Yep, just two.
If you’re a beginner at this wonderful game, then I have just two top tips for you to focus on and I reckon that’s all you need to get started. I’ll explain why…
Tip #1 – Play a Tight Aggressive Strategy
What does that mean, tight aggressive (TAG)?
It means play very few hands (that’s the tight bit) but when you do play them, play them haaarrrddd (that’s the aggressive bit).
Why?
Poker is a game of skill with plenty of chance mixed in. If you play every hand then you will gradually lose your chips because that will include playing hands where you have little chance of winning. If you play only premium hands, you are basically upping your odds of winning each time you play – you can obviously stll lose any hand, even if you have bullets, but your chances of winning are better for each hand you play – that’s the tight bit.
At the beginner level lots of people play hands they shouldn’t, which is great because it puts more value in the pot but it also increases the chance of someone getting lucky and beating you. So you won’t win much, even with good hands if you play a passive game (i.e. calling and betting the minimum you need to to see each ‘street’. So instead, play your hand aggressively, raise 3BB (3x the big blind) pre-flop, bet or value bet post flop depending how good your hand is looking then, bluff if you sense weakness in your opponents and you have few to only one left. Read the game though, if the aggression is not working well because you see someone who is going to call or raise anything , maybe they have you beat so save the aggression to next time and know when to fold. In general though, playing few hands (tight) and playing them strongly (aggressive) will win you more hands.
Tip #2 – Tilt Control
My second big key to success for poker beginners is all about tilt control.
Probably the biggest challenge of poker, especially for new poker players, is being able to handle the constant ups and downs of the game.
Nobody wins every day in poker.
What you need to be able to do when the cards are not going your way is to recognize the signs of when you’re starting to feel frustrated because it leads to bad play.
What you then need to do depends – are you playing for fun or are you playing to make money (you can’t always do both)?
If you’re playing for fun, e.g. with friends, then just back off a little, be patient, enjoy the game and stop chasing the cards. If you’re playing to make money then recognise you’re not playing your best and remove yourself from the table. It could also be that coinciding with you having a bad day, others at the table are on a hot streak or you are the fish. So leave. Come back another day or try a different table.
The best thing you can do for long term success is to remember it’s long term success and avoid short term blow ups damaging that. Instead, pre-empt these by recognising you are not on form and limiting your losses. This is the hardest thing to do in poker and why it is a mental game as well as a technical game.
The biggest mental challenge can often be with yourself.
One of the biggest keys to your success, even more important than your strategy at the tables is having the mental wherewithal to either control your tilt in the moment when you start getting bad beats or simply leave the poker table, if you’re not able to control your emotions.
That’s it, just two tips.
Tip #1 Caveat: As you progress in the game to play more advanced games, tip #1 becomes less relevant (Why? Because if you only ever play great hands then people will start to make note of that and basically know that you have good hands. It is not so much of an issue at beginner levels for 2 reasons: 1. There are more loose players, 2. Most players at this level are more concerned with their own game and not really paying attention to what your doing as the game goes on (even though they should be)
Tip #2 Caveat: There isn’t one. You always need to control your tilt.