Paul Phua says the blind also marks potential poker strategy. So in the casino, whether you hold a 2 and a 3 unsuited, or a pair of aces – before you see your hand it’s all the same. They are betting blind, with no knowledge of the hand’s worth. The name comes from the fact that players are being asked to bet without seeing their hands. There are mainly two blinds in Texas Holdem – the big and small blind, but there can sometimes be three players who have to make them.
Paul Phua thinks that the blind keeps the momentum up, and ensures the game of poker finishes within a reasonable time frame – especially since the blinds often increase in value during a game of Texas Holdem to speed things up even further. Like antes, they exist so that there is a cost to playing, so the poker games don’t go on and on with players just waiting to be dealt a great hand. They are another type of forced bet, but this time before you have been dealt your cards. Texas Holdem poker does have something called blinds though. But Texas Holdem doesn’t, meaning you can fold your cards without betting. Some poker games have antes – forced bets. Towards the end of a poker night, especially if things aren’t going so well and your chip pile is lower than you’d like it to be, or the blind bets are increasing in size, then the blind can really eat into your stack. When you are in the casino at the beginning of a poker game, and you have lots of chips, the blinds are something you hardly notice.
