Pro Poker Tips! - Patience is the key!!
Patience, Patience and more Patience
It’s fun to play every hand, but the fact is, your hand won’t be strong enough to compete and survive the multiple betting rounds each hand. You should be folding everything apart other than face cards and high pocket pairs. Good players fold at least 80% of their starting hands
Prepare to invest some effort and dedicate some time
Becoming a winning poker player requires many hours of play. Reading is important, but like everything else, practical application - on the job training - is always the best way to learn. There is no substitute for playing, but being well prepared will minimize your losses as you learn
Realize that you’re far from a good poker player - yet
Without doubt the most common misconception new players have is that they are already good poker players. Chances are, you are not. Ego will tell us we are better than we are sometimes. Enter the poker world humble and eager to learn, or you’ll be separated from your money very quickly. A fool and his money....
The Do’s
- Do have the right attitude
If there is one thing a winning poker player has, it's a positive attitude. Every difficult endeavor has an initial learning curve. There will also be periodic losing streaks and bad beats which will test your discipline. Pay your dues and learn the game. Have fun… you’re playing poker.
- Do stay at a winning table, leave a losing table
If you’re making money, you’re playing against weaker players. If you’re losing money, the opposite is most likely true. You’re playing for profit, not revenge. If some dude is beating up on you get out of there. Find a happy place to play.
- Do Play premium hands
Only play high pocket pairs and hands that add up to 20 or 21. Playing too many hands is going to get you into trouble. Large starting hands have a higher percentage of success and will keep you from getting into trouble and have the advantage of preventing being “outkicked”. You should limit your starting hands to this list. As your game improves, you will graduate to playing more types of hands, bluffing and other strategies.
- Do show respect and learn poker etiquette
Players acting rude to other players are disrespected and are only showing their lack of skill. The top professionals you see doing well with an abrasive style are winning despite that character trait, not because of it. Some players feel they can gain an advantage over other players by provoking them. It’s a lazy approach to the game, showing a lack of conviction and lack of respect. Players of quality will not be affected by this behavior.
- Do know your maths
Some of the game’s top players are math wizards. You don’t need to be a human calculator, you do need to know how many cards can help you and hurt you so you can bet or fold according to the odds. Spend some time learning about odds and outs, it will really help your game improve in leaps and bounds.
- Do Research your game
Study the basics of poker theory, but also keep reviewing the way you play. It’s called plugging holes in your game. Many players repeat the same mistakes again and again and get burned. There are countless tracking tools that gather your play history and analyze it for you.
- Do control your emotions
Whether it’s bluffing, having an effective poker face when you land pocket aces or controlling your temper when you suffer a bad beat, you must be in control. Why do you think so many actors like James Woods and Toby Maguire gravitate toward poker? They can compete and act at the same time.
The Don’ts
- Don’t play under the influence
Playing after having a few drinks is not a good idea. Same goes for prescription medications and recreational drugs. Your perception changes when you use a drug of any kind. That’s why you drank in the first place. If you’re seeing the world differently (or more than 1 screen), you’re going to play differently. A drunk and his/her money are quickly separated.
- Don’t chase away the fish
When you are having a good session, don’t ridicule opponents for their poor play. Sometimes weak or recreational players - fish - will be very poor sports when they’re losing their money. Don’t embarrass them further. They will just leave the game. There goes your easy money because of your big mouth. Other players won’t be impressed by this foolish move either, because they see the easy money too.
- Don’t play with money you don’t have
Playing poker should be a gradual increase of a float. Large cash buy-ins are not recommended for the novice player despite the lure of a big 1st deposit bonus. Start small and work your way up. Some of the best players in the world took more than 2 years to get beyond the $2/$4 tables If you play with money that is for more important things, you may have to rethink whether you should be playing at all. You will hear this often: Play with your head, not over your head.
- Don’t play the same way all the time
Good players are going to get a feel for your play if you’re around them long enough. Periodically, change up your play, even if you have to spend a bit of money to do it. Misleading your opponents can be profitable for you and frustrating for them.
- Don’t become a calling machine
A common mistake new players practice calling too many bets. Good poker is about folding and betting. Controlling the pace and mood of a game requires taking the lead or getting out of the way. Don’t chase straights or flushes. It’s a nice pot if you hit your card but you will lose more than you win if you keep chasing all the time.
- Don’t be in a hurry
Becoming a winning player takes time. It will take hours of reading and playing before you begin to see profit. Some players feel a sense of urgency when they are down a few bucks. Stay the course and maintain your disciplined play. It’s all too easy to get on “Tilt” when you have lost a few hands, but keep a cool head and you’ll rise above it
- Don’t be afraid to fold
The best players in the world fold the best hand sometimes. There is another hand coming right up that you could win. A good player will fold when they feel they are behind in a hand. Most pro’s only play 20 per cent of their starting hands. That's OK. Impatience is seldom rewarded in poker.
- Don’t draw to the low end of a straight..
Drawing to the low end of a straight is one of the first lessons most players learn the hard way. You get your card, while some other guy was waiting for the same card that gave him an even higher straight than yours. Plays like this should happen to you only once.
- Don’t go on "tilt"
Going on tilt will surely break you. When you experience a couple of bad beats and get frustrated, don’t lose your cool discipline. Players will recognize your temporary insanity and take advantage of it. If you are that upset, step away for awhile ad grab a coffee. It might cost you a couple of big blinds, but it’s better than your whole chip stack.
- Don’t waste your best moves on bad players
Straight-up play seems to be the best method against week players. Using fancy moves will only scare away a poor player. You don’t want to crush weak players. Encourage their play as you milk them. They’re paying you for this knowledge, it’s the least you can do. Then the player doesn’t run the next time you are at a table together.