Poker positions determine the order of action and strategic advantage at the table. Mastering position play is fundamental to winning poker strategy, as it dictates which hands to play and how aggressively to play them.
Position is the single most important strategic concept in Texas Hold'em poker. Before you can master advanced concepts like pot odds, implied odds, or range construction, you must understand how your seat at the table fundamentally changes which hands are profitable to play. This comprehensive guide breaks down every position at both 6-handed and 9-handed tables, providing you with actionable charts and strategic insights to immediately improve your game.
Whether you play online cash games, live tournaments, or home games, the principles of positional play remain constant. Players who act later in the betting sequence have a measurable advantage over those who act first. This guide will show you exactly how to exploit that advantage and minimize your disadvantage when out of position.
Position determines the order in which players act during each betting round. In poker, information is currency, and position gives you more information than your opponents. When you act last, you see what everyone else does before making your decision. This allows you to make more informed choices about whether to bet, call, raise, or fold.
The strategic implications are profound. A hand like Ace-Jack offsuit might be a clear fold from early position but a strong raising hand from the button. The cards themselves have not changed, but your position has transformed their value. Professional players understand this principle and adjust their ranges accordingly, playing significantly more hands from late position than early position.
Position also affects your post-flop play. Acting last on the flop, turn, and river gives you control over pot size, allows you to bluff more effectively, and helps you extract maximum value from strong hands. Conversely, playing out of position forces you into difficult decisions without complete information, leading to costly mistakes.
Six-handed poker has become the standard format for online cash games due to its faster pace and increased action. Understanding the six positions and their strategic implications is essential for any serious player.
Under the Gun is the first position to act preflop at a 6-max table, located immediately to the left of the big blind. This is the worst position at the table because you have zero information about what the five players behind you will do. You must act based solely on your hand strength, which requires a tight, disciplined approach.
From UTG, you should play approximately 15-18% of hands, focusing on premium pairs, strong broadway cards, and suited connectors that play well post-flop. Hands like pocket pairs from nines and up, Ace-King, Ace-Queen suited, and King-Queen suited form the core of a solid UTG range. Avoid marginal offsuit hands and weak suited connectors that will put you in difficult spots after the flop.
The Hijack sits two seats to the right of the button and represents the beginning of middle position. You now have one player's action to observe before making your decision, and only four players remain behind you. This positional improvement allows you to expand your range moderately.
From the Hijack, you can play approximately 20-25% of hands. Add medium pocket pairs, more suited aces, suited connectors down to 87s, and some offsuit broadway combinations. The Hijack is where you begin to think about stealing blinds, though you still need respectable holdings since three players can still wake up with strong hands behind you.
The Cutoff is one seat to the right of the button and marks the beginning of late position. This is where poker becomes significantly more profitable. You act after four players and before only two, giving you substantial informational advantage. The Cutoff is the second-best position at the table.
Your range from the Cutoff expands to approximately 25-30% of hands. You can now profitably play weaker aces, more suited connectors, suited gappers, and additional offsuit combinations. Blind stealing becomes a primary objective from this position. When the action folds to you in the Cutoff, you should be raising a wide range to put pressure on the button and blinds.
Position in poker refers to where you sit relative to the dealer button and determines when you act during each betting round. Players in late position act after most opponents, gaining valuable information about their actions before making decisions. This informational advantage allows for wider hand ranges, more aggressive play, and better post-flop control.
The strategic value of position cannot be overstated. Early position players must play tighter ranges because they face action from multiple opponents behind them. Late position players can exploit this by playing more hands, stealing blinds, and applying pressure. Understanding these dynamics transforms your decision-making process and significantly improves win rates across all poker formats.
The Button is the best position in poker. You act last on every post-flop betting round, giving you maximum control and information. Preflop, only the blinds act after you, and they are forced to put money in with random hands, making them exploitable targets.
From the Button, you can play 40-50% of hands or more, depending on the tendencies of the blinds. This includes virtually all pocket pairs, any two suited cards down to 32s, suited and offsuit connectors, one-gappers, and many offsuit broadway combinations. The Button is where you print money through aggressive play and relentless pressure on the blinds.
The Small Blind is a forced bet that acts first on all post-flop streets, making it the second-worst position at the table despite being last to act preflop. You have already invested half a big blind, which tempts players to call with weak hands, but this is a costly mistake. Playing out of position with marginal holdings leads to difficult decisions and lost money.
Your strategy from the Small Blind depends on the action before you. If it folds to you, you should raise aggressively to attack the Big Blind, playing perhaps 35-45% of hands. However, when facing a raise, you must tighten considerably, playing only hands that perform well out of position or have strong implied odds like pocket pairs and suited connectors.
The Big Blind is a forced bet equal to one big blind. You act last preflop but first on all subsequent streets. Because you have already invested a full big blind, you get better pot odds to call raises, but you must balance this against the positional disadvantage you will face post-flop.
Against a single raise, you can defend your Big Blind with approximately 35-50% of hands, depending on the raiser's position and tendencies. You have the pot odds to call with many marginal hands, but you must be prepared to play skillfully out of position. Against multiple opponents or 3-bets, you should tighten significantly.
Nine-handed poker is the standard format for most live cash games and tournaments. The additional three positions create more complex dynamics and require tighter ranges from early position.
At a 9-handed table, the first three positions are all considered early position. UTG is first to act with eight players behind. UTG+1 and UTG+2 follow with seven and six players remaining. All three positions require tight, disciplined play.
From UTG at a 9-handed table, play approximately 10-13% of hands, focusing on premium holdings. UTG+1 can expand slightly to 12-15%, and UTG+2 to 13-16%. These ranges consist primarily of high pocket pairs, Ace-King, Ace-Queen suited, and King-Queen suited. Avoid the temptation to play marginal hands from early position, as you will frequently face action from better positions behind you.
The Lojack and Hijack represent middle position at a 9-handed table. The Lojack is essentially equivalent to UTG at a 6-max table, with five players remaining to act. The Hijack has four players behind, offering slightly more flexibility.
From the Lojack, play approximately 15-18% of hands, similar to 6-max UTG. The Hijack allows 18-22% of hands. Both positions can include medium pocket pairs, more suited aces and kings, suited connectors, and select offsuit broadway hands. Middle position is where you transition from purely value-based play to incorporating some speculative hands with good playability.
The Cutoff and Button at a 9-handed table function identically to their 6-max counterparts. The Cutoff plays 25-30% of hands, and the Button plays 40-50% or more. These positions are where you generate the majority of your profit through aggressive play, blind stealing, and positional advantage.
Late position strategy focuses on attacking the blinds, isolating weak players, and building pots with strong hands. You should be raising far more often than calling from these positions, as raising allows you to win the pot immediately or take control of the hand with the positional advantage.
The Small Blind and Big Blind function the same way in 9-handed games as in 6-max, but you face more potential raisers, which affects your defending ranges. When facing raises from early position, you must tighten your defense considerably. Against late position raises, you can defend more liberally, knowing the raiser likely has a wider range.
Understanding the positions is only the beginning. Expert players make continuous adjustments based on position, opponent tendencies, stack sizes, and game dynamics.
Your opening range should expand as your position improves. Early position requires premium hands that play well in multiway pots and hold their value when facing aggression. Middle position allows for more speculative hands with good implied odds. Late position permits a wide range of hands that can steal blinds or outplay opponents post-flop.
Consider not just which hands to play, but how to play them. From early position, you might open-raise pocket tens but just call with suited connectors if there is a raise in front of you. From the button, you raise both hands aggressively to build pots in position.
Position becomes even more valuable after the flop. Acting last allows you to control pot size, bluff more effectively, and extract value more efficiently. When in position, you can check back weak hands to see free cards, bet for value with strong hands knowing your opponent's action, and bluff when your opponent shows weakness.
