Poker Book Club

Over the past 5 years or so, the game of Poker, and especially Texas Hold’Em, has gained massive popularity. As a natural result, hundreds of people every day sign-up with an online poker room account and start learning the game. Most of them, however, lack enough preparation and knowledge, and therefore will commit one of a few basic mistakes that every serious poker player should quickly eliminate.

Here are five of the most common of these mistakes.

1) Spending no time on hand analysis

Another common mistake. Since everyone is running about saying how poker is such an easy way to make money, most people who start playing the game do not think that there is actually some learning involved. Unfortunately, as with anything else, poker is not an easy way to make money. You will need to put in a lot of effort before the game rewards you.

Make sure to signup at some community forums (the best of witch is currently TwoPlusTwo). Make it a habit to save every problematic hand that you’ve had during a poker session. After you are done playing for the day, post all of your saved hands to the forums, and ask for advice. Make sure to give as much detail about the hand in your post as possible. Write down any history that you and your opponent might have had, what kind of player did he seem to be (tight? aggressive? passive?). The more detail you give, the more likely you are to receive a helpful response. Try to make a few poker friends online, too. There is absolutely no better way to evolve as a poker player than to have a few people to discuss the game with.

2) Poor Bankroll Management

Most beginner poker players are unaware of what proper bankroll management really is. They will deposit $50 to their poker account and dive right into the $1/$2 limits with a quarter of a buy-in. While poker is definitely a game of skill in the long-term, there is still a huge luck component in the short-term. This means that no matter how good of a poker player you are, there is a very reasonable possibility that you will go on losing in poker for many consecutive weeks (sometimes months). This is an entirely statistical thing — even the best hands can lose many times in a row. When a poker player faces a losing streak as this one, it is called a downswing.When a player is on a downswing, his skills can only help him to minimize his losses.

To avoid facing a downswing, make sure that you always have at least 25x buy-ins for any stakes that you want to play. If you are going to play a No-Limit $0.50/$1 Texas Hold’em game, then you should have at least $2500 deposited to your poker play. The higher you go up the stakes, the more conservative you should be (meaning, you should have more buyins in your bankroll), because the size of a downswing grows proportionally to the skill of your opponents.

Makes sure to learn as much as you can about bankroll management before proceeding — you will save yourself a lot of time and agony by doing so.

3) Being Too Cocky

Most poker beginners will inevitably get cocky at some point and start believing that they are poker prodigies. This usually happens when they are running hot for a longer period of time and the cards are being kind to them. They start believing that they are winning thanks to their superior skills, even though their actual poker knowledge is very limited. This in turn will result in bad decisions being made: they may move up the stakes to a level way beyond their level of experience, or they may start doing absolutely terrible plays at the table. With their minds clouded by their false sense of security, they are bound to lose their entire bankroll sooner than later.

Keep your ego in check and watch out for this trap. If you suddenly feel that you are unstoppable, post some of your hands to online poker forums for review. You will quickly learn if you are as good as you think you are, or if you’ve simply been running good. And try believing what the forum members tell you — they will most likely be right.

4) Not treating the game seriously enough

I’ve seen it many, many times. A beginner poker player has a few tables open, and in between his raising, folding and bluffing, he is chatting on Facebook and watching YouTube videos. “That Metallica song is so cool…oops, I’ve got Aces! Gotta raise it up! Gimme fuel, gimme fire, give me all that I desire, yeah!”

This kind of approach to poker will do you no good. The game requires absolute and full concentration. The field of poker is extremely competitive nowadays, and you will need every edge that you can muster. Most of the players out there are more focused on YouTube than on the tables, so if you can eliminate this clutter, you are already at a huge advantage. Turn off ICQ, Facebook and YouTube. Keep your tables open at all times and don’t ever minimize them. Even if you are not involved in a hand at the moment, you should still be looking at the tables and trying to get reads on your opponents by analyzing their play.

Poker is not an easy game.

5) Playing too many tables simultaneously

Understand that having more than 5 tables active at any given time is reserved for the most experienced players only. If you have been playing poker for less than 6 months, chances are very high that you have not yet mastered the game enough to be able to handle that much action all at once. It may seem to you that you can because you can click fast enough, but what this usually means is that you are not giving your hands enough thought. If you catch yourself playing poker and not making any money for a long period of time, reducing the number of tables played and paying more attention to what is going on at them should be your first move.

Make sure not to fall for any of the traps described above, and you are on a very good start towards becoming a long-term profitable poker player.

The author of this article runs a website called Poker Girls — where you will find biographies, pictures and news devoted entirely to female poker players.

Playing perfect poker will win you a lot of money. However, this article is about playing better-than-perfect poker. In better-than-perfect poker, you not only play the game in such a way that you could beat the best player, but you play so as to extract as much money as possible from the poor players, depending on their flaws.

