Poker Mistakes You Should Never Make
With hole pocket 9's, I led with quite a sizable bet after one ragged flop. My opponent reacted quickly, tossing out sufficient chips to show his call. Without thinking much, I decided his fast action was a sign that he had a draw. Two hearts were on the board and my mind realized he was hoping for another heart to hit at the turn. Internally, I breathed with relief after a black King appeared from the deck. I made another bet that fit the pot size well. In an instant, my opponent raised. So, poker online sometimes can be unexpectedly insidious.
My mind and heart both raced but I felt obligated to make a fast call since I was certain that my 9’s would do me justice. I pegged my opponent out to be somebody who had average connectors and was making nothing but a bold semi-bluff with a card still to come. By impulse, I went all-in, hardly even realizing that with such a huge chip investment already in the pot, he would have called either way. He thought his options through, though, before eventually making the call to show his two Aces. “I think you have a heart draw or a set – which one is it?” he asked. Sheepishly, I admitted I didn’t have either of those and showed my low pocket pair. I remained alive after losing that hand, but it completely damned me at that event.
Ain't as easy as it seems
Sometimes, we believe that poker is harder than it actually is. We attempt to make gutsy calls and smart bluffs while playing like gunslingers. A lot of veteran players are going to say that subtle plays do not hold the secrets to long-term poker success. Instead, players who rise above will make the least mistakes and can gather a lot of chips just by sitting and waiting for hapless fools to commit poor mistakes. Unfortunately, in the situation above, I was that hapless fool. When it comes to poker, mistakes truly hurt much more than smart plays could help.
Live poker games usually give people enough time to think hands through before making decisions and analyse gaming information. Time is invaluable and can be put to use with every hard decision. Within online games, however, a clock ticks pretty fast, which is probably partly the reason why several games online are wild and unpredictable. While ticking clocks may increase feelings of pressure, however, this should never be an excuse to get in deep without thinking. There is always that split second where we can fix our overall course. Not having enough time is merely a lame excuse.
When it comes to football, coaches claim that teams that give more turnovers up and commit more fouls are the ones that are doomed. When it comes to baseball, teams that make a lot of defensive mistakes are sure to hit hard times. When it comes to poker, players have to think about their games in the same way. Mistakes could kill poker stacks faster than cold card runs. Therefore, you need to evaluate your play on a regular basis and track your personal mistakes while promising to work hard to reduce them. Stop chalking things up to horrible luck and stop convincing yourself you did the right thing with bad cards. Instead, know that you made mistakes. Point them out, own them and simply work hard to ensure that your mistakes will be reduced next time you play.
