(Note: this advice is primarily designed for no-limit hold 'em athough much of it applies to all forms of hold 'em)

Because a poker hand consists of 5 cards and you only start off with 2 cards, you can't, at the start of the game, know what sort of hand you will end up with. Novices may be tempted to play with almost anything. The first step to playing well is to be selective about which hands you play and to fold a lot of hands straight away. Since there are no antes in Texas Hold 'Em, you are only forced to contribute to the pot at all when you are in the small or big blind position. The rest of the time you can save a lot of money by folding poor hands straight away.

So what is a good starting hand in Texas Hold 'Em?

As a general rule, but a very helpful one, having two high cards is much better than having low ones! The reason for this is that you want a good chance of being able to pair the top card dealt on the flop. With two high cards, you have a reasonable chance of achieving this - and because your other card (your "kicker") is also a high card, you have a good chance of beating someone else who also has the top pair.

Imagine, for example, you start with an Ace and a King. If either of these matches the top card on the flop, you may well be in a good position and able to be confident that your kicker will hold up against anyone else who also has the top pair. The problem with playing a hand with only one high card, such as K 2, is that if you hit your high card, you may well feel obliged to bet or at least call and you may lose a lot of money if someone else also has top pair but with a better kicker.

The best starting hand of all is a pair of Aces. Anyone with any other hand is a big underdog against you. A pair of Kings or Queens are also excellent hands as is AK.

Lower pairs are OK, but often not as strong as you might think. Sometimes (nearly 11% of the time) you will make Three of a Kind on the Flop - usually an excellent hand in Hold 'Em. It's also true that, if played to the end, a pair of Twos is a slight favourite against a single opponent with, for example, A K. However, if you get to the flop, the vast majority of the time you will not have 3 of a kind and, if anyone bets, you don't know where you are - it could easily be that someone has a pair higher than you or that they will, at least, make one by the end. Your chances of improving to Three of a Kind are just too small to be able to carry on if there is any significant bet. You could bet from the start and try to push other players out of the hand - but if one player calls, you're in almost a 50-50 situation at best. In a 10-handed game, someone will already have a better pair than your pair of twos about half the time. If more than one player calls, you're probably in trouble.

Two good cards will have an even better chance of winning if they are suited (of the same suit) and could make a flush or if they are "connected" - i.e. two consecutive cards that could make a straight. There is little point, however, in betting money on two low cards even if they are suited and connected. Imagine you have 3 4 of Hearts. You are very unlikely to get a flush or straight. You will get a flush on the flop less than 1% of the time and the same goes for a straight on the flop. Even if you get the flush by the end, it could easily be beaten by a better flush. Only if you get A 2 5 or 2 5 6 on the board can you even possibly get the best straight available. So your chances of getting a straight or flush are small in any case, and if you get one you may well get beaten anyway.

Which starting hands you should and should not play with depend crucially on your "position" - more on this later!!

By the time you get to the end of the hand, then, clearly, what is a good hand depends on what is on the board (the "board" refers to the communal cards in the middle of the table). However, by starting with a good hand, you are dramatically boosting your chances of ending up with the best hand and you may of course win the hand before it gets to a showdown in any case.

One of the key features of Texas Hold 'Em is the importance of "position." "Position" refers to the order in which people act in each betting round. People who are one of the last to act in each betting round are said to be "in late position." People who are one of the first to act in each betting round are said to be "in early position."

In Hold 'Em, unlike in many other forms of poker, your position remains the same in every betting round (except for the people "in the blinds" who act last in the very first round of betting, but first in every other round). The people in "late position" will be in late position throughout the hand.

The best position for you to be in is the dealer's position - this is known as being "on the button" because the dealer "button" (with a red "D" on it) will be in front of you signifying that you are the dealer. You will be last to act in every betting round (other than the first round, when the players paying the blinds act last). This is a crucial advantage because you will get to see everyone act before it is your turn. You therefore have a wealth of information at your disposal, helping you to make the correct decision.

