Want to become a good poker player? Follow these 10 easy-to-apply tips and you’ll boost your performance and profits.
If I had applied these 10 tips sooner, I would have quickly become a better poker player
- Play the position
Position, position, position! When playing in position, for example on the button, you are the last to speak. As you act after all the other players, this is so much more information for you. You may notice the slightest sign of weakness. You also have the option of turning a losing hand into a winning hand. By being the last to act, you can afford to play with hands with much lower potential than if you were the first to act (UTG). Another benefit of playing in position is being able to control the size of the pot. We recommend reading our article on the importance of position in poker.
- Be aggressive
By attacking your opponents, you drastically increase your chances of winning the hand. Your opponent shows weakness and little interest in taking the pot? A bet from you should be enough to scare him away. If in addition you play in position, your chances of winning the shot are further increased. Do not hesitate to make the pots bigger by raising your big hands and by making continuation bets (Cbet) almost 100% of the time against one or two opponents.
- Know how to calculate odds
You have 8♣9♣. The flop comes 6♣7♦A♥. You are in a straight draw at both ends. A 5 or a 10 would give you the winning combination. How many cards can you win? 8 cards. What is the probability that one of these 8 cards lands? You have odds of 2.2/1. If your opponent bets the size of the pot, or even a little more, it is not profitable to call. On the other hand, if he bets 1/3 of the pot, you can call (or raise) with your eyes closed. Do not hesitate to read our series of articles on mathematics in poker or to find out how to calculate pot odds.
- Don’t lose your cool
Your cat hanged himself last night. You punctured a tire while leaving for work. Your boss spoke badly to you. Your friend stood you up at noon. You spent 2 hours in traffic on your way home. In short, your day has been rotten. You arrive at your poker game and a player cracks your aces. Looks like the evening will also be rotten! Calm down, we calm down. Do not mix everything up. It happens. Above all, don’t lose your cool. Your decision-making would be altered. Try to cut yourself off from emotions. Emotion is rarely a good advisor. Deciding out of disappointment, anger or even stress can cost you a lot of money.
- Read poker books
How did you educate yourself in school? You read books, you did your homework and you listened to your teacher in class. In poker, it’s a bit the same. Are you passionate about poker and want to improve your knowledge of this game? We suggest you turn to poker literature. You will be able to read many tips in great detail. Various strategic concepts will be clearly explained. Professional players share their experience and experiences. There is food and drink. There are books dealing with generalities, others explaining a specific aspect of the game, the choice is yours. We’ve compiled a list of 21 essential poker books to progress.
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- Don’t gamble under the influence
In point number 4, we explained to you not to lose your cool. By taking drugs and/or drinking too much alcoholic beverages, one loses good judgment. Without your good judgment, you will do stupid things. If you do stupid things, you will lose money. No money…no money.
- Take notes and keep track of your sessions
You will regularly encounter the same situations. Sometimes you will be satisfied with the way you played. Other times, you will tell yourself that you could have played differently and that you will not be caught again. Note these strokes. Buy yourself a small notebook. You will be able to see your hands again. You can also talk about it with other players in order to learn from it and improve. It will pay off in the field. In this regard, we strongly recommend that you note the financial result of all your sessions. You went to play at Jean-Michel’s on Saturday evening. The evening was prolific and you made a profit of 150 euros. Great ! Keep track of all your sessions to check the status of your poker finances.
- Do your self-criticism
You just bust your tournament. You arrive at the bar and join the other players who have jumped
tee of the tournament before you. Listen to the discussions. Each recounts the worst bad beat in the history of poker that blew it up. Another got his aces cracked. There is the one who says that his opponent played super badly and that he chatted river, etc…. The cemetery of poker players is full of the most incredible stories. It is only rarely that you will hear a player say “I misread my opponent, I saw myself in front when there were all the warnings. “. These players who make their self-criticism are generally the ones who regularly find themselves in the paid places. They have reflection and humility. Essential qualities to progress.
- One fold too many is better than one call too many
As unlikely as it may seem, a lost token is worth more than a gained token. Why ? It’s simple. You with a stack of 10,000. The blinds are 200-400. You have 25 BBs and are still fairly quiet, there is no fire. You win 8,000. Great, you have 18,000, or 45 BBs. You are quite well, but there is still a very long way to go. Now take the reverse situation. You lose 8,000. Ouch, you stack has melted down to 2,000. And there, it is much more boring. You have 5 miserable BBs left, you’re going to have to work hard to get that back up. It is better to make one too many folds than one too many calls. You’ll have a better spot later.
- Remove distractions
Facebook, Twitter, news sites, YouTube, etc… . Everything must disappear ! If you want to be able to fully concentrate on your poker game, you shouldn’t miss a beat. Stay on the lookout for information at all times. Your cards are only a small component of the complex game that is poker. Observation is key. You will be able to detect the flaws in your opponents, their strengths, their habits. Their style of play will have no more secrets for you. It’s up to you to make good use of it. Note that the reverse is valid… . Your opponents are also watching you. One more reason to remove all distractions.