The concept of stealing the blinds is at its most successful – and profitable – in a tournament situation. In a tournament, the blinds go up at a pre-determined set of time. As the tournament progresses, there is more money to be had in those blinds.
In a cash game, the blinds stay stagnant and are based on the table limits. That means they’ll stay the same no matter how long you sit at that table.
That isn’t to say that you can’t or shouldn’t steal the blinds in a cash game setting. Stealing the blinds can not only give you a leg up on the competition by adding chips to your stack, but it can also – and perhaps more importantly – show others that you are a force to be reckoned with. It’s a very big psychological play.
In order to effectively steal the blinds, you must be aware of your table position. A blind steal works best from a late position or the dealer button because there’s no one else but the dealer and/or the blinds left to act. You can attempt a blind steal with any good hand – and even some marginal ones. A marginal hand is a hand that is vulnerable to a greater number of potentially superior hands.
Here are some examples:
Marginal Hand & a Sampling of Superior Hands
AJ -- AA, AK, AQ, KK, QQ, JJ
KQ -- AK, AQ, KK, QQ
Q10 -- AQ, KQ, QJ, QQ, 10,10
A9 -- AA, AK, AQ, AJ, A10, 99
So, back to the steal. You’re holding at least a marginal hand in the pocket and sitting in late position. (Note: It’s important that both of these factors work in your favor, especially when you’re new to the game.) When the action gets to you, raise it up to 3 or 4 times the big blind. This represents strength. Hopefully the blinds don’t have a superior hand to you. If so, you could be in trouble!
Of course, once you get good at stealing the blinds, you will be able to notice when other players are attempting this strategy. With time, patience and some serious aggression, you’ll be able to re-steal their attempted steal and get even bigger pots for yourself. But, that’s a topic for another time.