Poker Strategy

We’ve all been thrashed with the ever popular “10 tips for winning something” and “5 tricks for becoming a better something else” at some point or another by now. These articles and guides are all well and good, but at the end of the day it’s a case of seeing the same Poker information in a different font.

So how about something fresh?

No problem. A nice tongue-in-cheek guide on some pretty unique tips and tricks for losing money at the poker table should do the trick.

1) Play the game that all the cool kids are playing.

Sure, you might be winning money and building a solid strategy for those cash games, but didn’t you know that all the cool cats are currently playing SnGs? It’s all well and good winning money on a regular basis in your game of choice, but it’s not worth anything unless that game is hip and funky at the same time.

Regardless of how well you might be doing, you need to keep up with the latest trends and play the games that people you don’t even know (or like) are raving about. There’s nothing more rewarding than taking yourself out of your comfort zone and playing a different game, even if it means you end up losing money.

2) Determination is more profitable than mathematics.

Just missed your flush on the turn? Don’t worry about it, call that fear-inducingly large bet and battle on to the river. Pot odds and mathematics are for the weak, determination and blind faith is what is going to help you drag down those huge pots.

The art of calling bets regardless of their size works for all sorts of drawing hands. Flushes, straight draws, inside-straight draws… it even works pretty well when you don’t hold anything. A true poker warrior battles through these big bets with a smile on their face, even if it is leaving a hole in their game the size of Bill Gates’ wallet.

3) High stakes = profitable stakes.

The higher the stakes you play for, the more you can win. Even if that involves placing your entire bankroll on the table for half of the maximum buy-in, you need to maintain that warrior spirit at all times.

Risk takers will get all the money, they will probably get all the girls too. Those “20 buy ins for cash games” and “40 buy ins for Sit and Go tournaments” rules for bankroll management are only going to hold you back and you know it.

You may well end up losing it all in one hand, but hey, that’s Poker right?

4) That random guy’s strategy is always best.

You will occasionally get players at the table that like to sporadically dish out pure gems of strategy tips, both offline and online. You may come across some forbidden trade secrets such as:

“Never raise with pocket Aces” or “Always play 56 offsuit from early position”.

It is these snippets of Texas Hold’em strategy gold dust that take your game to higher and higher levels. Forget about your books by Sklansky and Malmuth, it’s these unusual and random pointers that you pick up at the table that are going to form the basis of your winning poker strategy. Keep your ears open and who knows what you might pick up next?

5) Use as many fancy plays as frequently as possible.

The more check-raises, float plays, squeeze plays and stop and go plays you can incorporate into every session the better. It does not matter where or when you use them, just as long as you do. Be relentless with those fancy plays that most players have never heard of and the money will start to flow in.

Forget about the bread and butter strategy of betting when you have the best of it and checking when you think that you’re behind, that’s old school. They may work like a charm and be the foundation of a winning game, but what’s the point of Poker if you can’t play with flair?

The most exotic play in the most inappropriate situation will give you that cutting-edge playing style that you’ve been searching for..

6) Never, ever change your playing style.

Predictability is the new unpredictability. If you’re changing gears to try and get the better of your opponents, you are playing right in to their hands. How about mixing it up to the max… by not mixing your game up at all?

Betting the same amount every time you have a good hand will simply baffle your opponents into submission. In their state of pure confusion they will be more than happy to ship their stacks your way, whilst the other players with unpredictable playing styles will be left floundering in their comically short stacks of chips.

7) Choose a “lucky hand” and play it to the death every time.

All of the pro players have a favourite hand that they like to play. Doyle Brunson’s is 10-2 offsuit and Daniel Negreanu’s is 10-7 offsuit. What’s yours?

If you haven’t picked up a lucky hand yet, you obviously are far from being the pro player that you like to think you are. The more obscure the hand the better, so go for something with a very low chance of winning, or even better, a hand that would normally get you into some very sticky situations.

After you have chosen your desired lucky hand, be sure to play it hard and fast at every opportunity. It’s your hand, so make it work for you. The more bets and raises you can put in, the more promising the results will be.

The stories you get to tell your friends about the times you played “your hand” and won will also never fail to be nothing short of gripping.

8) Playing whilst on tilt is simply playing with passion.

When you become frustrated or angry, you become more involved with the game and super-focused to try and outplay the opponent that took your money. Harness this vengeful energy and continue to play whilst your frustration is at its peak, and you will be able to execute plays that you didn’t even know existed up until that point.

If you take a break from the game, you are missing out on a prime opportunity to play out of your skin and utilize a legendary hyper-aggressive strategy. In fact, the more enraged you get, the more money you can expect to win within the next 10 minutes of play.

Overview.

Well, that should have given you a lot to think about.

Even if you started to feel your heart sink a little as you realised that you were relating with a few of those impressively poor tips more than you should have been, it’s not all bad. To become a winning Poker player you need to be prepared to learn and be humble about your ability. Arrogance doesn’t win you any extra money in this game.

I can guarantee that 80% or more of the players that read this guide will not take anything away from it, and there game will not improve for the better. Don’t let yourself be that player.

Now allow me to wrap this article up with a well timed cliché…

Best of luck at the tables.

—-

This article was written by Greg Walker of ThePokerBank.com. A site for Texas Hold em information and other fun stuff like that.

photocred goes to grenade

{ 3 comments }