Now the thing is, I do think that there are a few myths that the pros and so-called experts try to sell to the masses that may be a fine way for them of going about their business but which are unsuitable for the recreational or amateur player. The main thing to remember is that your typical poker pro has A HUGE BANKROLL used for protection more than anything else. Regardless of whether we amateur players have money or not, for whatever reason, we choose to bring smaller bankrolls to the game than our fat-wallet wielding counterparts. This is by far the most significant difference between the amateur player and the pro and is, not surprisingly, a major factor that's often ignored when it comes to giving general advice.
The right way of playing and approaching poker has as many variables as there are players but in the style of the poker book I'm reading at present, "Don't Listen To Phil Hellmuth" by Dusty McSchmidt, I give you seven pieces of advice (from an amateur to other amateurs) that we're constantly told to follow but are only really good for the select few players who crush the game.
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For the competent pro there is no doubt that this is true but this only holds true for the competent pro who multi-tables and who plays many hands online. Here's the news: the online game is getting tougher and the live games are much softer. All the serious geeky players sit on their butts in their living room making money while the social and fun players are out there in the casinos or poker clubs having fun. The latter place is by far the more likely place to make you the money, you just have to tolerate the slower hand rate.
2. Buy In For The Maximum
I agree with this but only if you feel you have the edge at the table. Pros buy in for the maximum all day long but in a tough online game, short-stacking can be an effective strategy that can really piss them off - but you must know what you're doing. There are terrible short-stackers out there who actually feel they can mix up their play to fool the pros!
3. Multi-table For More Profit
This is only true for the competent, serious player who has played so many hands that multi-tabling is second nature. If you are a casual or recreational player don't be sold by the idea that you should automatically multi-table for higher profits. Yes, it can be profitable but it only suits a certain type of player. You tend to start playing on auto-pilot mode soon enough and you don't really get to learn how the others are playing - unless you have tracking software of course.
4. Buy Straight Back In
Leave this one to the pros, especially if you've just been hit for what seems like a lot of money to you. Often, the reason you lost the buy-in was because you got outplayed in the first place so why jump straight back in to face the foe again? On the other side of the coin, you may have been the victim of a bad beat; are you still in the mood to play and can you still maintain your A game? The pros can get back into the game with a full buy-in within the blink of an eye; maybe you should buy back in when you're happier in yer skin.
5. Play Whenever You Want
Pros are often proud of the fact that they can play whenever they want. But this doesn't mean that any time is the right time. Let the serious players take the chunks out of each other in the mornings and afternoons. There are reasons that the bad players aren't around at these times and usually it's because they're either working in their proper jobs or are out there getting a life. Wait until the hours of between 7PM-2AM for the fish to come out to play.
6. Play Good Players For Practice
As you play poker you are going to identify and play against good players. There's ya practise. Sometimes you'll carry on and sometimes you'll leave. If the table has too many good players, you should leave - it's not rocket science. You play poker to win money and unless you're some sort of masochist who looks for decent players to play for fun, why the hell would you actively sit down in a game where you're likely to lose money? Can you really afford such an expensive lesson?
7. Make Sure You Have At Least 20 Buy-Ins In Your Bankroll
While the pros tell you to have at least 20 buy-ins they, meanwhile, have anywhere between 80 and 120 buy-ins!! If you want to play regularly online, then the 20 buy-in rule is just not enough. I won't go into the maths of it but I've said it before and I'll say it again: the pros have massive bankrolls to protect themselves - amateurs, generally, do not. Particularly if you are new but wanna take the game seriously, start at low stakes and take at least a few months to see how it all works for you.
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Ok, so if you are one of those dedicated players who crush the game then the above advice will be rubbish (or even laughable), but not everyone crushes the game - or even has the attributes to crush the game. There is nothing wrong with a little low-risk poker, taking it easy and just enjoying the game for what it is. (And this is how a lot of winning players go about their business as well.) As I say there are many ways to enjoy the game of poker. As someone who has been playing online poker for quite a few years and admits he may not be cut-out for the online game any longer - these are the bits of advice I would give to the casual player who likes to play for a bit of fun but who doesn't want to lose vast amounts of money in the process.
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