Grand Theft Hold'em: Stealing the Blinds

Theft may not be legal everywhere else but in Texas Hold'em, it's a vital concept and one that any expert would give as a poker tip. Called stealing the blinds, it's a method of stealing the big and small blinds by method or large bets, usually during the pre-flop to rob other players of potentially hand making cards. If done successfully, the opponents will fold and give you several big blinds to keep you afloat if the cards don't like you for a few rounds.

This usually occurs pre and sometimes even post flop. This is carefully measured - stealing the blinds will probably not work if there's been significant action, especially re-raising, before a Texas Hold'em's players action. When people bet weakly across the table, it's essentially provoking this poker tip. Accurate measure of your opponents is vital - if you cannot measure your opponents well, this tip should only be used with at least a pair, or an ace as it is, in essence a bluff. If your opponents do not fall for your big bet, you may end up changing the title of your move from stealing the blinds to Russian roulette. Late round players can use this poker tip in Texas Hold'em well, as the late players always know more that the first players. Blind stealing becomes vital and necessary especially in tournaments where the blind increase clock ticks off fast. Some players could even live off stealing the blinds if they play it right.

This is not a technique or poker tip that a player can use forever nor is it one that they can scrub into victory. Stealing the blinds, as with all tactics such as tight-aggressive play and slow play, should be used intermittently and alternately, to prevent from becoming predictable. Its value rises exponentially if the player to your left is a passive player, which means that they won't even play defensively against it. Players who want to stop the attack of a blind stealer can use good judgment and careful timing by re-raising, forcing the stealer to further commit, which is always a dangerous proposition pre-flop in Texas Hold'em.

Stealing the blinds is a poker tip that anyone could use but it is not a one move win that makes everything magically successful. It is a weapon in what should be a varied and plentiful arsenal in Texas Hold'em, as variety keeps you from being banal. Try it out every now and then - you may end up stealing more than you think.