Poker Talk

One more stepping stone you need to climb on your way out of poker “suckerdom” is to recognize the need to keep detailed records of your table antics. Regardless of how objective you think you are, simply keeping a mental track of what you do at the table is not enough, because you’ll always remember things in a slightly distorted way: from your own perspective, exaggerating the good moves you’ve made and forgetting about the bad ones.

The first thing you need to cover when deciding to keep serious track of how you’re performing at the green felt is the issue of the bankroll. Very few players keep a separate bankroll for poker purposes only. Most of us commit the mistake of mixing our everyday finances with the money we take to the poker tables and that’s just plain wrong.

Your primary objective at the poker table is to make money. Sure, some people play it for the fun and the kicks, but I’ll assume you’re in it for the money as much as for the fun aspect.

If your goal is to make money, you need to know exactly how much you’re making, and I’m not talking about keeping track of how much you take to the tables and how much you walk away with. For a serious player, that’s just not going to cut it. You need to know exactly what limits you play and how you do on each and every one of these limits. If you’re dominating a certain limit and you move on to a higher limit where you still win but you only make like $15 an hour, obviously, you shouldn’t hang around there just because it’s a higher limit and you’re aiming for the boasting rights. You should also sign up for rakeback too. Rake rebate deals like the Full Tilt rakeback or the Ultimate Bet rakeback offer you a very nice edge bankroll-wise. Leaving an edge like this unexploited is a sin for every serious poker player.

These factors don’t really have anything to do with actual hands-on poker strategy, but they will help you discover your strengths and weaknesses and ultimately they will help you become a better poker player.

How you keep track of your poker performance is up to you really. You can use the low tech approach of pen and paper, you can use Excel or another similar spread-sheet application, you can use the stats provided by your poker room or you can go really high tech and purchase an application like PokerTracker.

The basic information that you need to keep track of, should include the current date, the start time of the session and its end time (it’s quite easy to lose track of time amid all the excitement, so you need this information to be able to tell exactly how long you play), the total amount of buy-ins (all the money that you take to the tables) and the total amount of your cash outs. This basic information will help you determine your hourly rate, which will offer you a precious clue regarding the EV+ in the hands that you play.

Other information that you should also track: the limits at which you play and the location. Location is not only important for live play. Different online poker rooms throw different levels of competition at you, and if you have accounts in tens of poker rooms, you’ll eventually find it difficult to track what you did and where. The bottom line is, you need to know where you played, because you may dominate a certain limit in one poker room and struggle at the same limit in another.

The most important result is of course your hourly rate, but putting together monthly statistics as well as overall ones is also helpful.

I know it may seem like a lot of effort should go into these statistics but it isn’t exactly so. Once you start doing it, you’ll see it’s easy and the rewards it’ll offer you will be more then worth the effort you put into it.

Keeping records of your poker shenanigans may not give you a direct help at the table, but it will definitely help you identify and eliminate your weaknesses which will translate into a better overall table performance over time.

This is probably one of the biggest tells that people have in their games and they don’t even realize it. Think about how you play your hands before the flop and you will quickly understand what we are talking about here. How much do you raise pre-flop when you are sitting on AA? How much when you only have a small pocket pair?

A lot of players will make a huge raise on one or the other and then play the opposite with the opposite hands. When you do this, you are telling anyone that is paying attention exactly what you have. For instance, you are a player that gets overly aggressive or and raised 10x the blinds with a small pocket pair or you push all in every time when someone raises in front of you with the same hand. When you have AA or KK, you tend to make a small raise of 3x and possibly just call a big raise in front of you hoping for action.

Any decent player is going to be watching you and all you need is a few showdowns for them to know exactly how you play. Forget about trying to vary your raises pre-flop to keep people off balance because it is very easy to lose track of where you are in your raises and actually outsmart yourself here. The trick to being a successful pre-flop raiser is to bet the same amount every time regardless of what your hand is. If you are the first to raise, pick your number and stick with it every time you jump into a hand. If you raise someone who has raised, raise their bet the same amount as you would raise the blinds.

Let’s assume that the blinds are $10/$20. When the action gets to you, you want to raise so regardless of what you are holding, you will make it $120 to go. If someone had made it $60 to go before the flop, you can raise their raise 6x so you can make it $300 to go here. If poker players are paying attention, they are going to see that no matter what you have, you are pumping the pot by a 6x raise each and every time.

