This “dead money” in the middle attracts a lot of action as players fight over the blinds and the antes pre flop.
First of all, the use of the ante automatically creates a larger pot before the flop. Understanding how the ante affects the game will go a long way in adjusting your strategy for ante games. In this case, players will ante a much larger amount, but only have to do it once every orbit. In some live games, players ante up just once each round when they are on the button. Before each hand is dealt players will “ante up”, creating a pot prior to the start of the hand. For those who are unfamiliar with antes they are another forced bet before the flop typically 20-25% the size of the Big Blind. Those who learned the game by playing live (casino) poker might already be familiar with antes. Ante games tend to bring more action and create bigger pots, which is great for those looking for some instant excitement. One of the recent trends in online poker is the introduction of No Limit Hold’em cash games with an Ante.
