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Middle Position

Playing your hand from a middle position, which we will define as the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions to the left of the big blind, is similar to the play of your hands from an early position.

The main difference is that you now can play a few more hands, since your positional disadvantage is not as great.

This means that in an unraised pot, you can play all hands in Groups 1-5 when the game is typical or tough. In a loose, passive game it is all right to play the Group 6 hands as well.

However, if the game is loose, aggressive, some of the weaker hands such as should probably be thrown away.

and

You will find it difficult to “steal the blinds” as someone in a later position may be quick to try to isolate you (make it three bets) if you come in with a raise.

Also, if you are not the first one in, consider the strength of your opponents. Specifically, the weaker you opponents are, the more hands you can play. put another way, you should be more inclined to play marginal poker hands only against poorer players.

Small pairs and medium suited connectors should also be played differently than you would play them in early position if you are first in, and the game is loose. Up front, you should enter the pot if the game conditions are right.

But if you are in middle position and no one has voluntarily entered the pot means that it is unlikely that you will get the multiway action that these hands require.

Here’s an example. Suppose the game is loose but not overly aggressive, and you expect pretty good action on most flops. It would now be correct to playif you are first in from an early position.

However, if the first three or four people pass in this exact same game, you should throw this hand away. (Note that we consider these players to have passed if they are away.)

If you do play online poker, in addition to not getting the multiway action that you wish, you may find yourself isolated by an aggressive player. Now unless you flop a set you will be playing a weak hand out of position. Similar comments apply for a hand like:

The situation changes if there are already one or more players in and you can anticipate a multiway pot. Now the 2♦ 2♠ or the 8♣ 7♣ may become playable if the game conditions are right.

(Remember, small pairs like games where there is a lot of action on the flop, while the connecting hands prefer more passive play.)

Another difference between early and middle position is that in middle position you virtually never just call as the first one in with the large suited connectors, such as:

One of the reasons for this is that some of your opponents will begin to suspect you of trying to steal the poker blinds (with weak hands) when you raise after several people have passed. So you may as well raise all of those times when you hold a good hand.

Thus, if you are the first one in, raise with all hands that are in Groups 1, 2 and 3. This is also usually correct if there are callers, don’t always raise with the Group 3 hands.

If you hold a Group 3 hand, consider how well your opponents play and whether you want a lot of players or a few players. If your opponents are strong, tend to call; otherwise, raise.

When you want a lot of opponents, such as with JTs as opposed to AQ, this is another time to just call (when you are not the first one in) with a Group 3 hand.

It may also be correct to raise with Group 4 hands AJ or KQ. The time to do so is when you think it is likely that your raise will:

1. Knock out most (if not all) of the players behind you.

2. Keep the pot short-hande tips.

And no strong player has voluntarily entered the pot. It also helps to have tight players in the blinds. If this is not the case, it is probably best to only call with these hands.

And if someone has limped in who is likely to hold a dangerous hand such as AA or AKs – you should consider folding.

If the pot already has been raised, almost always reraise with AA, KK, QQ, aKs and AK. In addition, occasionally rerasie with other good hands, such as:

Or

Remember, these raises are made so you can vary your play and throw some of your opponents off. Raising too often with these types of hands could prove to be very expensive.

Moreover, you usually should throw these hands away if the pot already has been raised. If the raiser is a “loose raiser” you should use the same poker guidelines as given for early position play when considering reraising with a hand like:

But remember, if you are not sure as to the correct course of action, it is probably best to throw the hand away. One strategy that begins to come into play in the middle positions is that you should almost always raise rather than call when:

1. No one has yet entered the pot.
2. You have a playable hand (generally Group 1-6).
3. You think there is a reasonable chance (perhaps as small as 25 percent) that all players behind you (including the blinds) will fold.

However, if criterion one or three is not met you should usually just call except with your best poker hands, and actually fold some of the weaker hands (basically Group 6) that you would have otherwise raised with.