10 TIPS TO BECOME A GOOD POKER PLAYER
1. PLAY THE POSITION
Position, position, position! When playing in position, for example on the button, you are the last to speak. As you are acting after all the other players, this is all more information for you. You can see the slightest sign of weakness. You also have the option of turning a losing hand into a winning hand. By being the last to speak, you can afford to play with hands with much lower potential than if you are the first to speak (UTG). Another advantage of playing in position is being able to control the size of the pot. We recommend that you read our article on the importance of position in poker .
2. BE AGGRESSIVE
By attacking your opponents, you drastically increase your chances of winning the hand. Is your opponent showing weakness and little interest in taking the pot? One 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 making continuation bets (Cbet) almost 100% of the time against one or two opponents.
3. KNOW HOW TO CALCULATE ODDS
You have [8c] [9c]. The flop is [6c] [7d] [Ah]. 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 earn? 8 cards. What is the probability that one of these 8 cards will fall? You have a rating of 2.2 / 1. If your opponent bets the size of the pot, or even 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. Don't hesitate to read our series of articles on poker math or learn how to calculate pot odds .
4. DON'T LOSE YOUR COOL
Your cat hanged himself last night. You have a punctured tire while driving at work. Your boss spoke badly to you. Your friend gave you a bunny 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 be rotten too! Quiet, 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 adviser. Deciding in the midst of disappointment, anger or even stress can cost you a lot of money.
5. READ POKER BOOKS
How did you manage to 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 orient yourself towards poker literature. This will allow you to read lots of tips in great detail. Various strategic concepts will be clearly explained. Professional players share their experience and their 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 have compiled a list of 21 essential poker books for you to progress .
6. DON'T PLAY 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, you lose your judgment. Without your good judgment, you will do stupid things. If you do stupid things you will lose money. No money… no money.
7. TAKE NOTES AND KEEP TRACK OF YOUR SESSIONS
You will regularly encounter the same situations. Sometimes you will be happy with the way you played. Other times, you will tell yourself that you could have played differently and that you will not be repeated. Note these strokes. Buy yourself a little notebook. You will be able to see your hands again. You will also be able to talk about it with other players in order to learn from it and improve yourself. This 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.
8. DO YOUR SELF-CRITICISM
You've just busted your tournament. You arrive at the bar and join the other players who have skipped the tournament before you. Listen to the discussions. Each tells the worst bad beat in the history of poker that blew them up. Another had his aces cracked. There is the one who says that his opponent played really badly and that he chatted the river, etc…. The graveyard 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, it is generally them who find themselves regularly in the paid places. They have thoughtfulness and humility. Essential qualities to progress.
9. A FOLD TOO MUCH IS BETTER THAN A CALL TOO MUCH
As implausible as it may sound, a lost token is worth more than a won 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 earn 8,000. Great, you have 18,000, or 45 BBs. You are good enough, but there is still a very long way to go. Now let's take the opposite situation. You lose 8'000. Ouch, your stack has melted to 2,000. And there it is much more boring. You have 5 miserable BBs left, you'll have to whip a hell of a lot to bring that up. It is better to fold too much than to call too much. You will have a better spot later.
10. 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 thing. Stay tuned for information at all times. Your cards are only a small part of the complex game of poker. Observation is essential. You will be able to detect the faults in your opponents, their strengths, their habits. Their style of play will no longer hold any 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 eliminate all distractions.