Texas holdem is to only play the hands you normally play from early position.

You can usually add ace king, ace queen, and possibly suited ace hands, but our suggestion is to play nothing worse than these.

Quiz Answer 6

In limit Texas holdem not only is your maximum amount of possible winnings capped, your maximum losses are as well on a hand to hand basis. You also need to be aware of and use the pot odds in every situation.

What this all means is you can play many more hands in limit Texas holdem from the small blind than inn no limit play. This is even truer as more players enter the pot. Your half bet is favorable as far as pot odds in many situations.

But you have to be aware of the pot odds after the flop as well so you only continue when you’re receiving profitable odds. You’re still playing the hand out of position so you can’t afford to chase hands that aren’t going to be profitable in the long run.

You need to be careful with middle suited connectors, especially when they improve to a flush. You can lose large pots to higher flushes when this happens.

Middle suited connectors are much stronger when they complete a straight, because it’s less likely an opponent has a better hand and it’s harder for your opponents to recognize your hand.

Quiz Answer 7

You have top pair with the second best possible kicker and a draw to the nut flush. No matter what you do at this point in the long run it’ll be profitable.

The question you need to answer is which way is the most profitable. Because you’re playing limit, the bets double after this round, so you need to take this into consideration. If you bet, your opponent can fold, call, or raise. If you think it’s likely they’ll fold, you should check.

When you check it shows weakness, which is the opposite of your hand. Your opponent might bet on the turn and if they don’t, they’ll be more likely to call your turn bet because you look weak.

If your hand was not as strong as this you’d usually bet because you’re afraid your opponent might improve enough to beat you with a free card. While this may happen occasionally with the original hand, it’s rare.

Conclusion

Understanding, and using, position while playing Texas holdem is one of the most important things you can do to improve your results and profits. This is true whether you’re playing limit or no limit Texas holdem.

Even if you’re having trouble understanding why position is important if you simply start playing only your best hands when you’re out of position, your results will start to improve. Just like gravity, you don’t need to completely understand why it works to see that it does work.

Don’t make the mistake of only considering the quiz answers above in the specific questions they answer. Try to learn how the answers are derived for each qui question so you can apply them to a wide range of possibilities.