Knowing Basic Poker Strategy

The discussion below is a simple guide that highlights general concepts and discusses a simple and basic introduction to Poker strategy. Its important to note that by understanding these simple concepts and ideas about poker strategy, you will have the basic tools in order to start playing at a more beginners level. New poker players should really only concentrate on getting the basics right first before moving onto the more advanced games with bigger limits. One final thing to remember about basic poker strategy is that it wont teach you how to read your opponents. Knowing your opponents falls more inline with advanced poker strategy that is not discussed here. In addition, knowing your opponents tells and knowing when and how to bluff your opponents is not something that can be taught quickly and in some cases cannot be taught at all.

You must be aware of the hand rankings

The most important and basic concepts to understand in poker strategy is the poker hand rankings. Usually 90% of all poker games follow the same rank when it comes to poker hands. Poker hand rankings are pretty logical and straight forward to learn but we suggest that you print out a sheet of the poker hand rankings and have them next to you while you play. When playing texas holdem poker, there are also some starting hand combinations that are important to know. As with the hand rankings, its advisable that you print these out aswell and have them handy so you can constantly refer back to them. Eventually you will know these poker hands and rankings off by heart and you will be in a stronger position then nearly half the other players sitting at the table with you.

Knowing your poker hand rankings and in particular your texas holdem starting hand rankings will help you to determine which hands you should and should not play. If all you know is which hands you can play and how these hands determine your position on the table then you are well on your way to having an excellent poker strategy foundation that you can grow from.

Your Risk vs Return

Whenever you are playing poker you should in all circumstances look at each hand as it you were investing in the stock market or investing in a company. When having this attitude, you are always wating up the pro's against the cons i.e. measuring the risk vs the rewards. Poker strategy is very much a "risk vs rewards" game and should be treated the same as if you were a private investor investing in a business. At the end of the day it comes down to the numbers and if the numbers or odds are in your favour and the risk vs return ratio is acceptable then you will be most likely to play these hands.

Find players that are not as good as you!

There are people at different skill levels for each game - why play against the pros? If you can find a table full of people that you can beat - play there! Following a poker strategy is about winning money, not trying to match your skills for the biggest challenge. As the old saying goes, follow the fish!

Be Patient and Dont Play Every Hand

As mentioned above, poker is a game of skill, similar to how you would play the stock market. In most cases, stock brokers do not invest in every possible opportunity. As a poker player, basic strategy dictates the exact same logic. Although it can in some cases get boring, you should really only be playing the poker hands where you feel you have an opportunity to take the pot. Its not advisable to just be reckless and play every hand just for the sake of playing.

You Must Know When to Fold Your Hand

As with investments, its likely that not every investment will generate positive returns. There are massive swings and its a volatile environment. Its exactly the same with playing poker. In some cases you might find yourself in a hand that has all of a sudden taken a turn for the worse. In these situations you should alsways still have an "Investor" mind set and look at the scenario based on how to minimise your losses. Dont just play the hand out because you feel you are already over committed. There will be a lot more hands and if this particular hand does take a turn for the worse, then just say to yourself that you want to get out and try and not loose everything and that there will be other hands to play where you can try and recoup your losses from previou hands. Knowing when to fold'em and when to hold'em is one of the most important things to know in basic poker strategy.