Advanced Poker Tips

The advanced poker tips presented here will be of benefit to anyone who has been playing online poker for a while and would like to identify areas of their game where they can tighten things up and improve their bottom line. Follow the five tips provided in this article and you will soon begin to notice the benefits.

1 – Be Choosy
The games you play in will have a direct influence over how successful you are. Play games that are beyond your skill level and you will soon come undone and lose money. Play micro-stake games that are way below your skill level and you will soon become frustrated by fish who call all the way to the river and then get lucky with a ludicrous hand (see Dealing with Fish). Be honest about your ability and then choose a level that is most appropriate for you.

2– Have A Plan
Although we can’t totally predict how successful we will be at the poker tables, we can and should have a plan of attack. Think about your aims as a poker player and create a plan that you can follow to help you get where you want to go. Want to make £100 a week? Calculate how many sit and go tourneys you would need to win to do that. Or, if you want to win big money, decide whether you should try to do this by winning an MTT or playing cash games and climbing up the stakes ladder. Also read up on Poker Bankroll Management.

3 – Play Tight
Players who see more than 30% of flops probably aren’t playing tight enough to succeed. Most players need to be far more selective about which starting hands they play than they usually are. Whilst poker champions like Gus Hansen can often get away with playing loose, most of us don’t have his level of skill or ability to read our opponents, so we need to be sensible and play tight.

4 – Be Aggressive
Trying to slow-play AA or KK in the hole will lead to far more bad beats than being aggressive will. If you allow players to limp in they could flop a straight, a flush or maybe even a full house that renders your high pair impotent. That’s why it’s better to bet big enough to cause the poor hands to fold from the outset.

5 – Be Mindful
Be mindful of the role your mind plays in poker. No matter how good your poker skills are, if you aren’t also in great psychological shape you will have a hard time making money consistently. Read books like Zen and the Art of Poker by Larry Phillips and NLP: The New Technology of Achievement by Steve Andreas and Charles Faulkner to get your mind in the best shape possible.

You don’t need a PhD in nuclear physics to follow the five advanced poker tips presented here, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t of value. Apply the advice provided and your game could improve massively.