Ideals to Steer Clear of
When playing a game of chess there are many things you steer clear of doing, because if you make the wrong moves or use the wrong strategies it will ultimately cause your loss in the end. For instance, you never throw your queen out in the open early on in the game; if she is taken things may as well be over for you. As with chess the same holds true for poker. There are many different problems that can arise while playing that every good player needs to avoid.
Probably the most harrowing of ideals that one must never come across while playing poker; involves enticing the mind to only think short term. Often, players only look at the hand in play rather than look further down the line and see the big picture. The simple fact remains, if you pull in money and win the pot you have won the hand; it doesn’t necessarily matter how a player did it; just that they did. In the long run a win, is always a reel in of cash; and consistent wins over time are what every good player needs; whether the win is big or small. That means a very long string of losses, or even a few losses can be worse over the long run than originally anticipated. The key, especially for poker novices’, is to practically remain stingy with your chips during the first rounds of the game and pull in wins when you can, this ensures that your stack remains full. But no matter how large your stack is, it is very important to remember that keeping a long term mindset is exactly one huge way to win the game of poker.
Poker can be very stressful and very frustrating at times but is important to always keep your cool. Therefore another ideal that all poker players should keep their distance from involves excessively letting emotions and feelings spill out. Because Poker is a game of decisions, and every move must be planned carefully just like in the game of chess, it is important poker players keep a clear mind at all times. If you lose a few hands and then let emotions and your anger get the best of you, then your decisions will go nowhere and end up losing you more money and eventually the game. Every decision must be approached very carefully; however the decisions must be also made concisely. Keep a clear mind devout of excessive emotion, and you will be on the path to winning more poker games.
Yet another form of emotion arises when players think they “feel” their hand’s individual strength. Consider this an emotion that should never be followed. Gut feelings should not be followed through unless a hand has a very good chance of being the strongest at the table. Poker will always remain a game of odds, mathematical odds to be exact; therefore emotions and feelings will never reign in the world of poker skill. Every good poker player knows that a hand should not be played unless it has good odds of winning, and that is exactly how every hand in poker should be played. Assess the odds as soon as your hand is dealt, and do so every time a new flop is turned. If there’s a good chance you have the strongest hand at the table, then you decide whether to call or bet.
Another problem that must quickly be eliminated is the fact that many players end up playing and backing too many hands before the flop. Often when these players do make a mistake and keep playing a weak hand, they stick with the hand too far past the flop and throw away most of their chips. Both instances cause big problems in the long run, and both are mistakes that need to be pushed aside as soon as possible. Players, especially poker novices’, need to get in the swing of folding most hands pre-flop. Even if the blind or bet to stay in is small, over time a lot of small bets equals a big number out of the total percentage of a stack. 20-25% of all hands are the maximum any player should be playing. Don’t overplay a hand either. Often a player mistakes a weak hand for a strong one just because there are face cards involved. Face cards don’t always mean you have one of the strongest hands; pertaining to the flop a face card may even earn you the lowest possible hand at the table. If the flop is thrown down by the dealer and you still have nothing in your hand, then fold. Don’t keep playing with nothing because that will lose you more money than it should. In long term senses losing any amount of money is bad; therefore learn to be careful with your betting and calling.
To sum it all up, basically poker players (even some veterans) need to learn to eliminate ideals and problems with their game that cause them to lose in the long run. A few of the most important problems in the average game includes thinking short term only, letting emotions get the best of you, following a “gut feeling”, playing too many cards pre-flop, and sticking with too many hands after the flop has been dealt. At least one of these problems may pertain to you individually; if that is true then you need to push it aside as soon as possible. Don’t let these problems affect your long term game, and most of all don’t let them affect your stack size.
