Poker Psychology – 5 Areas Of Poker Which Don’t Involve Only Your Cards
Poker Psychology Is Often Overlooked By New And Experienced Players Alike – We List 5 Ways In Which Poker Psychology Could Improve Your Profits
Many new players focus so much on strategy with their cards, that they overlook the fact that there are other key skills involved in becoming a profitable poker player. Here we examine 5 non-card skills – getting that poker mindset right can make a big difference to your profit at the end of the month!
Poker Psychology – Area #1 – Tilt And Tilt Control
Tilt is most commonly used to describe an angry reaction to a bad-beat which cause a player to start playing irrationally or moving up levels too fast. However, tilt can also describe a resigned ‘going to lose’ attitude or any number of emotional responses which can cause an individual to play less than optimally.
Being aware of tilt is a key poker psychology skill, once you are aware you can stop playing for a while to cool off. Even better you should make a ‘tilt plan’ for if this happens to you – then act on it at the right time. Many profitable players have lost large chunks of their bankroll from tilt – there is no need to let this happen to you.
Poker Psychology – Area #2 - Bankroll Management
Poker is an inherently high-variance game. Even big winners will go through phases where they lose significant sums in the short term. If you are a winning player it is a must to protect yourself from these swings with good bankroll management. This involves only playing with 5% of your bankroll on any one table for cash games, and keeping an average buy-in level of 1% to 2% of your bankroll for tournaments and sit n goes. If you feel these are too conservative then you are probably fortunate enough not to have endured a downswing!
Poker Psychology – Area #3 – Self Improvement
Many players learn the rules and some basic strategy, win a few sessions and think they are a natural poker genius!! The truth is that the people who beat the games consistently are those who put in the time and effort to study and improve their game. There is more to this area than joining your favorite training site or reading a book, Having the discipline to go through your own hand histories and questioning every play you make and posting hands you are unsure about for peers to critique on forums are just two more suggestions.
Poker Psychology – Area #4 – Table Selection
Most poker players log on to their favorite sites, find the first table at their level with a seat available and sit right down to play. Experienced players know that taking just a few minutes to select the easiest game from the statistics displayed in the lobby of most sites can significantly increase your profits. The ideal table is one which best suits your style by displaying the opposite traits. For example if you are aggressive then choose a passive table you can run over, if you are tight aggressive then a loose passive table may well pay you off!
Poker Psychology – Area #5 – Poker Site Selection
An extension of area #4 above, selecting the easiest poker site can have a serious positive effect on your income. Many poker sites are home to 100’s of ‘Pro Grinders’, small stakes players who play 8 or more tables at once and grind out a small profit from each one. This means a lower ratio of new players to experienced players, and less profit to go around for those who understand poker strategy. Conversely, other sites attract many new players – and are easy to make a profit at. We advice Titan Poker where you will find a lot of fishy table and one of worlds best Ubuntu poker software.
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