In this article, I will focus on picking on the weak player and how to extract as much money as possible from them over time in a game. A weak player is defined as one who is too prone too folding. In a sense, everyone is a little weak, since we sometimes fold when we shouldn’t. However, the weak player does this habitually, folding routinely in situations when he or she should not. A truly weak player can be beaten simply by constant aggression.

First, you must identify the weak player. When you sit down at the table, take note of when people fold. People will fold on different rounds. Some will fold on the first round. Others will fold when betting increases. Finally, there are some who will fold on the final round of betting. These are players who chase draws and then drop their hands when they miss them. Look for patterns of people who fold on the same round repeatedly.

Once you’ve found your mark, your goal is to play as many hands against that person as possible. It doesn’t matter at all what you’re holding. Their play is so bad that you can beat them with any hand. Of course, in order to do this, you have to actually get heads up with them. You can do this in two ways: you can either attack their blinds, or you can raise or re-raise to isolate them.

Unless you are in early position, you can routinely attack someone’s blinds, even from middle position. If someone behind you keeps calling or re-raising you, it won’t work. If you can move, try to get to the weak player’s right. Normally you want to be on a player’s left, but that’s good players. With a weak player, you want to be on the right so you can go after their blinds.

If the player is on your right, raise them if they limp and no one else is in the pot, or re-raise them if they raise, so you can get them alone. Be careful if they raise from early position, though. For weak players, this usually indicates a monster.

Now that you’ve got them isolated, the trick is simply aggression, aggression, aggression. However, make sure not to be too aggressive after the weak round you identified. If someone routinely folds on the first round, and he or she calls you, he or she has a real hand. It might be a drawing hand, so see if you’re attacked on the turn. If you aren’t, throw in a bet on the final round and take it down.

If a weak player is aggressive with you, just give up. It means they have something. At that point, you just try again. If they attack you again, they may have changed their strategy with you, and you’ll need to use other methods.

Lorne Hallett has been a prolific internet article writer since 1997. His most recent site is called Cheap Floor Lamps, where he has just written an article on arc floor lamps. This site includes a number of articles on different kinds of floor lamps, including the histories of various designs and how to acquire them at a reasonable price.

US poker sites have something to offer for everyone whether you are a small stakes game player or a serious contender in the poker world. The passage of the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act in 2006 was detrimental to many online poker sites closing their doors to players from the United States. It actually paved the way for some exciting new sites to gain market share because they now cater specifically to players from the United States. As a result, people searching for a legal way to indulge themselves in an online game of poker, there are still several sites to choose from.

Bodog Poker, Carbon Poker, Poker Stars, PlayersOnly Poker, Full Tilt Poker, and Sportsbook Poker are a few of the top rated poker playing sites that allow players from the United States to participate in their real money poker games. Many of the top poker players play on these particular online sites as well as thousands of amateur players.

While Texas Hold ‘Em Poker remains king in popularity of all the poker games, it is followed closely by Omaha, and Seven Card Stud. There are many other games that are serious contenders in popularity in the online poker-playing world like Badugi, Razz, Draw poker, and HORSE Poker. The sites listed above offer various mixed games sections for those who like to change it up every once in a while. Different sites specialize in different gimmicks to appeal to diverse players. For instance, Sportsbook Poker is a site that offers a casino and a sportsbook all in just one account and Full Tilt Poker has introduced an Academy where the professionals will teach players how to succeed at playing poker.

The above listed US poker sites offer online instruction on how to play the different games as well as tips to improve your game. They all offer several options for payment and offer secure deposits and quick cash outs to make it easy for the user to participate. All the sites are user friendly and boast impressive tournament jackpots, a great variety of games, huge first deposit and reload bonuses, high traffic, all of which combine into an exciting online gaming experience. The software is easy to download and play, all are fully licensed and regulated, and encourage responsible play.

Game play is smooth and effortless on these quality sites. The graphics are impressive and the excitement is boundless as players compete for big money prizes. Everybody is a winner when it comes to exciting game play on these US poker sites.

Rich Vial is a webmaster for US Poker Rooms visit: playingpokerusa.com.

Do you love to play poker but run into difficulty up against loose poker players? Discover how to win playing against loose poker players now.

Some people think that these loose poker players are invincible but these peoples heads are clouded with fear. I know that you, like me, believe that loose poker players can be crushed. They have weaknesses all through their strategies just like anyone else. And quite frankly most of their moves are made on pure baloney.

A loose players weakness is in his cards. He makes up for his bad cards with great skill and a lot of money. You can either hit him where it hurts – his cards – or out play him in the other areas.

How To Win Playing Against Loose Poker Players Tactic #1

This tactics involves playing similarly to the loose player except a little more tighter. You should be entering less pots then he does over any time. Just choose 15 mins and start counting. You should turn down the so-so kinda risky kinda alright cards you get in certain positions, especially the early positions.

This way, when you are in a pot you will have a pretty good chance of having better cards then him. You’ll have to continue through his bets and really know you have the nuts but overall this strategy works outs – its just pure probability.

