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In Poker, you can brag but you must brag the right way. Well, you must be wondering if bragging can really be right and if there’s actually the right way of doing it. Actually, in Poker, yes bragging can be right and there’s the right way of doing it.

Bragging can be a strategy and if done the right way can really help. For bragging to be right or say acceptable in a poker game, it should be done with good purpose and intention. Bragging shouldn’t be done just for fun.

A brag that is not too loud to the ears and not too annoying is acceptable. It is the kind of bragging that helps and can earn some money. However, others still find this kind of bragging unethical. But still you can try making this but you must consider first the kind of players you are up against with.

Say you want to deceive your opponents. At some point, one of your opponents makes a bluff with ten-deuce and gets caught, but then gets lucky and able to catch running deuces to win. You can get in the way and brag and say lines like “yeah, I always play ten-deuce as I want to be like my favorite pro Doyle Brunson. If playing ten-deuce works for him then it will work for me too.” Your opponent then may go on tilt and you will have better winning chances. If he or she goes on tilt, he or she will become distracted and won’t be able to make good and sound decisions.

But of course, still, you must be careful when you brag. And never brag in all of your games most especially if you play with almost the same players most of the time. You may become too predictable and readable at the table.

At the poker table, it is important that you set a good image. Others should not have this perception that you are a weak player and can be easily beaten.

Well, a weak player can be very straightforward and are easy to read. Oftentimes, they do not use the strategy of deception and depend on the merit of his or her own hand to make it and win in a certain game.

A weak player is of course the opposite of a strong player. A strong player will take risk, not only play his or her own cards but also his or her their opponents’ cards and believe that with his or her skill and attitude he or she will win. A weak player on the other hand, oftentimes lose confidence and whenever has a weak hand will think unusually that he or she must check the hand down but if has a strong hand will consider to immediately take the pot away. And unlike a strong player, a weak player will only play his or her own cards.

If you will try to closely analyze everything mentioned, it is really unhealthy to become a weak player. Still, it is best to be the opposite. But of course, you can’t easily be a strong one. It will take time before you fully gain the confidence and the attitude that will help you become a strong player. More or less what you can do now is to just avoid appearing like a weak player. Never try even once. Once you appear like a weak player, other players will think that you are really a weak one. And later you will find it hard to change their perception about you so be careful on the image you are trying to set at the table.

You are a good poker player if you know how to read the hands of your opponents. But if you don’t know how, you are still like a work on progress.

It is your edge actually if you know how to read hands. But it is not necessary that you can read hands a hundred percent of the time, you just have to do things right.

Well, if you don’t know how to read hands, you can actually learn. You can start by simply knowing your opponents. Have patience in knowing how they play and how they react to unlikely happenings at the table. Most especially, observe what kind of hands do they usually keep or else fold.

Then after knowing your opponents, watch out for some tells. Be very attentive even to little tells. Look out for a tightening jaw, raised brow, or twitched lips. These can mean certain significant things. But as you watch out for these non-verbal gestures, never miss to observe the betting patterns so you could make right decisions.

Right after watching out for some tells, focus now on the hands that usually appear at showdown and trace back how they reached such phase. Check what happened at pre-flop, post-flop, post-turn, and post-river. Maybe you can then find out how.

Then, know the strategy of your opponents through observing their betting patterns. Their betting patterns may not give you sufficient information but they can help. You can make good predictions later if you understand them better.

As you try to learn how to read hands, be careful. You maybe not aware, but others are maybe trying to get a read on your hands as you learn how to. Aside from trying to read others’ hands, try also to read if others are trying to read your hands too.

Making some bluffs and semi-bluffs sometimes can be a good strategy. Bluffing or semi-bluffing at the right time can actually be so effective that you will be able to win big bucks.

Well, your main goal when you bluff should be to confuse your opponents. You have to make them belief that you are having a certain hand although you are not. Say you have the marginal hand at best and to make a bluff about it, you have to make them believe that you have nuts. And to make this effective, you have to continuously bet and raise. Eventually, if successful, players will decide to fold and you will make your way to the pot.

On the other hand, when you semi-bluff, your main goal will still be to confuse your opponents. However, you will be into some kind of a progressive bluffing. Same as when you make a typical bluff, when you semi-bluff you have to make your opponents believe that you have a certain hand although you are not. Normally, it should be a weak hand. But unlike when you bluff, when you semi-bluff you must not run after making your opponents fold but mainly you should run after getting the chance to work out on your hand for it to become really strong and unbeatable.

On the flip side, although making some bluffs and semi-bluffs can be a good strategy and can be really effective, there are also some strings attached to it. If you happen to make some bluffs and semi-bluff at the wrong time, at the wrong situation, then you will be on great trouble that may eventually lead to you losing your entire bankroll. Thus, be very careful when making bluffs and semi-bluffs at the poker table.

Even in the game Poker, there are bullies who will intimidate and terrorize you. Most likely, their aim will be to win by default, do the bluffing and all till others including you are eliminated from the game. Thus, it is important that you know what you’re going to do when you are up against these bullies. Make a strategy.

Have something that will work out. Remember that poker bullies do not play according to the well-known poker wisdom that is to play aggressively when there is really good hands and give up when with bad cards. Normally, they prefer to maximize marginal hands by scaring everybody and steal blinds here and there. They can be so aggressive and tough on scaring the fish and tight players to fold. Not to mention that they can also be on great tilt.

Also, poker bullies if with the best possible card combination can slow down the game. If they have the chance to check, they would check. Same thing with raising and calling. They would play as if they have unimpressive cards when in truth they just want to get a good pot later after showdown.

