Are you playing poker well enough to win cash games or tournaments? If you answered yes, then
great! Now it’s time to improve your game. What are some habits that will make you a better
player? Poker players come from every walk of life and have different backgrounds. Whether they
play online or at live events, everyone has their preferences for how to play. Some players prefer to
read books before each hand, while others go to bed early and wake up early. The goal is to become
a better player, regardless of where you currently stand.
Improving Your Hand
With practice comes improvement. There are several good habits that every poker player should
follow. These include things like keeping track of cards during hands, reading opponents' tells, and
learning the psychology behind their plays. You can also use this information to improve your table
image by understanding why certain techniques work and what types of reads indicate weakness.
When you're able to understand these concepts, you'll be able to make more informed decisions in
future situations. These improvements in your game will help you get better and better over time;
Keep Track Of Cards During Hands
Whether you’re playing online or live, most poker sites offer an auto-record feature. This allows you
to keep track of all your hands automatically. Once you finish recording, you can review them, later
on, to see if anything stands out. For example, you might notice that when you played a raise preflop
with A3 vs AK, you had KQ as the board. By reviewing the record, you’ll know exactly what type of
hand you were holding. You don't want to miss any of these important details. In addition, you can
use the auto-record function to find patterns in your betting history. This way, you won't have to
rely on memory to recall whether you bet too much, too little, or just right.
Read Opponents Tells
Have you ever noticed that some people seem to always fold when they open shove? Or maybe
someone always folds after raising preflop but opens post-flop. While there may not be any rhyme
or reason to these actions, sometimes knowing what other players think about the situation can give
you valuable insight. It's easy to assume that someone who shoves is weak, but that isn't necessarily
true. Even though they opened, they could still have a strong hand waiting to hit the flop. They
might even have a hand that's tough to bluff against. Knowing what your opponent thinks about the
current situation will allow you to adjust your strategy accordingly.
Learn Psychology Behind Plays
It takes experience to learn which strategies are effective and which aren't; however, many players
take shortcuts in order to achieve success. While it’s fine to study theory, you shouldn’t limit
yourself to it alone. Instead, try to put what you've learned into action. Playing live events or online
is ideal because you have immediate feedback. With video replay, you can watch yourself play and
identify what went wrong. If you don't know much about psychology, you could ask an instructor to
help you analyze your plays. You can also talk to friends and family members who have been
successful in similar situations. These resources can provide insights into your opponents'
psychological tendencies so that you can adapt your play style.
The most common mistakes I see newbies making are:
1) Not being aware of their own range (and therefore not realizing value bets).
2) Trying to force hands with bad ranges, especially big ones.
3) Overbetting/overplaying.
4) Holding off on folding until the river.
5) Bluffing too often/too poorly.
6) Having no plan B.
7) Being afraid of losing money.
8) Betting too small with tight ranges.
9) Allowing others to dictate terms with their raises.
10) Making poor decisions in multi-way pots.
It Takes Time and Patience
Playing poker takes time and patience. You can never expect to be able to make the best decision
every single time. You should instead focus on learning from past experiences and using this
knowledge to improve upon future results. No matter how good of a player you think you are, there
are going to be days when things go horribly wrong for you. The trick is keeping those losses at bay
while developing new techniques to minimize future occurrences.
The Bottom Line – You'll Become More Confident by Practicing
As you become more experienced, you'll start seeing yourself as a better player than before. Your
confidence will grow and you'll feel like you're capable of taking down any game. You'll also begin to
understand which factors affect your ability to succeed in certain situations. As you get better at
recognizing these patterns, you'll find yourself adapting your playstyle based on what you observe.
That way, you won't need to rely on luck anymore.