gopoker.com | come play.go win... poker and igaming site, news, rules and tournaments, poker rooms and networks, odds, premium gaming domains, poker tips, learn when to play and when to fold your hand, improve your game, software providers and much more...

gopoker_header

POKER STRATEGY

Saturday 31 July 2010

Poker Tips

Improve your Strategy and Game

By gopoker.com, May 10, 2010

Take control of game, brief and direct poker tips on how to improve your game play and boost your bankroll.

When looking for reasons to play your hand, look for reasons not to play.

The common mistake many players do is reading the board thinking that if just that card or that card is dealt the hand will be strong, and given another tip that poker is about winning money and not pots, start playing your game to win money, and doing so throw away any hand that is not strong.

Don't play every hand.

When playing poker one commonly want to participate in every hand and while playing beats waiting for the next round, poker is about winning, one have to know when to fold and when to bet. Folding the hand doesn't mean that one is out of the action, on the contrary. Folding is part of the game, and it protects your bankroll, unless holding a strong hand. Good players on an average plays less than half the hands dealt.

Don't stay in a hand because you are already in it.

If you don't believe you are going to win the hand, get out, there is no point in calling other players' bets. Don't bet good money trying to save bad money. It may appear obvious, but facts remain, it is a common mistake made by beginners. Keep in mind that you are playing to win, making a profit building your bankroll, hence don't hesitate to fold when you see that you are beaten.

Do not play with your cards only.

It's not enough to know how to play and try to make the best possible 5-card combination. Beginners focus on their cards only and that's exactly like driving without paying attention to the other drivers... After a while and many hands later, they understand that it's very important to check what's going on at the table. If you have 2 pairs but there is a Flush or a Straight possibility at the table… you better fold. You have to foresee what poker hand can beat yours, and the odds for another player to have it. You can only be 100% confident in your cards when you have the best possible poker hand at the table.

Make player notes.

Use the poker software to gather information on specific players and their betting patterns. You don't want to be somebody else's fish, but you would prefer to track those sharks and avoid them while playing.

Know your odds.

In order to make the right decision at a poker table, you have to understand the poker mathematics. Calculating your "outs" and "pot-odds" before acting will definitely make you win more often in the long run.

Pot-odds are calculated by simply dividing the amount you have to call by the total amount in the pot. For example if the total amount in the pot is €100 and you have to call €20 to stay in the game, then the pot odds are 5-to-1 (5:1).

The Outs are the unseen cards that will improve your poker hand. To calculate your outs, you need to divide the number of cards that will improve your hand by the number of unseen cards in the deck.

Example: If you have 4 cards to a Flush of Spades after the Flop, what are your chances of getting your Flush on the Turn?

You have seen 5 cards from the 52 cards, and you know that 4 cards are Spades from the 13 Spades of the deck. So, 9 cards will make your Flush (13 - 4) on the Turn and 38 cards (52 - 5 - 9) will not. Your chances of improving are approximately 4 to 1 (4:1).

Hence, if you call a bet when your chances of improving are less than the odds being offered by the pot then you will lose over time, whether or not you make your flush this time.

Don't play above your bankroll.

Put some money aside only to play poker and don't invest what is acceptable to lose. Learn how to play in low limit, then as your bankroll goes up move to higher stakes.

Your hold'em strategy should be modified dependent on early, middle or late position.

If you're in a game and you don't know who the sucker is, you´re it.

Poker is about winning the most money, not the most pots.

Poker is a game of decisions, and the right decisions separates winners from losers.

The key to making the right play, know your opponents.

Losing is an opportunity to examine and improve your game.

With a winning hand in hold'em and you check... opponents get a free card without risk.

Hand selection is one of the most important keys to winning.

In poker and not having a goal means you are likely to be part of someone else´s goal.

In a loose and aggressive hold'em game... don't call with a hand you wouldn't raise.

Improving your skills is learning your strengths and weaknesses.

advert_210_420_gopoker