All you are going to need is a handful of showdowns to have everyone confused when they get into a hand with you. You need to do this early and often at the beginning of the session and show a variety of hands. If you are heads up and folding, show those weak hands that you raised 6x the blinds with just like you had to show the KK in a showdown.

The purpose of showing here is make sure that everyone knows you are capable of playing poker 450 the same way you will play AA. Once you are in their head, you can back of showing your cards and play normally. Now when you are in the pot, they have no idea what you have and will tread very carefully around you. This is going to enable you to pull off some major bluffs and also create a lot of action when you really do land some nice hands.

If you intend to be a good Texas Holdem Poker player, you must know which are the finest starting hands, the ones that you can play and the ones that you must fold. Bluffing may help you win any kind of hand but there are several hands that can help you win more often and with guaranteed earnings.

Here we shall discuss the ten most excellent starting hands that can assure you of good results.

Ace-Ace:

The finest starting hand that you can get in Texas Holdem is a set of two Aces also called pocket rockets.

King-King:

The second best hand is ‘King Kong’ also known as the cowboys.

Queen-Queen:

The third most appropriate hand in Holdem Poker is a pair of Queens also known as the ‘ladies’.

Ace-King:

Some players may not think so but most agree to the fact that the Ace-King suited hand or the ‘big flick’ is the fourth most convenient hand in Texas Holdem.

Ace-Queen:

This is considered the fifth best hand and is a set of an Ace and a Queen of the same suit. It is also called the ‘big chick’ or ‘little slick’.

Jack-Jack:

A set of Jacks or ‘fishhooks’ makes the sixth most excellent hand.

King-Queen:

A King and Queen of the same suit make the seventh best hand in Holdem Poker.

Ace-Jack:

An Ace and a Jack of the same suit is considered the top starting hand in Black Jack, but in Holdem it is the eighth highest starting hand.

Ace-King Off Suit:

To see this pair listed as one of the preeminent starting hands may come as a surprise but it definitely is a pair that can be considered as the ninth top hand in Texas Holdem.

Ten-Ten:

This takes up the tenth position in the list. Also known as the ‘dimes’, this set of tens is a good starting hand.

As a new comer to the game, you should abide by these 10 foremost starting hand strategies, as they will always help you win. When you are well into the game and have enough experience to know that you can test out other starting hands, you can do so with ease. You could even try bluffing at this point.

However, you must always bear in mind that you can even lose money if you attempt playing with vulnerable hands. So, think clearly and play wisely.

It’s not exactly a secret that online, the vast majority of players suck at poker. Not only do they suck at the game itself, they pretty much suck at everything connected to it. Take rakeback for instance. While deals like the ongame rakeback and the rakeback Full Tilt Poker offers give players a handy advantage over the house rake, the vast majority of them never even consider signing up for such a deal. Some of these guys do realize they’ve made a mistake by signing up without rakeback, but they only do so when it’s already too late and they have an account opened. Most online poker rooms won’t allow those who already have a rakeback-less account to open a new one for rakeback.

Anyway, learning about the advantages of rakeback and signing up for a deal is only a matter of some reading up. Most of the factors that will differentiate you from suckers at the poker table are similarly “insignificant”.

The truth is, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist and you don’t even need to be extremely skilled in poker to beat 95% of players out there. Just master a few basic concepts and you’ll be amazed at how big an improvement you’ll show at the table.

One of the most common mistakes rookies make is that they play way too many hands. Every time they pick up their two pocket cards, they start seeing all sorts of dreamy flops that will hit their hand dead on. Then they build on the weak starting hand mistake by chasing it way too deep into the hand.

There are several reasons why beginners act this way, not the least of which are the “strategies” they pick up watching televised tournaments. Guys on TV seem to be raising and shoving on almost any two cards, and professional players openly advocate that real poker is about playing the player and not the cards, and therefore they can win pots on any two cards.

First of all, professionals are correct about the importance of playing the player over playing one’s cards, but you have to bear in mind that these guys don’t play on the same thought level that you do. On the level where they play, starting hand selection takes a back seat to playing the player, but on your level (which is most probably the first or second level of poker thought, where you only consider your cards and maybe the board texture), proper starting hand selection is vital.

Add to that the fact that the hands you see on TV are specially selected ones (they’re not going to show you the hundreds of hands that were folded before because it’s just too boring for TV) and that you may have seen action from the closing stages of a high buy-in tournament where starting hand values change radically.

The bottom line is, as a rookie you should exercise proper starting hand selection. There’s no shame in learning starting hand charts. After all, if you do not consider the suits, there are 169 possible two-card starting hands, and some of those hands win a much higher percentage of the time than others.

