Top 10 things you need to know about poker

1 KNOW WHEN TO HOLDEM KNOW WHEN TO FOLDEM

All poker strategies start with the same thing, that is what is the value of your pocket cards. By value I mean what are the odds that the cards that you need to make a hand will come up on the flop, the turn, or the river and will that hand have a chance to win the pot. Only play high value cards. Pairs of 9â€™s or lower should be thought of as drawing hands because you will probably need to hit three of a kind to win. Always consider what the other players might have. Some clues to their hand strengths are how they bet before the flop and then after. Most players have a betting pattern so pay attention.

2 OUTS

One advantage of playing online is you donâ€™t have to be a math wiz. You can simply read the odds off an odds chart . The first thing that you need to know is how many of the unseen cards in the deck are there that will make the hand that you are drawing to .These cards are called outs. Outs divided by the number of unseen cards equals your chance to hit the out.

3 POT ODDS

Pot odds are the next thing to consider. The amount of a call or raise compared to the size of the pot are pot odds. You need to compare your odds to hit an out to the pot odds. In example if you were holding kh,9s and the flop came up 4c,6c,2d. Your outs would be three kings and three nines a total of six outs. After the flop there are 47 unseen cards. 6 divided by 47 = 13% chance that one of the six cards will come on the turn. When the betting is on you bet or call only up to 13% of the pot. Donâ€™t add chips that you bet previously in the hand into your percentage, those chips are now counted as the pot. Considering the pot odds when betting will maximize your wins and minimize your losses .

4 POSITION

When the action is on you it is important to consider your table position. When the dealer button is on your right you are in early position. This puts you at a disadvantage because you have to act before you can get a read on most of the other players. In early position you should tighten up your play. When the dealer button is on your left you are in late position. This is where you want to be when considering to make any moves because you can react to the other players. For instance if another player moves all-in before its your turn to act then you would know not to bluff.

5 PLAYING STYLE - LOOSE VS TIGHT

Loose and tight refer to how you play your starting hands. Playing loose means playing low value hands. Usually to win with low value cards you ether need to bluff or get lucky. Playing tight means playing high value hands. This is the way to go. Tight wins more often then loose.

6 TABLE IMAGE

I like to make the other players believe that I am a loose player and a bluffer. I do this by making some risky plays early in the game and if the other players fold or I get lucky and win I show my bluff. The result of this is the other players are more likely to call my bets and raises latter in the game when I do have the cards. The opposite is also true a tight table image will allow you to bluff later in the game because your bets will be respected.

7 BLUFFING

Bluffing is risky business. I donâ€™t recommend doing it unless you sense weakness in the other players. Timing is everything when bluffing , you want to be in late position so you can see if the other players bet. Only bluff against one or two players because you donâ€™t want to be called. A semi-bluff is best because if you do get called you will still have a chance with a draw. Donâ€™t bluff when playing limit poker you will get called.

8 SLOW PLAYING

Only slow play before the flop when playing against a tight table with only two-four players. Letting the other players see the flop might entice a player that is on a draw to bet if they think you have nothing. If someone bets after the flop and you still think you have the best hand stop slow playing, close the trap and re-raise. Make them pay big to play .Watch out for flushes and straights , your opponent might hit their draw. If you have the nuts push it all-in.

9 TILT

Going on tilt means playing with emotion. Donâ€™t do it because you will lose. Allot of new players play loose after a big win because they feel lucky. Remember every hand is a new hand, play the odds. Another mistake is to go after a guy thatâ€™s talking crap to you , because he is trying to freak you out, donâ€™t let him.

10 WHY DO I PLAY?

All I want in life is to win a big tournament and become rich. Am I asking to much? Am I greedy? When I play big tournaments I usually do well but I havenâ€™t hit the big money yet. On the surface poker is all about the money but you soon find out that its much more than that. When playing online one of the first things I do is check to see where everybody is from. Chatting with people from all over the world is as interesting as the poker. Itâ€™s the social aspect of poker or texas holdem specifically that has got everybody playing. So am I asking to much to get rich playing poker? Maybe but its so much fun playing I think I will keep on trying to win those tournaments. Am I greedy? Yes but thatâ€™s got nothing to do with poker ! One thing I Know for sure about poker is the more you play the better you get so get playing.