Gameplay & Strategy

How to Evolve as a Poker Player

Poker is one of the most dramatic forms of gambling, regardless of whether you’re playing online or at a land based casino. Furthermore, unlike most forms of gambling, Poker is a game of skill and strategy (in the long run at least), and there are thousands of players in the US who take this game very seriously and work hard to improve their game.

Even if you’re not trying to make it as a professional Poker player, you may still be interested in improving your game so Poker is more enjoyable for you and so you have a better chance of winning.

Tips to Getting Better At Poker

For players who are fairly new to the game, there are several straightforward ways and tips to get better at Poker in a relatively short space of time.

Memorize the Relative Strength of Each Hand

It’s crucial to familiarize yourself with the relative strength of the different poker hands and to confidently know them off by heart so you don’t have to worry about trying to remember the order and figure out whether you have a good hand or not in the middle of a game.

This may sound like a very obvious point, but many amateur Poker players play the game without being completely certain about this point.

So, it’s well worth spending a bit of time to make sure you know the relative strength of the different poker hands so you can focus on your strategy and game when playing.

Have a Game Plan

Having some sort of game plan, especially when it comes to raising or folding, is very important, as it’s ultimately the only thing you can control in Poker.

Playing with a solid strategy is essential to being successful at Poker in the long run, so it’s a good idea to think about what strategy might work well for you.

Bluffing

Bluffing is another important element of Poker which some players use more than others. When used effectively, bluffing can allow you to scare off other players and win a round even if you are dealt a weak hand.

Bluffing is a difficult skill to master – and it’s not everyone’s cup of tea – but you should consider trying it out in certain circumstances in a game.

Review Your Hands & Games

After each game, it’s a good idea to review your performance to see what worked well for you and what didn’t. Even though luck undeniably plays a major role in Poker, reviewing individual games and rounds should help you figure out what works well for you and allow you to make improvements to your game.

What About Video Poker?

Video Poker has been around for roughly 5 decades, but it’s one of the lesser known games available at casinos. The great thing about video Poker is the fact that the house’s edge is usually quite small, which means players have a better chance of making money over the course of several rounds.

Playing free video poker is also a good way to practice and improve your Poker skills, so it’s strongly advisable for newbies to give free video poker a go before jumping into a real money game.

Different real money video poker games/machines have different pay tables which outline what return you’ll get for certain hands, but, as mentioned, across the board you should find that video poker gives you a decent chance of beating the house.

Because of this variation, it’s important to research different video poker games to find ones which offer the best returns for the same outcome.