For example, if a player acting before you places a big bet, this will tell you they probably have a very good hand. You can then fold and save yourself money. If you have a great hand there is a good chance someone else will bet and get callers before it is your turn. You can then raise and build a really big pot that you are likely to win. If, on the hand, everyone else checks, suggesting no-one has a good hand, you might then have the opportunity to bet and "steal" the pot there and then even if you have nothing in your hand either.

When you are in early position, there is always the worry that if you bet or call a bet, someone in later position may reraise. You are then put in the uncomfortable position of either having to fold your hand and lose the money you have already placed in the pot or of having to pay a lot more than you wanted to be able to see the next card. You will be in a disadvantaged position in every round of the hand. This is why you need much stronger hands in early position than you would in late position. The later your position, the bigger your advantage and the more hands you can play.

Position is extremely important in Hold 'Em. In fact, some experts will tell you that the three most important things in Hold 'Em are Position, Position and Position. Nevertheless, even having read this, it may well take some time and considerable experience before you can fully appreciate the importance of position. Being able to exploit your position is also something that comes with experience.

I will now look at some of the key starting hands and look at how they might best be played and from which positions.

Ace-Ace is the best starting hand you can have in Texas Hold 'Em. If it is played to the end, it will win against a single opponent about 80% of the time, pretty much whatever hand they start with. It will still win about 31% of the time in a 10-handed game where everyone plays to the end. And yet many people play aces badly and may actually, on average, lose money with them.

The point about starting with a pair of aces is that you definitely have the best hand at this point in the game. You would like to be able to bet a lot of money and get at least one caller. Suppose you do go all-in (bet all the money you have on the table) and you get one caller. Not only do you have the best hand at the moment, but you are a big favourite to have the winning hand after all the cards have been dealt (unless, of course, he also has AA, but this is extraordinarily unlikely). If you can go all-in and get a caller, then you probably should do that. Sometimes you will get outdrawn, but you will win the vast majority of the time.

The problem, of course, is that if you do go all-in, everyone might fold and you'll make hardly any money at all with your great hand. You will only get pocket aces once in every 221 hands and you want to make the most of it! Fortunately, in many low stakes games there is a good chance you will be called even if you go all in. Many players will call an all-in if they have KK or QQ. Some players will call an all-in bet with hands like JJ, TT or AK. There are also a fair share of nutters who will call an all-in with almost any pair, any two high cards or even suited-connectors. One good reason for going all-in preflop is that a player with, for example, JJ may well call with all his chips. If you waited till the flop to bet, there may well be a Q, K or Ace on the flop and the player with JJ will probably fold his hand, which you don't want to happen!

Ideally, you would like some sort of indication before you bet that someone else has a strong hand and might call a very big bet. If you are in late position, you might be lucky enough that someone places a big bet or even a raise before it is your turn to act. You are then free to put in a big reraise or even go all in. If you are in early position, you might decide simply to check when it is your turn and hope that someone else raises. If they do, you can reraise them.

Sometimes no-one will raise, indicating that no-one has a very stong hand. In this case you possibly can't expect to go all-in and get callers (unless you have nutters at the table). However, you probably still want to make a substantial bet. One reason for this is that it is possible that someone in early position might have a hand like KK or QQ and is slowplaying it (i.e. they are waiting for someone to raise so they can reraise. By raising you are giving them a chance to reraise you. They think they are trapping you, but, in fact, you have them "by the balls," so to speak.

Another reason for betting is that you want to "narrow down the field" - you don't want to be playing against a lot of opponents. Imagine if you don't raise at all with your aces. Eight people call the big blind and see the flop. The problem is that in low stakes games, many players will call the big blind or even a small raise before the flop with almost any hand at all. They could have anything. Now if the flop comes down 2 5 6, you can't be sure that no-one has 34 and has made a straight or that someone didn't call with 2 6 and now has Two Pair. With nine opponents you will lose with AA the vast majority of the time.

