If you’re new to the game of poker, then it can all look quite intimidating to begin with. With so many cards being dealt, various hands that can be formed, other players utilising strategies, watching for bluffing and other things, newcomers can often find themselves putting poker aside out of sheer confusion.
Fortunately, we have some tips that you’re able to follow so as to become more familiar with gameplay and get used to how things proceed. You know the old saying of ‘practice makes perfect’? Well, that will always apply to poker. After all, you can’t expect to learn everything you need to know about it in one night and without experiencing the game first hand. You need to play it to know how it operates.
So, if you’re looking to involve yourself in poker in 2019 and you’re not sure how to do it, then these poker tips for beginners will certainly give you a boost. You don’t necessarily have to use them all – you could instead choose just one or two to remember or use when gaming. However, what works for one may not necessarily be the best thing for others, which is why there’s a selection to choose from here.
Don’t Immediately Go Out and Risk It All
It’s been seen time and time again. A new player gets involved in playing poker, thinks things are going their way and then risks too much money on an average hand. That’s why it’s always important as a beginner to ensure that you’re selective with the types of hands that you play. Don’t be afraid of folding if you’re not confident the hand you hold will get you the win.
With this in mind, and depending upon the type of poker game you’re playing, it’s good to start with the idea that you should only play decently good hands. Generally speaking, this will mean that you’ll end up folding on roughly about 80%-85% of your hands dealt. While this may sound like a direct route of losing your money, but you’ll likely lose it a lot quicker and in bigger amounts if you become instantly overzealous.
Yes, you may think that something makes a good hand such as a top pair, but there’s also the potential for someone else to have a higher hand, and until you’re able to effectively bring a strategy into play and follow how the game is proceeding, it’s wise to not risk it all.
Play Games Against Bad Poker Players
Playing against people who are at the same level as you, or worse off, will always put you at an instant advantage. This works favourably for a beginner, because playing against someone who has been gaming for years on end will do you no good.
If you know of someone who takes big risks as a newcomer or if you’re aware of gamers that are just starting out, then try to get in on those games. Also, watch out for poker players who limp into the pot – these are often given the name of “fish”. It is these gamers who you can make the most money off of, because they frequently make large mistakes.
If you can’t find a table of players who are all worse than you at poker, try to make sure that there’s at least one other player there in that position.
Put Bluffing to the Back of Your Mind
There’s a total attraction to head into a poker game as a newcomer and start trying to bluff your way through every single round. This is something that should be reserved for when it’s necessary, though. As a new poker player, you don’t want to spend all your time on bluffing without having the basics down.
While it may seem fun to you to try and bluff against a lesser player at your table, you have to remember that there will also most likely be better players than you there, too. Many professional poker players can spot a bluff, especially from someone who isn’t used to using such tactics. So, there’s a strong likelihood of being caught out when doing something like this.
Rather than take the route of bluffing, it’s much safer to fold when you know you don’t have a hand that is specifically good enough to win. Take a look back at the first tip given – don’t risk it all.
Make Sure You Don’t Over-Extend Your Bankroll
With any form of betting, it’s a common mistake of newcomers to go in there with all guns blazing. Many players will throw their money here, there and everywhere in the expectation of being able to win it back and double, treble, quadruple up on it. The fact is, things don’t really work like that – especially in terms of poker where a certain level of skill is also a necessity.
Don’t go wasting your bankroll. Make safe bets and if you think the gamble is too much, then be sure to fold. Always designate a specific amount of money for gambling with, and another good strategy is to take a portion of that which you will be comfortable with betting in a single poker round and stick to it.
The temptation can be there to place a higher bet, especially if you’ve lost or folded on a few rounds. The important lesson here, is stick to your guns and control your poker bankroll.
Learn About the Poker Hands
It’s been known that newbies enter into a game of poker without even knowing the types of hands that they need to be looking to create. Someone who is playing poker but doesn’t know what it takes to make a Flush or a Full House, for example is a bit of an easy target for other players.
It’s important to know which hands are stronger than others, and the cards that are necessary for creating such hands. Otherwise, what’s the point? The whole basis behind poker is to create a winning hand. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, then you might just as well throw your money down the drain.
Start with One and Build Up
It’s great that online poker sites allow you to play at more than one table at once – but for a new player, this is going to become the most confusing thing since quantum physics. Take a seat at a single table and play at it. There’s nothing more confusing that having three or four poker table screens open, figuring out which one you’re doing what at and messing up. This just leads to inevitable losses.
Once you become more comfortable with the overall game, the poker hands and being able to understand what’s happening at a table, you can build up to gaming at more than one. Be smart about it.
