{"id":20206,"date":"2022-06-29T17:30:54","date_gmt":"2022-06-29T22:30:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/?p=20206"},"modified":"2024-03-20T06:11:39","modified_gmt":"2024-03-20T11:11:39","slug":"10-common-poker-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/10-common-poker-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 10 Most Common Texas Hold\u2019em Poker Mistakes You Need To Avoid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
If you’ve just started playing poker, then it’s worth being aware of the most common mistakes in Texas Hold\u2019em and how to avoid them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes they’re intertwined, with one leading to another, creating a vicious circle that can be quite hard to get out of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While amateurs and recreational players are more likely to make these mistakes, even professionals fall victim from time to time, so it’s good to be aware of them – wherever you are in your poker<\/a> journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Texas Hold\u2019em can be a boring game when cards aren\u2019t coming your way. When you catch a run of really bad hole cards, especially when playing live, it can be really annoying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you let the frustration and boredom get the better of you, you\u2019re likely to start playing too many hands before the flop, which is one of the \u201csafest\u201d ways to start giving your chips away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Staying disciplined and sticking to proper starting hand ranges – even when you\u2019ve been getting dealt trash hands for two hours straights – is a mark of a good poker player. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you catch yourself thinking that 7-3 suited looks like an okay hand to call a UTG raise, you\u2019ll be better off getting up and leaving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Playing too many hands pre-flop is guaranteed to land you in tricky post-flop situations with weak holdings, often leading to substantial losses that could have been easily avoided by simply giving your cards back to the dealer like you were supposed to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Learn more about what hands to play pre-flop with this poker cheat sheet guide<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The “value of your hand\u201d is a relative term depending on what kind of opposition and action you’re facing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, some holdings are just not very strong by definition, like small flushes facing a big raise on the river, second pairs, top pairs with weak kickers, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some players, especially those new to the game, tend to value these hands way too much, playing them almost as if they had the nuts<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The issue with overplaying these hands is that you\u2019re effectively turning them into bluffs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n These lines might get an opponent to fold a stronger hand here and there, but almost every time they look you up, they\u2019ll have a better hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since these medium-strength hands have a decent showdown value themselves, you don\u2019t need to take aggressive lines with them and should play them for what they\u2019re worth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is a problem for both recreational and professional players alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In fact, players who spend a lot of time playing the game will often go on auto-pilot and make decisions without taking enough time to think, which can lead to costly mistakes in poker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One way to avoid this is by training yourself to never, ever act immediately when it’s your turn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Always take at least a few seconds to think about all available information. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Take into consideration your opponents’ action, position, sizing, and even verbal tells when you are playing live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In those few extra seconds, you can gather your thoughts and prevent yourself from making a mistake like calling where you should be raising or folding in a spot where pot odds are way too good, just because you had such an instinct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you’re looking to make some money then you need to approach the game seriously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This includes looking for the best games and best situations to make a profit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes, it can be annoying to spend time selecting tables online or waiting for your seat in a really good live game. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You\u2019d rather jump straight into action even if it means battling it out with other good players, some even better than yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, this won’t be profitable and if you play poker for a living or to subsidize some of your expenses, looking for the best tables you can find is part of your job. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sitting down in any game just to put in some hands is reckless and can also be quite costly in the long run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you play Hold\u2019em, there are two key pieces of information you need to worry about: Your hand and the cards held by your opponents. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some players forget to think about the latter and just focus on their own hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I am sure that you can see how it can end up being a very costly mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though it’s one of the hardest things to master in poker, it is essential to learn how to assign a range of hands to your opponent, instead of just guessing what they could have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can simply assign your opponent a range of likely holdings based on their pre-flop position and play, and then reduce possible combinations based on their action when the hand progresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This way you will be much more accurate with your decisions compared to putting them on a single hand and sticking with it no matter what.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With all the bad beats<\/a>, lucky hits, busted and caught bluffs, a poker session can be a real rollercoaster of emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, you can\u2019t allow for your emotions to take hold and start influencing your decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Allowing any type of emotion to take over is what we refer to as \u201ctilt.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some players fail to realize there are many different types of tilt <\/a>and it isn\u2019t always caused by bad beats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can go on tilt from running too hot as well, throwing caution to the wind and starting to play way too loose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The main point to remember is that every time you start doing things at the table that you rationally know you shouldn\u2019t be doing, it\u2019s time to take a break from the session before you make a poor decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Online poker players love<\/em> tracking software and heads-up displays (HUDs), and for a good reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All of these tools can be a great help when playing, giving you a much better idea of your opponents\u2019 playing styles and tendencies in different spots. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, you shouldn\u2019t let poker statistics<\/a> become the only thing you pay attention to when playing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n1. Playing Too Many Hands Pre-Flop<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
2. Overplaying Speculative And Medium-Strength Hands<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
3. Acting Too Quickly Without Thinking Things Through<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
4. Failing To Table-Select And Search For Good Games<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
5. Not Thinking About Other Players\u2019 Hand Ranges<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
6. Getting Too Emotional While Playing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
7. Relying Too Much On Your Stats<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n