Beating the Rake

As with all games that you bet on, you really need to know certain things about Texas Hold’em before you go out and start betting all of your money on each hand that you have that you think is a good hand. Some of the things that you should consider are how many players there are, how aggressive or passive those players are, your table position, the amount of money you have to spend, and how much of a risk you are willing to take. If there are eight or ten people at the table that you pick, it is much more likely that one of the other players has a strong hand in the pocket than is a short handed game. Also in larger games the chances of someone's pre-flop hand fitting the flop will be much higher. The more competition there is the more competitive things can become.

Let’s assume that you have been playing with a handful of people for a good few hands, and that you have noticed one particular person tends to raise every hand pre flop, in this case you will want to play tighter. The best way to handle this situation is to let that player win the blinds and then get him (or her) when you have a solid hand in the pocket pre flop. Realistically the house already has the edge on you.

The rake is built in so that the house does take money from you in very small and usually unnoticed amounts. There are some ways in which you might be able to minimize this advantage. Some rooms will only rake the pot once it has reached a certain and usually predetermined amount. This way you can play opposite the style of the table. You can put the tight players through the tactics such as stealing the blind and buying free cards. Buying a free card is usually a trick used in the last position, if no one else has raised the post flop then you bet. Doing that will most likely lower the number of players, but those who do stay in will usually tend to check you. Then after that on the turn after everyone has checked you don't necessarily have to bet again therefore you basically get to see the card for free.

When you are playing against an aggressive player you should tighten up the way you play. Be very aware of the position you hold at the table. Play only great starting hands and fold after the flop if it didn't bring anything to your hand. You have to be a better player to overcome that percentage of the rake and bluffing. Once you get to that point, you really don't need to be preoccupied with the rake. If you happen to be a beginner you really should play tighter than you normally would. Some casinos you can ask for a rake break if the game happens to become short handed. This is when they lower or get rid of the rake.