A few years ago, you may have been inspired by Daniel Negreanu and Phil Helmuth battling it out on the felt. Maybe you even got into poker after watching the Moneymaker boom, and now you’re ready to put in the work to improve your game. No matter how you got into it, there are some basic concepts that you should start with if you want to become a better player.
You’ll need to develop the ability to read other players and pick up on tells, especially if you play live poker. This can be difficult, but you can learn to see small details about your opponents and pick up on their betting patterns. For example, if an opponent often raises their hand after the flop, you might decide to call with a weaker hand in order to force them to fold.
Another crucial skill is learning to recognize when your opponent has a strong hand and when they are bluffing. It’s important to know when to fold your hand so that you don’t waste any of your chips on a loser. This will also conserve your bankroll for your stronger hands.
Finally, you’ll need to learn how to manage risk and be comfortable with losses. This is an essential part of the game, as you can lose a lot of money in a short amount of time in poker, especially if you’re not a great player. A good poker player won’t let a bad beat get them down and will instead take it as a learning experience and move on.