How To Win Playing Against Loose Poker Players Tactic #2

This tactic involves having enough bankroll to keep him honest. The biggest thing loose poker players look out for are new players or unskilled players. They hate calling stations as well. This is because the new players aren’t really smart enough to realise they are being bluffed and will just call through to the showdown with a high pair or something.

Although, what most loose poker players aren’t looking out for are good players doing this. If you have enough bankroll to keep the loose player honest he will start to bluff and semi-bluff less and less because he knows he can’t get away with it. When he starts playing less and less hands (tightening up) you know the kryptonite has worked.

How To Win Playing Against Loose Poker Players Tactic #3

The third, and the best, way to beat a loose player is to out skill him. This is easier said then done. It’s commonly known that when there are too many loose players at the table the strategy is less and less effective. If you have the card and table reading skills you will have a better judgement on what cards he has so you can counter with the appropriate move.

This is essentially the goal state you want to get to because once you have this skill loose poker players can never beat you. The thing is, if you aren’t yet at this level this is ok. Just focus more and try to figure out the more obvious semi-bluffs he’s doing. Count the cards, the bets, take positions into consideration, everything. When you think you’ve got him spend the cash to call and test. Even if you lose it’s money well spent because you are learning.

Do You Want To Learn More About How To Win Playing Against Loose Poker Players?

If So, Download My Brand New Free Ebook ’7 Of My Top Texas Hold Em Poker Tips’ here: Texas Hold Em Poker Tips

Alex is an avid Texas Hold Em Poker player and has dedicated his time, effort and money to learning the art and skill of successfully winning rounds of No Limit Hold Em. Shoot him an email at alex@mytexasholdempokertips.com or head on over to his informative website http://MyTexasHoldemPokerTips.com containing Texas Hold Em Poker Tips, Tricks and Secrets.

Which ever buy-in levels and number of opponents you choose todays online poker tournaments are tough to win. This article looks at 5 tips taken from the world of no limit hold em cash games. Using the strategies outlined will help players to build a big stack early in online poker tournaments, giving an extra edge when it comes to making the paying positions.

No Limit Hold em Poker Tournament Strategy Tip #1 – Manipulating the Pot Size

When playing with a deep stack (50 to 100 big blinds) it can pay to plan ahead for the pot size that you want. This can be applied to building a big pot for your monster hands and also to keeping the pot small when you have a good but not great hand.

When you have a monster hand such as a set you should actively focus on your opponents stack and make a plan for getting as many chips as possible by the river. Split the chips into ‘chunks’ and bet them in such a way as to keep your opponent in the hand. Ideally your last bet should be less than the size of the current pot – offering your opponent attractive odds to call on the river.

No Limit Hold em Poker Tournament Strategy Tip #2 – Defending Your Button

As stacks become shallow tournament play involves defending your blinds – as well as stealing those of others. When the stacks are deep at the start of a tournament you should instead focus on defending your button. The button gives you the advantage of acting last after the flop. Seeing what your opponents do before you act is a huge advantage that will enable you to pick up many pots, Make sure you defend the right to act last from the button and the seats before it.

No Limit Hold em Poker Tournament Strategy Tip #3 – Bigger Implied Odds

Deep stacked tournament play means bigger implied odds – that is the reward for hitting a monster hand will be large in relation to the percentage of your stack risked to hit it. This means you can play many hands such as small pairs and suited connectors early, even for a raise. If you hit the flop hard there are 3 more betting rounds to build a big pot. If you miss completely then the damage to your stack is limited to the small percentage from the initial call.

No Limit Hold em Poker Tournament Strategy Tip #4 – Using the ‘Call Bluff’

Deep stacks allow you to make many more post-flop ‘moves’. A profitable scenario can often arise when there is a draw on the flop. If you completely miss the flop after calling a raise but the flop contains (for example) 2 hearts then it can be profitable to call a bet after the flop. Your intention is to see what your opponent does when the turn hits. In this example if a 3rd heart falls and your opponent checks to you it is likely that you can take the pot down with a bet. The great thing about the call bluff is that you are not committed to follow through. If an ace falls on the turn and your opponent bets it is easy to fold and move on to the next hand.

No Limit Hold em Poker Tournament Strategy Tip #5 – Second Level Thinking

Second level thinking is a key component of hand reading in poker. This involves looking ‘through your opponents eyes’ at your actions and deciding what he thinks that your hand is based on the betting. You can then analyze your opponents actions based on what he thinks you have. For example if you decide that your opponent puts you on a weak holding he is more likely to be bluffing when betting into you on the river. Conversely if you have indicated strength that same bet may be with a monster hand.

GL at the Tables, Mark

Mark R Holland is an online poker pro, blogger and writer for high-quality poker sites. For great poker strategy articles and tips covering SNGs, Poker Tournaments and Satellite Qualifiers visit Online Poker Tournament Strategy Tips today!