People play poker online because they want to improve their poker skills and make a little money. Most poker players also think that if they just found a way to play poker online they would be already making thousands of dollars a month from playing poker. Well, I am here to say that although their poker profits may be high, their poker losses are even higher. Let me give you some personal tips on playing poker online.
- Learn all of the ins and outs of Texas Holdem. This includes knowing what cards to play, how to play your pre-flop, and any other hands you want to include in your game. Make sure you know all the rules before you even start playing. You can’t learn your own moves if you aren’t even open to learning.
- Never stop learning. It is to your benefit to always be learning more about poker. No matter what Gordon Gecko tells you, you need to keep learning. I have to say this again, you need to keep learning. We can’t continue to study the game forever. We need to incorporate new ideas, concepts, and strategies into our arsenal.
- Lets get realistic. Poker isn’t a game of gambling. People gamble when they are gambling to lose their money. When you are playing poker, you are playing to win. No one goes to the casino to lose; people go to win. The difference is striking when you are playing poker. People lose due to bad beats, suck outs, and bad plays. When you learn to deal, and if you learn to play decent starting hand tactics, you will not make as much of an impact on your games. Part of learning to play poker includes using position to your advantage, and recognizing what hands your opponents play.
- Is playing from position really that important? Let’s take a look at this. There are 169 different starting hands for poker. Do you know how many hands you will play from each position? (This answer is between 19 and 21. 19 fold, 21 call, and 22 fold. The others are dependent upon your specific playing style). You will play between 33% and/or 36% of your starting hands from the proper position at the table. Now the question is, are you playing from position properly? Dolorously.
- Is your game suffer any strain by playing too many hands? Low number of hands are more common in games like Dailies, Pot Limit, and No Limit. It is a known fact that the most players go broke playing Dailies, 51% to 54%. Many players will roll their eyes and head to the cash game tables saying “Well I play enough, I have to play some more” classic examples of sour fruit. However, seasoned players will also understand that playing more does not mean winning more, it means losing more.
- Should you be playing from the cut-off position? DDP is a lot of fun but it doesn’t pay off nearly as much as being in later positions. You can win a pot going from the button to the cut-off with a…………………….7/1 shot. You can lose a……………….8/1 shot trying to hit a flush on the flop.
- How tight or loose should your game be? You should play a tight game if you are a novice. Your experience can be the deciding factor on whether you play loose or tight the most often.
- Should you be playing aggressive or calling MPO500? You should play aggressive when you have a hand and it holds up. You shouldn’t call stations because the only hands they will call are premium hands that carry a high probability of winning.
- How loose or tight is your game? You should play a loose game if you are a novice. Once you develop a not so rookie style of play you can turn it into a winning game. Tight game is a game for the experts.
- You can play any cards, especially suited connectors.
When you can play premium hands without fear then you are in a very strong position. Hands like 8 8 of hearts is still a good hand to play even though the board cards are missing.