To beat poker bullies, always bear in mind that when they are playing a hand so slow, then they have the nuts and when they are playing aggressively they have mediocre or really bad hands. And also, to beat them whey they slow play, fold early. When they play aggressively and have some bluffs, call those bluffs. All these won’t guarantee that you will really beat them but these will help.

Poker bullies can be the kind of opponents you don’t want to play with as they can be really naughty and unpredictable at the table. But with right approach, you would be able to beat them.

Mixing up your playing styles is actually a good strategy. Your opponents can’t easily read you and your cards. However, so you could ascertain which playing styles to mix up, you should know the condition of the table you intend to sit at.

First, consider if there are lots of players entering each hand. Then if such players usually stay in until the turn or river. If there is actually a lot of players entering each hand and they stay in until the turn or river then expect a table with predictable players and action.

You can also consider number of players who love raising preflop, betting on the flop and always try to stay in until showdown. And consider also if there is serious bluffing taking place. Observing the table before you decide to mix some of your playing styles is a good idea.

After knowing the condition of the table, finally determine which of your playing styles are you going to mix up. Nonetheless, you can set some internal rules on which styles to use more often however you can also try to do some things you do not usually do so your opponents can’t easily read you. Create an unpredictable image at the table to thwart your opponents.

Also, while at the table, observe the situation. Once table starts to tighten up or otherwise loosen up, consider also changing your styles. It is vital that you know how to adjust with the current situation at the table. Be aware that some styles only work for a tight table and there are also some styles for a loose one. If you still do not know how to make abrupt adjustments, then you should know how. This is a must in Poker, most especially if you want to be a successful player.

Many people think that playing Texas Holdem is just simple. As long they know the rules and basics of the game, they think they can already play the game. Although the game is simple in general, it’s actually more than knowing the rules and the basics. Some skills are needed in order to beat the game and these skills can be learned through some ways like reading poker books, poker articles, and observing games and/or actual playing.

Poker Books

Poker books contain topics on getting started. Typically, they contain the rules of the game, the terms, and the skills and strategy useful in beating the game. However, not all poker books can help. Thus, it’s important that you’d be wise in choosing which book to get. After all, you’d be spending time and effort in reading the book.

Poker Articles

Online, there are a lot of poker articles published. If having some financial problems, it’s best to go for these articles for normally they are for free, unlike poker books.

Nowadays, most poker articles can really help. They contain sensible information which you can make use when playing Texas Holdem. However, just be careful when following advices from these articles as it’s not always clear if the writer is a pro or a beginner, probably just like you.

Observing games and/or Actual Playing

Probably the best way to learn needed skills in playing Texas Holdem is observing games and/or actually playing. Being in real games either to observe or actually play can really help you, you may eventually discover what are the needed skills you must possess to become a winning, successful player. But be very observant at all times and watch over others’ reactions in different situations. Try to figure out why they make some moves, for what reason. Eventually, you will get the hang of Texas Holdem, the primary version of the popular game Poker.

Hello,

I’m not implying anything here but I usually win because of my discipline and right strategy. But of course I’m not perfect and so have also experienced being a loser. One of my most unforgettable losing moments was in a limit game 60/120 or 75/150. I remember I was in a table full of very aggressive players. At the start, I was just okay but later on I got tired and upset because others were winning pots on almost nothing and everyone seemed to have far better hands. I tried to play aggressively with good cards but later just end up being beaten. At some point, I thought of not raising preflop with high cards and instead just wait. What do you think? How about the idea of playing conservatively, does it makes sense?

Thanks a lot!

All the best,
Jonathan
Jonathan,

In aggressive games, playing tight is right. Don’t change your strategy based on some bad beats. They happen to players that play solid. Eventually luck evens out. Stick to your normal strategy.

Hello,

I’m curious if you have any idea about the strategy used when playing short handed. Once here on you site I’ve read something about a strategy for full tables of 9 players. But how about for tables with only 3 or 4 players, or just when you’re on heads up? Do you know which cards are best to play then? Well, to me, it seems that straights and flushes are not profitable.

By the way, I’ve been looking for hand held pocket poker games but haven’t found even one, do you know of a place I can have one?

Thank you in advance.

Regards,
Chester
Chester,

With short handed and heads up games, you need to play a wider array of cards. Pair, most suited aces, any two cards 10 and up, and suited connector all become playable. The best way to approach this is to try and play a small ball approach where the pots are kept small preflop to allow you to see cheap flops. When you hit your flop, you then try and extract maximum value for your hand.

You can find a hand held poker game in many stores and toy stores. You can also do a search online for hand held poker game and you should find plenty of places to find one.

Hi,

I’m here to ask something. Well, normally in fixed limit games, depending on position I call but I see to it there’s no raise particularly if it’s quite a tight game. And if in case I hit on the flop I call them down, if not it’s check or fold time.

I have this approach but I am not sure if it’s sensible. In pot limit I should be careful not to overestimate what I have, and not get committed easily. In no limit, I should only play whenever there are many other callers preflop. What do you think?

Thanks in advance.

All the best,
Dustin
Dustin,

In Limit, if you hit the flop or flop a draw, you should tend to stay until the end as you usually have odds to stay.

In Pot Limit and No Limit you need to develop a tight aggressive strategy based on hand selection and position. Playing when there is only multiple players in the pot is not an optimum way to play all holdem pots you enter. You need to approach the other Holdem games differently than Limit Holdem. It sounds like you are approaching them like Limit Holdem.