The premium starting hands are the AA,KK, QQ, JJ and AK suited. These hands are not guaranteed winners, but they do offer you a serious edge over the suckers at your table. Don’t lose sight of the fact that real poker begins after the flop, however, by selecting your starting hands well, you’ll make it much easier on yourself to play after the flop and you’ll simplify the decisions you’ll be forced to make.

Besides the starting hand selection, keep an eye out for your table position as well. The same starting hand will have a different value depending on whether you’re in early or late position and depending on the information you collect on your opponents before you act.

It’s not always fun and profitable playing poker, especially when you are playing a level you are not very familiar with such as Omaha or 7 card stud. There are nights when your stars don’t seem to be in cosmic alignment. And nights when you just don’t feel in a good mood. Those nights are real hard and a pain in the neck. Who wants to lose money, anyway? But you are a good player. You can handle yourself well whatever bad luck comes your way. So, no reason to go on a tilt. But that is not always the case. No matter how strong your intention of playing well is, there are still moments that you lose control of yourself and play hands you shouldn’t be playing.

I know what you will ask now, how do you avoid these slip offs and keep yourself in control. There are actually simple and easy steps to avoid them. First off, if you feel like going on a tilt, shake yourself off, stand up, and go for a walk. Simply put, refresh yourself. Have a chat with your friend or order some coffee to pump up your adrenaline. You can also go to the washroom and sprinkle water on your face. There’s nothing more refreshing and better at getting back your energy in playing Texas Holdem than cold water on your face. You can also pinch your toes to bring back the energy you lost. This may sound silly to you, but believe me it does brings you back from the hypnosis you had at the table.

Second, try the letter therapy. Get a piece of paper and wrote there “I am here to make good decisions at the table. Not simply to win money.” Write that a few times and put it in your pocket. Every time you feel like tilting or making a bad decision, take it out and read it. That would remind you of your real goal in that
Poker Room.

Third, keep a positive attitude. You have in your hands the power to make your games as good as it can get. It’s about how you face and act in every game. Don’t let your negative attitude overcome you. Stay focused and every time you lose tell yourself, “that money I lost was not mine. It was just visiting.”

Lastly, every time you play poker, be it in casinos or online poker rooms, think of it as a job. Tell yourself that you are hired to play there. The money you have is not yours, but it belongs to your boss. And unless you make good decisions, you are not to be paid. Think of your boss as mean and demanding. He doesn’t care if you win or lose as long as you play correctly and make sound decisions. Naturally, you would not want to be fired, right? So, make sure to always make the right choices, and your spot at the payroll is guaranteed.

There you are. Simple and easy-to-do steps to keep yourself in check. Keep them in mind and you are sure to have fun at the tables.

“Barry, can you play tight in a Texas Holdem game?” that’s what a friend ask me sometime ago. Good question. For beginners and those who don’t know yet what a tight player is, he is the one who starts the hand with a high pair like an AK. He’s easy to spot in a table. He usually only raises when he feels he has a sure thing.

To most poker players, including me, playing too tight is not really a problem. This is also true to new poker and low limit players playing Holdem or 5 card stud. But when it comes to high limit games, players often play tight and aggressive. One attitude of a player that’s too tight is that he does not vary in his play. This makes him easy to spot and avoid at the table. Often, it is easy to get rid of less quality hands when raised by a tight player. That is if you don’t have a very big hand.

As I’ve said, tight players are easy to spot, so this make them win less money. How? Let’s say I make a call against most of the players at the table when I have a good, but not great, hands in me. When the too tight player bets, I would throw away all my hands. I may be giving the tight player a chance to win the pot by bluffing, but I know that I am not risking much as the tight player will seldom or never bluff.

So, can you play too tight in a No Limit Holdem game? Definitely. There’s nothing wrong with playing too tight. If you don’t, those who played nothing but a pocket of aces will win the most. Now, that’s what you don’t want to happen, right? So, don’t be afraid to play tight once in a while.

Take a heed though that when you are at the table, it is best to study your opponents. Learn their skills and techniques. If you can’t take playing too tight at all times or your opponents are better than you, don’t hesitate to transfer to another table. If you see that playing too tight works for you, then it is best to take advantage of the situation and win lots of pots.