If, on the other hand, you place a decent bet and get one or two callers, you are in a much better position. You are a big favourite to win the hand and you have a better chance of knowing where you stand. For example if three low cards come on the flop, and a player bets, it is unlikely they have Two-Pair, since if they started with two low cards, why would they call a pre-flop bet? Even when you are outdrawn, you have a better chance of knowing you have been outdrawn and being able to get away from your hand (fold your hand) before you lose too much money.

If you don't bet big pre-flop, then what you are really hoping for is for someone to get top pair on the flop and bet to protect it. For example, the flop will come down 2 6 J. A player with a Jack in the hole may bet quite heavily to prevent anyone drawing to a Queen, King or Ace and stop anyone with a 2 or 6 getting a chance of 2 pair. You can then decide to call or raise as you see fit! In low stakes games, you can often bet all-in on the flop and get called by a player who has made top pair (i.e. he has paired the top card on the flop).

In bigger stakes games and against better opponents you usually can't just bet all-in pre-flop and expect to get callers. In some games, some players will even be prepared to fold KK if there is an all-in bet. In such games, even a small reraise preflop will have people suspecting aces and so disguise becomes very important.

This causes a big problem for a lot of players - They feel they can't bet all-in preflop with aces, but they also find themselves unable to fold them on the flop, turn or river when they really should know they are beat! Some players will bet only small preflop with aces, but then they are prepared to go all-in on the flop without improving. This can be a disaster, of course! They seem to forget that AA is only a pair - a very good pair, but only a pair!

This means that one of the keys to playing Ace-Ace well is to know when to fold it. Some players will lose lots of money with Ace-Ace because they simply refuse to fold it no matter what! You never fold AA preflop, of course - but you need to look out for dangerous flops. If a reasonable bet was made pre-flop - then it is unlikely anyone got two pairs unless two high cards come on the flop. A flop like 10 Q K could be dangerous for you. A flop with a high pair is also potentially dangerous. E.g. You don't want to see a pair of Kings on the flop - someone could well have 3 of a kind. 3 high cards could also give someone a chance of a straight. 3 cards of the same suit are dangerous for obvious reasons although usually no-one will have the flush yet! And any flop at all could have given someone a set! And you could easily be outdrawn on the turn and river, of course, so always be ready to fold your aces. In the long-run they are big winners for you so long as you don't throw money away when you have obviously been outdrawn!

For someone fairly new to the game, this may be useful advice: Many people frown on the idea of going all-in preflop with AA. "Everyone will know you have aces and will fold," they may say. This may sometimes be true, but at least with this strategy you won't lose money with your aces (at least not in the long run!). Furthermore, how do you know there is no-one at the table who will call all-in with KK, QQ or even two suited cards unless you give them the chance to do so? In low stakes games and when you are short-stacked, an all-in bet may well get called. If you are playing at tables where you feel you can't put in a huge bet preflop with aces, then by all means vary your strategy, but make sure that whatever your strategy is, that you make more money than you would have done had you simply gone all-in preflop! Without a very big bet preflop, then on the flop, turn and river, you must be prepared to fold if you don't improve and it looks like you are beat!

These are excellent starting hands - and you will almost always be starting with the best hand when you have them. Your main concern in either case is that an Ace might come up on the flop. If an Ace does comes up on the flop and anyone bets, it is all too likely you are beaten. A King is also dangerous if you have QQ. The chances of an overcard (a card higher than the cards you have) coming up on the flop are higher than you might think: 23% of the time if you have KK and a whopping 41% of the time if you have QQ.

For these reasons, you will often want to bet with these hands to make anyone with an Ace pay to try to outdraw you. You may however decide to slowplay your hand, perhaps hoping that a player who makes top pair (jacks or lower) on the flop will bet themselves or call if you bet. You just have to be prepared to give your hand up when it looks beaten!

In low stakes games, you can bet all in with KK if you think you might get called. On rare occassions, someone might have AA. You're far more likely to get called by hands like QQ, JJ, TT, AK or AQ and you are a big favourite over any of these hands. With QQ you may wish to be rather more careful, because both AA and KK will be beating you and you would only be a slight favourite over AK.