Out of position, you must play more cautiously. Check-calling becomes necessary with marginal hands, and you must be willing to check-fold when you miss. Leading out with bets can work, but you risk facing raises without knowing if your opponent is strong or bluffing.
Stealing blinds from late position is a fundamental winning strategy. When the action folds to the Cutoff or Button, you should raise a wide range to attack the blinds. The blinds are forced bets with random hands, making them profitable targets.
Conversely, defending your blinds requires balance. You cannot fold every time you face a raise, or opponents will exploit you mercilessly. Defend with a range that includes strong hands, hands with good playability, and occasional bluffs to keep opponents honest. Your defending range should be tighter against early position raises and wider against late position raises.
Even experienced players make positional errors that cost them money. Recognizing and correcting these mistakes will immediately improve your results.
The most common mistake is playing too loose from early position. Weak players see a decent-looking hand like King-Jack offsuit or Ace-Ten offsuit and open-raise from UTG. These hands are marginal at best from early position and often lead to difficult post-flop situations where you are out of position with a mediocre holding.
Discipline yourself to fold marginal hands from early position. Wait for premium holdings that can withstand action from multiple opponents. Your patience will be rewarded with fewer difficult decisions and better overall results.
Many players understand that late position is valuable but fail to exploit it fully. They play too tight from the Cutoff and Button, folding hands that are profitable raises. When the action folds to you in late position, you should be raising aggressively to attack the blinds and build your stack.
Expand your late position ranges and raise more frequently. You will win many pots uncontested, and when you do see a flop, you will have position throughout the hand. This aggressive approach is fundamental to winning poker.
The blinds are the worst positions at the table, yet many players defend them too liberally because they have already invested money. This is the sunk cost fallacy. The money in the blinds is no longer yours; it belongs to the pot. Your decision should be based on whether calling is profitable going forward, not on recouping your blind.
Tighten your blind defense against early position raises and be more selective even against late position raises. When you do defend, prefer 3-betting to calling when you have a strong hand, as this allows you to take control of the pot despite your positional disadvantage.
Mastering poker positions is non-negotiable for anyone serious about winning at poker. Your position at the table determines which hands are profitable to play, how aggressively you should play them, and what strategies are available to you post-flop. Early position requires tight, disciplined play with premium hands. Middle position allows for moderate expansion of your range. Late position is where you generate profit through aggressive play and positional advantage.
Use the position charts in this guide as a foundation, but remember that poker is a dynamic game requiring constant adjustment. Pay attention to your opponents' tendencies, stack sizes, and table dynamics. Tighten your ranges against aggressive players and loosen them against passive opponents. Steal more from tight blinds and less from loose, aggressive defenders.
The players who consistently win at poker are those who understand and exploit positional advantage. Study these concepts, apply them at the tables, and watch your results improve. Position is power in poker, and now you have the knowledge to wield that power effectively.
The Button is the best position in poker because you act last on every post-flop betting round, giving you maximum information and control over the hand. This positional advantage allows you to play a much wider range of hands profitably.
From Under the Gun at a 6-max table, you should play approximately 15-18% of hands. At a 9-handed table, tighten this to 10-13% of hands. Focus on premium pairs, strong broadway cards, and hands that play well in multiway pots.
Position provides information, which is more valuable than marginal improvements in hand strength. A mediocre hand in position is often more profitable than a decent hand out of position because you can make better decisions with more information.
No, you should not defend your blinds against every raise. While you get better pot odds from the blinds, you must balance this against the positional disadvantage. Defend more against late position raises and less against early position raises, and prefer 3-betting to calling with your strongest hands.
In 6-max games, positions are more valuable because there are fewer players, so you reach late position more frequently. In 9-handed games, early position is more restrictive because more players act behind you. Overall ranges are tighter in 9-handed games, especially from early position.
Position gives you control over pot size, allows you to bluff more effectively, and helps you extract maximum value from strong hands. Acting last means you see your opponent's action before deciding, which dramatically improves your decision-making accuracy and profitability.
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