Explanation of Preflop
“Preflop” literally means “before the flop”, where the flop refers to the three community cards which are dealt after the first betting round in variants such as Hold’em and Omaha. The first betting round is hence referred to as “preflop”.
Note that the term only applies to games where there are 3 community cards dealt on the second betting round (referred to as the “flop”). Draw and stud games do not have a flop, hence the terms postflop and preflop do not apply to such variants.
There are three streets that make up the postflop betting rounds called flop, turn and river.
Example of Preflop used in a sentence -> Preflop play is especially important in poker games where the effective stacks are shallow.
How to Use Preflop as Part of Your Poker Strategy
Preflop is an important betting round in all variants of poker. Although there is typically the least money at stake preflop, our decisions on this betting round will influence the profitability of the entire hand. It’s generally believed that a small mistake preflop can lead to big problems postflop.
The most common mistake that recreational players make is attempting to play too many starting hands preflop. Depending on the exact variant in question it is common to play around 20-25% of starting hands we are dealt preflop. A novice player might get into difficulty by attempting to play significantly more starting hands than this.
See Also
Postflop, Community Cards, Hold’em, Omaha, Flop, Turn, River