But remember, if you have been playing too tight for a while know, take time to loosen up. Don’t stay in one technique in all your plays. Most successful poker players combine tactics in their game. So, you can random your playing style and combine it with a tight play. But don’t play aggressively and tightly when you are don’t have the best play. Just simply resort to tightness rather than playing too aggressive. Other players at your table may not like this, but don’t mind them. This can work to your advantage.

So, whatever Poker Games you play, just play hard and play with your mind. If ever you decide to play too tight, take a well-calculated risk. Remember that the best hands don’t always win the pot. It all depends on how you play the game.

Poker. The game most people love today. That includes me. I’ve been playing this game for a long time now. I first learned it in our kitchen table with my uncles. Back then, all I knew were the basics. I was such an aggressive player because I want to win lots of pot for my dates on weekends. But much to my dismay, my aggressiveness did not win me lots of Poker Games. As I grew older, my realize my mistakes and negative techniques that worsen my play. These days, when I play in online poker rooms or casinos, I try hard not to commit the beginner’s mistakes I did before.

My favorite uncle told me before that poker is a game of skill rather than luck. It is a game that requires skill and great deception in order to win. By playing with my mind, I can still get ahead of my opponents despite losing a few sessions. He added that patience is also a good virtue in poker. He told me that I cannot just charge every game. I have to wait for my cards. When they come, that’s when I make my move and push my chips into the game. He was such a great man. He was the one who taught me how to win at poker by not forcing my luck on it.

These days, I’m teaching a cousin to play poker. I’m trying to impart to him everything that my uncle has told me. If you are a newbie at poker as well, let me share to you what I told my cousin. I hope I can help you get better at your game, be it a casino or Online Poker game.

The first important point to remember when in a Poker Room is to keep your emotions and attitude in check. The table is not a place for you to show your frustration in life or your love for foul words. Your opponents won’t tolerate you. If you don’t want to get thrown out of the room, control yourself.

Second, not knowing what a bet is in a Pot Limit Texas Holdem game. As a beginner, you have to know that the bet is when it is your turn to play the game. Understand that in a limit game, the bets doubled before and after the flop. Now, that is what you have to keep track of.

Third, know your limitations. Don’t play in a $10 table in your first game. Start at the lower tables and work your way up. It’s never a good idea to force your way up when your skills are not yet enough. Only when you have enough experience and skill can you win as many pots as you want.

Fourth, never play when you are drunk or in a bad mood. The biggest mistake you can make as a beginner is to lose control at the table. Your opponents would take advantage of your situation and take as much money as they can from you.

Lastly, never play more than what you have in your pocket. Set a limit to yourself. When you have used all the money you have set for that day, stop playing. Don’t chase after the money you lost. Just leave the table and go back on another time.

There are no sure things in life, even at poker. What may start out as a good game can still end up bad. That sure is true. Even the best and most successful players still experience bad poker games. My friend even said that in poker, you have 99.99% chance of winning it and 99.99% chance of losing it. Even if you think that you have a good starting hands, it can still be beaten. For others, it a game of luck, but other consider it a game of skill. I’d say both, but still add that poker is more a game of money management. After all, money is what we play 5 card draw or Texas Holdem for, right?

Whether you play just for fun with just your friends or seriously in a casino or online Poker Rooms, there is money at stake. Now, if you want to maximize your earnings, you need to manage your money wisely. How? I know a few tips to managing your money well. Let me share them with you.

Start low. Whether you are a beginner or a pro at poker, it’s always advisable to start low. The lower you go, the lesser your chance of tilting and chasing after the money you lost. Yes, I know this mean you’ll earn less, but at least you’ll have a good chance at winning a huge pot at the end of the day. You can still lose money, but as long as it’s not a lot, you’re still good.

Don’t easily jump to a high limit poker game. People who play this game are usually pros who can wipe out your pocket in no time. Understand that the higher the limit, the better the players. So, unless you are skilled enough to tackle these players, its better you stick with the low limit games to practice your skill.

It’s better to hone your poker skills playing Online Poker than immediately jumping into a casino. Remember that in a casino you see your opponents, so the pressure is greater. Also, there are more pros playing at casinos. Even if you play at a low limit game, there are still intelligent and skillful players sitting there. But if you think you can tackle them and stand the pressure, go ahead and try your luck. Nevertheless, keep in mind that it is easier to manage your money playing online poker than casino poker.

