We all wish we could become better poker players, the problem is that often we don’t really know where to start. And we ask ourselves: how do you play poker?
We read Sklansky, memorized mathematical formulas so complex as to be able to make the weather forecast by reading the coffee grounds but we still cannot finish a game of poker without the bitter taste of having always made that mistake there. What every time makes us feel halfway between sad and a little stupid.
If you want to start understanding how to play poker and to try to fight this damned feeling of helplessness in the face of our almost victories, today let’s try to see together 10 valuable tips to start winning.
Read on until the end and get ready for the surprise of not being surprised by the points included in the list because, after all, it’s just a matter of applying common sense to poker tournaments too. That common sense that we throw away as soon as the dealer gives us a damn AJ …
How to play poker Here are 10 tips all for you!
1. Do not play all the hands but learn the art of folding
Probably this is the most common mistake of less experienced players or those who don’t even have the slightest idea of how to play poker. Who knows how many times you have heard (or maybe even thought yourself) “I came to play poker, so I want to play” from someone who complained about the behavior of other players too cautious.
The problem is that the result of the desire for action at any cost of these Indiana Jones of poker is almost always directly proportional to the amount of hands played according to the very simple equivalence: more games = more you lose.
Our advice? If you stay in half or more of the total hands played, try to be at least sure you know the 5 Beginner Risk Poker hands by heart – or resign yourself to post-tournaments full of regrets and sarcasm.
2. Don’t drink too much
It is undeniable: whether you are in a casino, in a club or at home with friends, a good glass next to the chips is perfect. In order to understand how to play poker, you must also learn to drink something. Obviously it is not a problem to be abstained, even a nice glass of soft drink or an energy drink can make a good impression next to a deck of cards.
In fact, a shot glass is perfect is also that moment in which, a little to cut the tension (yours) and increase the suspense (of the opponents), you take a few seconds off to bring your cocktail or beer to your mouth; nothing to say about it.
The problem, however, comes when the glasses begin to multiply, the mind relaxes … and the chips begin to go away at an absolutely absurd speed. And then as the alcohol goes up you forget how to play poker and even that you are sitting at a game table.
In short, even if poker is not exactly a game of peach juice, what we advise you to do is to pay attention to the amount of alcohol you drink: if two glasses can make you feel more relaxed and ready to play, in the In a few minutes you may find yourself playing too loose and unable to reflect on how you should bet and hand value. The same also applies in the case of soft drinks or energy drinks, in fact too many sugars could risk making you unnerved and distracted with the result that instead of concentrating your energies on the game you will be very distracted.
It is up to you to judge how dangerous this can be for the final result.
3. Bluffing just to bluff is stupid
Many beginners think that bluffing is a fundamental part of poker even if, in reality, they cannot understand why. Others believe that to understand how to play poker, one must first learn to bluff.
There are no precise rules for bluffing successfully, and it is not true that to play poker you must learn to bluff even if there are players who cannot feel satisfied if they do not win at least once thanks to a clever bluff.
Of course, the pleasure of winning without the strongest hand is very great, but pay attention to the risks and try to understand your opponents before doing anything.
In short, if someone continues to go always and in any case to the showdown, it is certainly not continuing to raise indefinitely that you will convince him to give you the victory of the hand … Better not to bluff than to do it “just for”. Bluffing is an art and we advise you to learn it well in order to get as much benefit as possible and obviously be able to win.
4. Don’t stay in one hand just because you’re there by now …
Another fairly common mistake made by beginners is to think that
“I’ve put so much into the pot now that it’s up to me to stay in the game.”
Fesserie, if you know how to play poker you will hardly make this mistake. In fact, if there is no chance that your hand will improve, it will certainly not be by throwing us even more money that you will be able to win it. What you put in the pot no longer belongs to you and it is not by continuing to play that you can take it back. So avoid playing if you don’t have a good hand and as we suggested in the first point, learn to fold.
5. Don’t keep calling just to be sure
This point should be read together with the previous one. Many players continue to play by inertia, because “there are now” and even if they are sure they have no chance of winning, they still want to see what they were beaten with.
How many players continue to call final raises just “to be sure”, continuing to waste chips and money as if nothing had happened.
Sure, sometimes it can be useful to see the cards in an opponent’s hand also to learn to better understand how to play poker but … if you are really convinced that you have nothing in your hand …
What need do you have to give your bankroll to your opponents?
6. Don’t play if you’re in a bad mood
Playing poker to forget a bad day or some other kind of bad mood is not a wonderful choice. The risk of playing with emotions and not with the mind is around the corner – and tilt is always to be avoided.
The same applies when, already in play, you find yourself losing an unexpected hand and you feel that you are starting to feel a certain nervousness. Get up from the table, take a break, relax.
Because if your opponents notice that you are in trouble, then they will treat you as if you have a small red light in the center of the forehead and then your game will risk taking a bad turn.
7. Pay attention to the cards on the table
Take at least 10 seconds just to study the community cards and understand what the possible combinations to realistically aim for are. When you are sure that you have also identified the possibilities of your or your opponents’ straight or flush draws, it’s your time. A good method is obviously also to train online with free online poker or freerolls, thanks to which you can learn not only to understand how to play poker but precisely to understand how to read the board without having to lose money.
8. Watch out for other players
The more you play, the more crucial it becomes to learn to observe and read your opponents – yes, even when you are not playing a specific hand. In fact, observing other opponents and reading the board, as suggested in the previous article, are two basic tips for quickly understanding how to play poker.
So try to understand how the other players behave in front of rerise, bluffs and how they change their strategy depending on the position in the table: rarely you can have better advantages than this during a game in fact even professionals say that this is a good one method for learning how to play poker.
9. Don’t play with too high limits
For some strange reason, there are people who cannot understand their limits and end up losing fortunes just because they play at too high levels.
A successful night on $ 2/4 tables does not mean that you are really ready to play $ 5/10, think about it before changing!
Higher stakes must never be chosen to impress someone or because there are fewer players at the table (and therefore fewer minutes of waiting before playing): change levels only, only and only when you are 100% sure you can afford it and you already have had many of those experiences that you know how to play poker even with your eyes closed.
10. Choose the right game for your qualities and your bankroll
One of the reasons why some money won on $ 2/4 tables should not make you rush to play more is because, with the level increase, there is always an increase in the average level of the players, which obviously makes everything more difficult.
If you can win $ 2/4, why change !? Keep playing and winning for the sake of your bankroll. After all, it is always better to be the best of the “simple” table than the chicken of the more difficult one, isn’t it?
