Home Poker Learnings Nathan Williams’ 7 Poker Hacks for Beginners

Nathan Williams’ 7 Poker Hacks for Beginners

by PokerProNews Team
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Nathan Williams is a well known name in the poker industry. Known as BlackRain79, Williams has over 10 years of experience in poker. He has ‘Blackrain79 Poker’ YouTube channel with over 100k subscribers. Williams has also written several books on crushing cash games. In this report, we will share his top 7 beginner tips to crush poker.

7 – Pay Attention to Your Position

Know your position and play your hands from in position. Most of your profit in poker will come when you play in position. Playing in position means acting last in a betting round, which provides a significant strategic edge over your opponents. As the last player to act, you get to observe your opponents’ actions before making your decision, while they remain unaware of your next move.This advantage cannot be overstated. Many beginners take years to fully grasp just how crucial a position is in poker.

By playing in position you can control the size of the pot. For example you are in the button with ace-king and your opponent from BB has king-queen. The flop comes K-5-9, BB checks and now you have the option to either bet or check. Williams recommended playing from the Button and Cutoff due to these advantages. 

6 – Re-Raise With Premium Hands

When dealing with strong hands like AA, KK, QQ, JJ, and AK, you should always re-raise the preflop to build the pot and charge weaker hands to continue. A good rule of thumb is to raise three times the original bet to maximize value and apply pressure on your opponents. 

For example, if you have queens in a $1/$2 cash game and an opponent raises to $6, your re-raise should be $18. Establishing this habit ensures you capitalize on premium holdings and maintain a strong position in the hand.

5 – Fastplay Against Bad Players

When playing against calling stations, you should never slowplay strong hands. Instead, take an aggressive approach to maximize value. For example, if you raise with 7♥7♠ and a loose player (fish) calls, and the flop comes K♥7♣3♥, giving you a set, you should raise big when they bet.In this spot if you slow play, they might hit a flush on the turn or river and will go all-in. Which you will never want.

Loose players tend to call with hands like AK, KQ, KJ, KT, or flush draws, so taking an aggressive line ensures you extract the most value from their mistakes.

4 – Play Lots of Suited Connectors

When you are in position, suited connectors like J♥T♥, T♦9♦, 9♠8♠, and 8♣7♣ are powerful hands because they can form straights, flushes, and hidden trips, making them difficult for opponents to read. However, you should avoid playing junky and low suited connectors, which have the chance to be outdrawn by other big hands. 

For example, if you call preflop with T♦9♦ and the flop comes J♥8♠3♦, giving you an open-ended straight draw, you call a bet from your opponent. When the turn brings the 7♠, completing your straight, you are now in a great position to win a big pot. If your opponent holds strong hands like A♥J♣ or Q♠Q♦, they may not see your straight coming, allowing you to maximize value and win big.

3 – Don’t Miss 4th Street Bets

When you have a strong draw or a top pair, it’s crucial not to miss your 4th street bets. For example, if you raise with K♣Q♦, bet the flop, and your opponent calls, you should continue betting on the turn if the board develops favorably. Suppose the turn brings 8♠J♦2♠K♥—since you now have the top pair, betting again is the correct play. 

The reason is that this betting line aligns with your overall strategy, as you would also fire in this spot with bluffs like AQ, AT, T9, and QT. Maintaining consistency in your aggression ensures that your strong hands and bluffs remain indistinguishable, keeping your opponents on their toes.

2 – Always Play Pocket Pairs

Playing pocket pairs is a fundamental strategy in poker, as these hands contribute significantly to your overall profitability. Strong pairs like AA, KK, QQ, and even smaller ones like 22–66 can lead to substantial wins. For example, if you call preflop with 6♥6♦ and the flop comes A♦6♠3♥, you’ve hit a powerful set. 

If your opponent holds a strong hand like A♥K♣, they will likely commit a lot of chips, giving you the opportunity to win a massive pot. Prioritizing pocket pairs in your playstyle maximizes your chances of capitalizing on favorable board runouts. Besides this you can set mine your lower pairs by not being too aggressive.

1 – Don’t “Hero Fold” Pocket Kings 

Pocket Kings (K♠K♥) is the second-best starting hand in Texas Hold’em and should rarely be folded preflop. While your opponent may have pocket Aces (A♦A♣), this occurs only around 4% of the time in a full-ring game and 3% in a six-max game. For example, if you raise with K♠K♥, a tight player 3-bets, you 4-bet, and they shove, it is generally correct to call, especially if the stacks are under 100 big blinds. 

Folding Kings in these situations is often too conservative, as you will be ahead of many hands in your opponent’s range, making it a profitable call in the long run.

Bonus Tip – Take a loot at your opponent before applying these strategies. These strategies will work great if you know what type of players you are playing against. 

Keep following PokerProNews for tips from top coaches and pros and elevate your game.

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