The Perfect Poker Player

To become the perfect poker player, you would have to able to fool yourself. Understanding this will excelerate your learning process and enable you to become a better poker player faster. Obviously nothing beats experience which will take time. You will not find tips and tricks of becoming one here as there are plenty of online sites out there. Instead, I will focus on the essential and fundamentals.

Poker is a psychological sport. Your ability to learn and more importantly your ability to break old habits will determine your progression, not your physique. The key is knowing when to hold'em and when to fold'em. Since luck is a factor, don't expect to win more hands than the person next to you. Believe it or not, everyone on the table has the same amount of luck. No one has more luck than the other in the long haul. There are bad beats and unfortunately the only thing you can do is avoid them which is only possible if you fold. What separates the professional and the amateurs is the size of the pot they win or lose, not as much so as the amount of hands.

What's interesting about poker is that it is not the hand that win it for you, but how you play them. Let me repeat. It is not what you have, but what you make your opponent thinks you have that counts. To do this, pick a face, any face and stick with that face. Just like bowling, it will not be easy to duplicate that same exact speed, angle, momentum and spin on the ball all the time to get you that strike. Maintain the same expression, your cool and don't give away any hints.

Now to find that perfect poker player in you, you need to know that there are about four different type of players. The CallingStation is someone who plays a lot more than than he should. He tends to stay in a lot of games and takes a lot of chances including mediocre hands. The Rock is a very tight player who only plays very good hand and fold the bad ones. He will win, but won't be enough. Then there is the Maniac who is too agressive. He'll raise alot to knock out mediocre hands with his scare tactics. He'll win often, but when he lose, he'll lose big. Last is the player you want to achieve by avoid those previous 3 players. This is where pros are at. The perfect player can't be described. He is unpredictable. He know what to do in all situations. He knows what not to do by calculating the pots odds. He'll combine the techniques of the other 3 players along with the fundamental of poker described above. He'll rely on the good hands at the same time play mediocre ones if its cheap enough. He's not invincible, but over time, he'll maximize his winnings and minimize his losses.

When trying to become the perfect player, keep these following tips in mind and you'll be the perfect player before you know it.

1. Bet only when the odd is good.
2. Winning small is better than losing or each dollar you did not lose is the same as winning it.
3. Know your weakness and correct it asap.
4. Know you opponent and capitalize on their weaknesses.

Mastering these techniques won't be easy, so practice them, play the game, and have fun.