Poker is one of the most popular games out there, and it’s also one of the oldest. Throughout time, poker has translated into a much-loved game throughout the world, in which while the game has transformed into a 21st century wonder today, the principles of the game are very much the same as when it began.
Just a couple of decades ago, poker was traditionally played in either classic poker clubs that catered to the gentry, or seedy underground bars and speakeasies where games were not necessarily on the side of the law. Today, real money poker is often played online and it is far more accessible to people across the world, no matter what their social background.
Yet, poker is a game of great strategy and can often be challenging to learn and play. For those new to the game, it’s imperative to become familiar with the rules and learn some basic strategies before throwing yourself in with the pros. Below, we’ll take a look at some of the best poker learning resources that are available today.
Use a heads-up display
One of the great things about playing poker online is that you can benefit from using virtual information that no one else can see. While it may seem like cheating, we promise you that it isn’t. So, what exactly is a heads-up display? It shows a map of the poker table and which players are where, as well as provides information and statistics about each player next to their virtual seating position.
Such statistics give you information on a player’s previous playing history such as their win and losses score, any professional tournament information, and other useful statistics that can help you decide to err on the side of caution or go for gold when interacting with these players.
Hire a poker coach
If you have the luxury of being able to afford a poker coach, they may help you to pick up new skills and get better at poker much quicker than if you were to go it alone. While you can find a lot of resources to help you improve your poker playing, nothing quite beats having an external person to watch how you’re playing and point out your flaws or give you tips for improvement.
When choosing a poker coach, it is not only important to check they have a good history and check reviews from previous students, but also to ensure you vibe with the coach. It’s no good learning from a great coach if you don’t have good chemistry as you will not get the most out of them.
Practice, practice, practice
The best way to get good at a new skill is to practice and this couldn’t be more true for poker. No matter how many books you read on strategy, as soon as you’re in the game, you’ll pick up so much more information and much quicker than if you were to study for many hours beforehand.
Study the way you play
Nothing will teach you more about poker than studying the way you play and trying to understand why you make the moves you make. While it is possible to do this manually, there is some great software around now that allows you to track your moves and analyze them against previous performances.
This kind of software also allows you to create different scenarios to see how you have handled them previously and work on tackling the problem in a more efficient way. Additionally, you can also use this type of software to analyze the performance of your opponents and learn from their mistakes, as well as figure out what strategies they are using. This will help you to identify patterns in how your opponents play, what to look out for in future games, and how you can possibly outsmart them too.
Poker books
Poker books are a great way to get inside the head of a professional poker player and see an insider perspective of how they experience the game. You may even pick up useful strategies that you can apply to your own game.
Study your opponents
Nothing is more valuable than watching the way your opponents play. Be sure to pick out some more experienced players where it is obvious they know what they are doing, then see if you can pick up any tips from the way they play.
In addition, you can also learn from the bad or new players by studying their mistakes and learning how to make those mistakes yourself.
Overall, learning poker can seem overwhelming at first. However, there are so many resources out there that you’ll soon be a pro player in no time.
