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Plugging Leaks In Your Poker Game

Tags: Plugging Leaks in your Poker game, common mistakes in poker playing, fixing mistakes in poker, common errors in poker, fixing leaks in texas hold em

Most of the biggest errors I see at the poker table are cause by people who see a hole in their game and try to fix it the wrong way. They realize that their opponents are gaining an edge on them due to something that they are doing wrong. They want to fix it but they end up doing a bunch of things they know are bad and end up losing more EV from their bad play than they did from the original problem. The ability to find solid ways to fix the leaks in your game is what separates a big winner from a mediocre one. The trick is to always look for long-term solution to the problem; don’t try to plug your holes with bad short-term play.
The most common problem I see in poker is people worrying about being too predictable. They reason that if they are too predictable, their opponents will always know what they have and therefore always play correctly. This is caused by a number of misconceptions. First of all they probably don’t know what a range of holdings is and how their opponents go about putting them on one. They think that a good opponent just knows what they have, which is probably brought on by their results-oriented view of their own reading abilities. You already know about the range of holding since you read my chapter on psychology.
Second, they don’t realize that in poker it is often better for your opponents to know what you have than it is to make a play that disguises your hand. I often see players put in a position where they can either play aggressively and announce to the table that they have a hand and just take the pot down or check and keep their opponents guessing but give them free cards to a draw. In this case it often isn’t worth the deception to check. They should just bet and take the pot. You would rather let everyone know what you have and take the pot then keep them guessing but give them loads of extra EV by letting them catch free cards. What they are doing is making a bad short term play in order to correct their long-term problem. You often see this problem manifest itself preflop in people who just call a riase from middle position with something like pocket kings. They don’t realize that even if three-betting kings tells people that they have a good hand their long term profit is still higher that way then letting in a bunch of stragglers. Don’t be afraid to announce your hand if doing so is the play with the highest EV. And if you don’t want that play to announce your hand then consider three-betting more hands pre-flop from middle position. Don’t make the terrible short term play of just cold-calling a raise with a big pair, look for a better long-term solution later.
Most problems can’t be fixed profitably by short term solutions, especially in the above example. The problem of predictability, one of the hardest to successfully correct, can only be fixed by playing the rest of your game in a way that makes your play consistently unpredictable, not by routinely making bad plays. If people realize that every time you bet you have something, then don’t start checking with hands that you should bet since you know free cards can be very expensive. Instead start betting with hands you would normally check. Remember, earlier I said that bluffs only have to succeed a small amount of the time to be a good play. Therefore adding a few extra bluffs into your game, even if they aren’t the best ones, will keep your opponents guessing a lot more and won’t cost you much if anything.
Also as far as predictability goes, don’t overestimate how predictable you are. A lot of people give themselves an their opponents much more credit for reading ability than they actually deserve. Playing decent poker is going to often allow people to put you on a narrow range of holdings, but as long as the range they are putting you on is wider than the range you can put them on, you are going to win. Focus more on increasing your own reading ability and don’t worry too much about being predictable. Most people who will think you easily predictable just have no clue what they are talking about.

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<h1>Plugging Leaks In Your Poker Game</h1><br />by sas_wanderingrobots<br />Most of the biggest errors I see at the poker table are cause by people who see a hole in their game and try to fix it the wrong way. They realize that their opponents are gaining an edge on them due to something that they are doing wrong. They want to fix it but they end up doing a bunch of things they know are bad and end up losing more EV from their bad play than they did from the original problem. The ability to find solid ways to fix the leaks in your game is what separates a big winner from a mediocre one. The trick is to always look for long-term solution to the problem; don’t try to plug your holes with bad short-term play.<br /> The most common problem I see in poker is people worrying about being too predictable. They reason that if they are too predictable, their opponents will always know what they have and therefore always play correctly. This is caused by a number of misconceptions. First of all they probably don’t know what a range of holdings is and how their opponents go about putting them on one. They think that a good opponent just knows what they have, which is probably brought on by their results-oriented view of their own reading abilities. You already know about the range of holding since you read my chapter on psychology. <br /> Second, they don’t realize that in poker it is often better for your opponents to know what you have than it is to make a play that disguises your hand. I often see players put in a position where they can either play aggressively and announce to the table that they have a hand and just take the pot down or check and keep their opponents guessing but give them free cards to a draw. In this case it often isn’t worth the deception to check. They should just bet and take the pot. You would rather let everyone know what you have and take the pot then keep them guessing but give them loads of extra EV by letting them catch free cards. What they are doing is making a bad short term play in order to correct their long-term problem. You often see this problem manifest itself preflop in people who just call a riase from middle position with something like pocket kings. They don’t realize that even if three-betting kings tells people that they have a good hand their long term profit is still higher that way then letting in a bunch of stragglers. Don’t be afraid to announce your hand if doing so is the play with the highest EV. And if you don’t want that play to announce your hand then consider three-betting more hands pre-flop from middle position. Don’t make the terrible short term play of just cold-calling a raise with a big pair, look for a better long-term solution later. <br /> Most problems can’t be fixed profitably by short term solutions, especially in the above example. The problem of predictability, one of the hardest to successfully correct, can only be fixed by playing the rest of your game in a way that makes your play consistently unpredictable, not by routinely making bad plays. If people realize that every time you bet you have something, then don’t start checking with hands that you should bet since you know free cards can be very expensive. Instead start betting with hands you would normally check. Remember, earlier I said that bluffs only have to succeed a small amount of the time to be a good play. Therefore adding a few extra bluffs into your game, even if they aren’t the best ones, will keep your opponents guessing a lot more and won’t cost you much if anything.<br /> Also as far as predictability goes, don’t overestimate how predictable you are. A lot of people give themselves an their opponents much more credit for reading ability than they actually deserve. Playing decent poker is going to often allow people to put you on a narrow range of holdings, but as long as the range they are putting you on is wider than the range you can put them on, you are going to win. Focus more on increasing your own reading ability and don’t worry too much about being predictable. Most people who will think you easily predictable just have no clue what they are talking about.<br /><h2>About the Author</h2><p>Hey, My name is Jeff and I write about crushing your poker games and raking in money playing poker. You too can learn the secrets to winning at <a href ="http://poker.theinformationexperts.com">Play Better Poker!</a> Submitted by: <a href="http://submitter.co.za">Submission Maniac</a></p> <br /><h3><a href="http://www.content4reprint.com/recreation-and-leisure/gambling/plugging-leaks-in-your-poker-game.htm" title="Plugging Leaks In Your Poker Game">Article Source:</a> <a href="http://www.content4reprint.com" title="Free high quality articles">Content for Reprint</a></h3>