JJ may seem like a great hand. It's a good hand, but it isn't great! You get an "overcard" (a card higher than your Jacks) on the flop about 57% of the time. With Ace, King or Queen on the flop, you are put in a difficult position and could easily be losing.

You may decide to bet strongly with a pair of Jacks pre-flop on the basis that you still probably have the best hand at the time. However, you may decide to try to see the flop reasonably cheaply. With a good flop, you may well have a much better idea of where you stand. You normally hope to get three of a kind but a flop without overcards is usually good for a hand like JJ.

To learn how to play pocket pairs, it is useful to look at what to do with the lowest pair available. With a pair of Deuces, you generally need to improve to win the hand. As I've already said, it is true that you will win most of the time against a single player with, for example, Ace-King - but only just most of the time!

Some players in low stakes games will bet strongly with a low pair - but think about this - if you are called then, at best, your opponent will probably have two higher cards than you and you will have barely more than a 50-50 chance of winning. Worse, your opponent may have a bigger pair than yours and you will be about a 4-1 underdog to win the hand. When you start with pocket deuces, what you really hope for is to get Three of a Kind on the flop - which you will get about 11% of the time. If you get it, you can then often get paid off by someone with a big pair. Most of the time, however, you will not get a set, and since there will certainly be overcards on the board, if someone bets, you are probably beaten.

So - the basic situation is this: Out of nine times you play this hand, you need to win enough money on the one time you get your three of a kind to pay for the other 8 times this doesn't happen. To be able to do this, you need to get in cheaply to see the flop! Therefore, you usually only want to be playing this hand from late position when there have been no large raises before if is your turn and when there are several people still in the hand.

AK (either suited or not-suited) is a highly rated hand in Hold 'Em. The main reason for this is that if you pair one of your cards, you will have top pair with the best kicker available. You will pair one of your cards on the flop about 27% of the time. Even better is that you may well get paid off handsomely by anyone with the same pair but with a slightly lower kicker. You can imagine that the flop comes up K 9 5. A player with KQ is going to feel very confident about his hand and may be very reluctant to fold his hand even if you bet heavily with your AK.

You have a chance of a excellent flush hand (often the nut flush hand) whether you have Ace-King suited or not suited. Occasionally you will pick up a straight. Importantly, even when you fail to get a pair on the flop, your high cards may mean that you still have the best hand at that point, with no-one else managing to pair the flop. You may either be able to nab the pot there and then or, alternatively, get a free card or two to draw to your King and Ace. Even when someone pairs one of the lower cards on the flop, you may pull off a successful bluff, pretending to have the top pair knowing that you probably still have a chance to draw the winning hand by hitting either of your cards if you are called.

Conventional wisdom in higher stakes games is that you should normally raise preflop with AK. If you miss the flop (don't get any cards that help you), you may stil be able to represent (pretend to have) a high pair in your pocket and pick up the pot on the flop. Your pre-flop raise will help convince people that you have a big pair. Betting on the flop having bet preflop and missed the flop is known as a "continuation bet."

In low stakes games, however, things are different. If you miss the flop, you won't be able to push people off a hand so easily. You may want to see the flop fairly cheaply. The plus side is that if you hit one of your cards and make, for example, a pair of Aces, you can easily get paid by anyone with an ace and a worse kicker. Many low-stakes players will call a reasonable preflop bet with any ace, including hands like A2.

Two high cards (e.g. KQ, AQ, AJ)

Generally, you hope to get top pair with a good kicker. You might also pick up a draw to an excellent straight or flush. If you do better than this, that's a bonus. In low stakes games, seeing the flop cheaply is often a reasonable strategy with such hands.