The bottom line is if you are new at playing poker or simply having fun, play at lower tables only. If you don’t want to get your life too complicated worrying about the money you lost at the table, stick with low limit Holdem games permanently. This way, you gain less and lose less as well. A $400 loss can be a huge mistake that can affect your life forever. So, stick with your skill and money level and you will surely keep your money managed well. It’s no fun worrying about money day after day. The best thing you can do to avoid that is to keep your pocket closed when you’ve used enough cash.

Have you ever felt so unlucky in your life before? I have. Two years ago, I got tangled in such an unlucky scenario. I lost my job, I got into a car accident, and lost a huge amount money from playing Limit Holdem in online poker rooms all in one month. Call that bad luck or whatever you want to call, I do believe I’m one unlucky guy that year. Good thing it didn’t stay for good. A few months after that everything turned okay and profitable. I just Heaven has it’s own way of making me worthy of all the blessings I have today.

Anyway, I’m sure most of you have felt unlucky in their like and poker game one way or another. There are simply times that you cannot control your actions and if ever you do bad things still happen. So, the question now is how do you get rid of this bad luck? I don’t have a scientific or cosmic explanation for that. But I can give you pointers on how to get those misfortunes away.

There are actually signs that tells you when you about to go on a bad luck. The most obvious of them is tilting. When you feel furious at your opponents and want to punch them in the face, you can lose control of yourself and start making bad decisions. Now, that would surely lead to bad luck. The best thing you can to avoid this in any Omaha or Holdem game is to take a break and cool yourself. Only when you feel calm and cool must you return at the table and play again. You don’t want to end the day with less money in your pocket than when you start it, right? So, keep your composure at all times to keep bad luck away.

You can also consider going back to the basics. Find the root of your problem. Ask yourself where you go wrong and which strategies make you play bad. If you have time, start to learn poker again. Look at it like a beginner and try to go back to the ABC of poker. Along the way, you will realize your mistakes and take action in correcting it. You can also join a Poker Blog to learn new tips and techniques to improve your skill. Or read poker books that will make your attitude at the table better and more positive.

Another thing you can do is to develop keenness in learning. Poker, just like any game, continuously evolves. To keep your skill always sharp, keep on learning and learning. Talk with your poker buddies and learn from them the latest in poker. Keep your mind fresh at all times and you’ll sure keep winning in your game.

The best pointer I can give you to keep bad luck away is to get the right mindset. In any game, no matter if you win or lose, always control yourself. Don’t let your opponents see that you are affected of your bad play. Congratulate them instead and tell them, what a great game. This will put your opponents right where they belong, in wonder of your real deal at the table.

I’ve read many poker playing tips in the Internet today. They all say that when you follow them, your chances of winning the pot are great. Well, that is to be proven yet. But because poker is a game of skill, you can never really tell when you will win and when you will lose. If you think you are better than opponents, you might want to think again. There are 5 card stud or Omaha players there that have a good way to hiding their true capacity. So, if you want to get yourself a good chance of winning at the table, I have five tips to share with you.

Tip # 1. A call can cost you money. Oftentimes, it is better to bet than to call. Why? Because when you call and your opponent also calls, you lose the chance to profit. In this instance, you can lose the opportunity to gain by winning the pot outright or getting called with the worst hand.

Tip # 2. Bluff at the right moment. Perhaps the best time to bluff is when your opponent is threatening to call or continuously staring at his chips. Although your opponent who is threatening to call to put off your bet might really call, chances are they don’t have good hands to bet. What they often have are hands they don’t want to call with. This would cause them to call or fold reluctantly. This will give your attempt to bluff a chance to profit.

Tip # 3. Give a quick, sure bluff than a hesitant one. A good poker player in an intense No Limit Omaha or 7 card stud knows that to succeed in bluffing, you need to do it quick and sure. If you hesitate and seem unsure, you’ll only get a good laugh at yourself and lose all the money you want to win. Understand that poker players are more likely to fold on fast bets rather than the pondered bets. So, make sure to do it quick to succeed.

Tip # 4. Take your winnings and losses enthusiastically. Most often, your opponents will treat you differently when you win. They’ll think that you are good and very lucky. This will cause them to fear you and give you the respect you deserve. In this situation, you get easier control of your opponents. They behave well in front of you and you get the chance to play every hand for maximum value.

But you are losing, it’s a totally different story. Your opponents will take advantage of your weaknesses and try to control you. They will take your money game after game until you realize you have nothing more to bet. In this situation, the best thing you can do is leave the Poker Room and take some time off. Assess your games and your strategies to improve your play. Never, never chase on your losses. That’s is not a very profitable idea. Just work on your skill and techniques, and let them work magic for you at the table.