If you play live or online poker for fun or you’re just learning how to play poker online, then all the different rules, tips, and tricks can be slightly overwhelming. The flop is one of the most important parts of any hand, and having even the most basic awareness of your options during preflop and postflop will help you make better overall decisions. 

Knowing what actions to take preflop can be a bit complex, but there’s a simple system that you can use to ensure that you aren’t utterly confused when the time comes. In this blog post, you’ll learn more about what the flop is in a poker game and how the PLAN system can form an integral part of your preflop poker strategy.

What is the Flop in Poker?

Before you dive into your preflop strategy, it’s important to start by answering one simple question: What is the flop in poker?

Omaha and Texas Hold’em are known as flop-based poker games. They can be broken down into four different sections. The first is the initial round of betting that happens right after the hole cards are dealt, which is also known as preflop action.

Five community cards are placed on the table in three different stages, each one with its own betting round. 

The first three community cards are revealed simultaneously. This is the flop, the second stage of the hand. When that betting round (also referred to as postflop betting) is finished, the fourth card is dealt, which is known as the turn card. The final community card is called the river card, setting up the final stage of the hand and final round of betting.

The PLAN System for Preflop Actions

The PLAN system is an easy-to-use guide that you can incorporate into cash games or poker tournaments that will help you make better decisions preflop. The PLAN system poker strategy uses four parts: position, location, aggression, and no limit. Here’s how this particular preflop poker strategy works.

Position

Your position in the hand is one of the most important factors in any poker decision. Before you do any poker preflop decision-making, you should consider what your position will be if the hand goes past the flop. Poker position strategy isn’t the first part of how to use the PLAN system in poker; it’s a key part of any poker strategy.

If you know you’ll be in position during postflop, then you’ll have more options when it comes to value betting, floating, and bluffing. This means that you should look to play more hands if you know that you’ll have the best position postflop. Of course, this doesn’t mean you should completely avoid playing hands. If you are going to be OOP (out of position) postflop, you might just want to play fewer hands from an earlier position than a late one. Limping behind from middle position one (MP1) in a game might seem like a good idea, but if there’s an aggressive player on the button, they could raise and put you in a bad OOP postflop.

Locations (of Weaker/Inexperienced Players)

Identifying the weaker and more inexperienced players around the table and practicing solid poker table selection in cash games will give you a much better chance of winning. Poker games don’t actually run around the strongest players; it’s actually the weaker ones that tend to dictate the table dynamic, even though they don’t intend to. These dynamics can shift considerably based on the number of weak or inexperienced players in a game and what position they’re in on any given hand.

Before you raise a hand preflop, it’s always worth finding out where the weak players are and what actions are likely to take place if you raise and they call. There are a number of ways to identify weak players in this situation, but one of the most reliable is simply passive play. This means that they regularly call preflop and postflop, but then fold before the showdown. Weak players are likely to call a bunch of preflop raises with rubbish hands. You can plan ahead for this when you raise with hands like 2-2 and Q-9 offsuit.

Aggression

Passive play was mentioned in the section above, and it’s usually indicative of a weak or inexperienced player. If in doubt, choose aggressive play over passive play based on poker starting hand strategy. In general, this means raising a hand rather than limping. That’s not to say you should never limp in preflop, but if you do it too often, you’ll miss out on some good spots for aggressive play. 

Of course, if you’re going in with an aggressive poker strategy, then you must have a game plan beyond your preflop poker system. Being aggressive works best if you are (or will be) in a position postflop. Consider what could happen with your hand and if you might be able to win the pot outright with it. Also, think about whether a limp or raise will create a more valuable situation.

No Limit

Too many players seem to forget that they’re playing a no-limit game, and they don’t consider the tenets of no limit Texas hold’em strategy. You can make a massive raise whenever you want, but so few players consider doing this. Don’t be afraid to use raise sizes that seem a little out of place. 

Doing this will make your opponents second-guess their assumptions about your hole cards, and it could undoubtedly help to create a more +EV (positive expected value) opportunity for you. While your odds of flopping a royal flush are low, using creative plays and ideas in a logical game can be a great way to increase your edge.

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