Mastering proper starting hand strategy is one of the most valuable skills both a beginner player and seasoned expert must commit to memory to ensure success over the long run of their poker career. While ideas on starting hands vary greatly among players and there are certain situations where there is an obvious raise, fold or call, knowing the basic guidlines and commiting them to memory is very significant in developing a solid game. To start analyzing proper starting hand tactics we will break down various starting hands in to three sections: Premium, Callers and Trash. This will make it easy to start to distinguish between what you should and should not be playing at the table.

Premium Hands: These hands are obviously considered extremely strong pre-flop and thus should be played in this fashion. With premium hands you are looking to raise, re-raise, call an all-in or go all-in yourself. The basic premium hand spectrum is outlined below:

Caller Hands: