A lot of basic information about poker we’ve already covered in the other articles here on Johnny Chances poker. Below we’ll be sharing some tips shared by professionals that will come in handy. Whether you play poker at the kitchen table with friends or you’re planning to go to the World series of poker, they’ll come in handy.
Change up your play
When you start to be familiar with a game, it’s very easy to slip into a play routine. In other words: you become predictable. Not just for your opponents to spot, but always making the same move can lower your chances on winning. You have to be willing to change up a routine, even if you believe this routine works. If you really want to make it big in poker, you have to get accustomed to changing up your game. This way nobody can ever predict your next move. Keep them guessing!
Study day
It sounds boring, but to get better at anything it’s necessary that you schedule time every week to learn. From basic poker books to the latest news and moves. There are some books that are always helpful. Especially if you haven’t read them in a while, you’ll see that you learn something new everytime you pick it up. That’s how the brain works. When you’re just starting out and learning from a book, you won’t pick up the same information as you will on your second or third time reading it. Additionally it can be helpful to read some reports on different high-profile poker events. Surprise moves, observe how a great player players etc.
Pinpoint opponents
People reading, it’s an actual skill! If you’re not learning this while playing a game of poker, why not spend some time re-watching some high profile poker events? Things to notice: do they play loose or tight? Who is aggressive? And when? What are they trying to hide? And what move do they make when you think they’ve got something to hide? There is some really valuable information you can build up here. If you master this skill well, you’ll see that it becomes so much easier to outplay opponents.
Understand different poker variants
Poker isn’t just Texas Hold’em, there is more than that. Even though this might be the most profitable game of poker out there on the internet, that doesn’t mean learning about the other games can hurt. Actually, it might even come in handy for your general skills. Because the rules work differently, you’ll notice that you learn a new playing routine and skills that will come in extra handy when playing Texas Hold’em. Like I mentioned above, it’s key to stay unpredictable for your opponents. Varying up your games with different variants of poker helps you to become that player.
Starting hands
Contrary to what people might think, the beginning of the game might be the most defining. People are likely to start playing very openly, not minding their spending too much. After all, it’s the beginning! We don’t have much to lose yet. We highly discourage you to play this way. For example, if you only play the top 10% of the possible starting hands, you’re really doing yourself a favor financially. Let’s say you’d play for example the top 30% of starting hands, you’re likely to lose money very fast. To stay in the game and raise your profits simply tighten your game and stay consistent throughout.