One thing you have to be careful with is when you pair one of your cards but your kicker is not quite good enough. For example, if you have AJ and pair your ace, your kicker will often be good enough but you will regularly get beaten by a hand like AK or AQ. In low stakes games, however, people will often bet or even raise with top pair and any kicker so the vast majority of the time your kicker wil still be good enough. With AJ, however, you might prefer to pair your Jack rather than your ace (so long as there is no K or Q on the board). This way you won't have kicker problems since you have the best kicker available.

In low stakes games, many people will play any hand with an Ace in it, but these "Ace-Rag" hands (hands with an ace and naff kicker) are overrated by too many players. When you manage to pair your aces, you might have the best hand, but in a 10-handed game, it's all too likely that someone else also has an ace, but with a better kicker. Folding Ace-Rag is usually the best policy.

Suited cards

Here are the central facts to remember: With suited cards in the pocket, you will flop a flush less than 1% of the time. You will flop a 4-flush nearly 11% of the time, but even when you do, you will only complete your flush 35% of the time. What this should tell you is that you should usually have some other reasonable means of winning the pot other than by getting the flush. Ace-King suited is obviously an excellent hand. Not only could you get the nut flush, but pairing either card may well be good enough to win.

Hands like Ace-Deuce suited may be playable if you can see the flop cheaply. If you get the flush, it will be the best flush available (except in the unlikely event of a possible straight-flush). If you pair your ace, you have a chance that no-one else has an Ace or that your lowly kicker will not come into play!! You also have a chance of the bottom straight! The main lesson however is simple: Don't overrate suited cards!

With two connected cards, you will make a straight on the flop nearly 1.3% of the time at best (hands like AK or KQ obviously have less chance of making a straight that e.g. 89). If you get lucky and flop an open-ended straight draw, you will get the straight by the end 31.5% of the time, but some of this time you will be drawing to the low end of the straight - potentially a very dangerous position to be in since you may well lose even if you get the straight. Thus, with 2 connected cards, you usually need another reason to play them. Ideally they will be high cards or cards of the same suit or both! So, again, be careful not to place too much stock by the fact that your cards are connected.

There is no set formula for success, and many top players will occasionally play unusual starting hands. Probably, however, they are simply looking to mix things up a bit, so their opponents can never be absolutely sure what sort of hands they may be betting or calling with.

As a general rule, however, if you don't start with either a pair, two high cards or two cards that are both suited and connected, then it will often be best not to voluntarily pay to stay in the hand. Even when you do have one of these hands, you will often fold it, especially if you are in early position or someone else has already bet or raised.

A flop can turn a poor hand into an excellent one. On the other hand, it can also turn an excellent pre-flop hand into a loser. An obvious example is when you start with a pair of Kings and an Ace comes on the flop. Make sure you're not wedded to those Kings. Unless you are prepared to fold them, they could cost you a fortune! Clearly, overcards are potentially dangerous in many similar situations.

Other, obviously dangerous flops are when three of one suit come on the flop and you don't have any of that suit yourself. Against a small number of opponents, it is unlikely they have the flush already. Against multiple opponents, the situation is looking dangerous, even if you hold Ace-Ace in the pocket. If you bet heavily, you may get caught by someone who already has the flush. If you don't bet, you may allow someone to draw the flush for free! Either way, it's a potentially dangerous flop.

As a general rule, high cards on the flop that you do not have paired are more dangerous than low cards, since a player with low cards is less likely to have made it this far in the hand in any case. Be more careful when there are no raises pre-flop - players, especially those in late position or in the blinds could have almost anything in their hands! Again, in low stakes games, some players will call the big blind with almost any hand.

A pair on the flop is clearly dangerous. Suppose the flop shows 9 9 K. With lots of players still in the hand, there is a reasonable chance someone has a nine in the hole and has made Three of a Kind. Even with a King or a high pair in the pocket, you must be prepared to fold if there is a big bet and your judgement tells you that a 9 is out there, although you still have a small chance of a superior full-house yourself!

The important thing is to remember that you only start with two cards and there are three cards on the flop - so even the best starting hands can turn sour if the wrong type of flop turns up!