how to get better at poker?

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luq

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I was wondering what's the best way to get better at poker?

Would experience alone make me better at it? Or do I have to read books and such? Or both?

Thanks.
 
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dsanga01

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I believe that in order to get good at anything, pool, darts, backgammon, chess, basketball, it helps to play the game and do it often. At first you are just getting to know the game, becoming familiar with sitting at the table, and handling your cards.

Once you get there then you start playing. And you wonder why and how these guys are beating you.

That is what happened to me. I used to go all in with AK, or if I had two hearts and two on the flop came up I would bet it aggressively.

and I would lose.

I then started to read books. I have now twenty books on poker that taught me pot odds, and how important position is. I read more than I play and then use that strategy on line (play money) before I go to a casino and play at the real tables.

I am ahead in my tournament play and live cash games. I am holding my own against very veteran players that have played most of their lives. And I continue to try and improve the game.

I make a notebook and log all my games in so that I can look at my good plays and bad ones. Winning gives you confidence.

So a combination of of experience, learning from a book helps, and also I have made friends with other poker players and we talk strategy. This is a great forum to learn too.

Good luck and have fun.

Dave
 
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Tangerine 53

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Dave is right - a diligent approach and the right mix of playing and learning will pay dividends. Also the realisation that you'll never stop learning. This is a game (like chess and backgammon that Dave refers to) that's easy to learn but takes a lifetime to master.
 
Poker Orifice

Poker Orifice

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Awhile back I wanted to be a Dr. - a practising family physician. I set up an office, hired a secretary & then went about advertising & looking for sick people.
I had quite a few patients at first. Many of them came back a few times right away, often confused or angry as they were still sick. THen some of them came back to serve me with lawsuits, etc. I dont' know why?? I thought I was getting pretty good at it:confused: Perhaps I just needed to see more patients?
 
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bigjoker66

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I was wondering what's the best way to get better at poker?

Would experience alone make me better at it? Or do I have to read books and such? Or both?

Thanks.

Absolutely both. You wont know proper strategy without reading, and you won't know how to implement without practice.
 
rjeezy20146

rjeezy20146

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To me poker is about experience so the best way to become better at poker is to play poker and learn from your mistakes.
 
KingCurtis

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how to get better at poker: don't suck

Actually experience has gotten me far in this game but studying helps too depending on the player.

I study the ever changing game by playing and reading HHs to see how others are changing and what the new raise amounts and bluff strategies are. There is so much more to it than just this but I believe that just playing other players and getting used to how to play against betting patterns and types of players helps so much!
 
forsakenone

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you can't ignore study, and regardless of how good you are, if you are a cash game player you can improve your game here https://www.cardschat.com/forum/cash-game-hand-analysis-50/

if you are a tournament player, again, no matter how good you are, you can still improve here https://www.cardschat.com/forum/tournament-hand-analysis-51/

and, easiest and fastest way to learn is from a coaching site, way better than books, second best would be forums like this one ( seem you got this one right :D )

have fun.
 
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Nicu00K

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First of all you have to love it,just like others love football or boxing,poker is a sport...although it compares more with chess,its a sport of knowledge combined with a bit of luck sometimes:)),it helps alot if you are good with numbers,calculating and assuming probabilities...so if you didn't love math in school...its pretty obvious that you won't take poker to a higher level of the game...some are naturals,its in their blood:) their instincts tells and guides their moves,it helps to read books,to watch professional poker players playing for a greater understanding of the picture,,of course what you will see there it would be a good example in other situations,cause you'll always face different variables ..so, remember,first love what you do,and if you do so...poker will become your beloved wife:)) as a figure of speech
 
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bigbigbucs

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That's a good question.

I was wondering what's the best way to get better at poker?

Would experience alone make me better at it? Or do I have to read books and such? Or both?

Thanks.
Great question. And I am sure it get's asked every day by even the very best player's. Time and study combined is a good start. and many good examples have been suggested in this thread. My biggest improvement came when I deceided to become better and to learn from my mistakes. I began playing less and smaller venues. Some very large tournements can be rewarding. But also takes alot of paitence. By playing smaller sngs or private mtt i find the competition is often better. And taking notes and observing how and what others play especially the winners. Can and will help you improve your game. Like mentioned above it can litteral take a lifetime.
 
dwolfg

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Practice and learning from better players. One important point about studying: If you don't have the ability to see your play honestly and can't recognize mistakes, studying will not do one much good. If you don't know what you are doing wrong when you look back(Playing the wrong range, betting incorrect amounts etc.), you probably will not improve.
 
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luq

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well, i've been reading up a bit and playing plenty as usual, also how much can watching pros play help?

Thanks for all the replies.

First of all you have to love it

I know i do :)
 
camtheram13

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I was wondering what's the best way to get better at poker?

Would experience alone make me better at it? Or do I have to read books and such? Or both?

Thanks.

Dedication is key. The more you play, the more experience you get and the more situations you encounter. Even if you are only playing freerolls and playmoney, stay focused. Also, I like to observe high stakes games and learn that way, too.

Books are okay but choose wisely. They're a lot of bad poker books out there. i.e. Hellmuth's...

I've been into training videos lately. I'm not affiliated with the site (so this is not a plug) but Card Runner has a few free training videos.

#1 Rule: If playing poker stops being fun then stop playing
 
alaskabill

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Playing a lot is key but you have to do it the right way. In Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers" the idea of "deliberate practice" is discussed.

Basically if you just keep doing what you have always done then you won't improve even if you play a lot. You have to deliberately seek out parts of your game that you need to improve, figure out what you need to do to get the improvement, and then every time that you play focus on improving that weakness.

Just to clarify, Gladwell never actually mentions poker but the ideas in the book are helpful for anyone seeking to improve in any field.

Of course study is important too. Everyone has different learning styles, I personally have gained the most from reading Ed Miller's stuff and joining a video training site. Forums like this one are a great help too. :)

Good luck
 
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barnanag86

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Watch as many poker training videos as you can. These are the nowadays learning tools.
 
8Michael3

8Michael3

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Playing a lot is key but you have to do it the right way. In Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers" the idea of "deliberate practice" is discussed.

Basically if you just keep doing what you have always done then you won't improve even if you play a lot. You have to deliberately seek out parts of your game that you need to improve, figure out what you need to do to get the improvement, and then every time that you play focus on improving that weakness.

Just to clarify, Gladwell never actually mentions poker but the ideas in the book are helpful for anyone seeking to improve in any field.

Of course study is important too. Everyone has different learning styles, I personally have gained the most from reading Ed Miller's stuff and joining a video training site. Forums like this one are a great help too. :)

Good luck

I like Maclom Gladwell and I liked his ideas on this concept! For me, I found that after reading a few books on poker like the HoH series for MTTs I still had a problem. I realized that this problem was not about the game itself. It was more subtle. It was about courage, patience, calculated aggression, logic, awareness, and adapting to the players, the table dynamics, and the structure of the MTT. It was about abstract concepts that you pick up with experience. I would get super nervous around the final 3 tables and tighten up (bad)-then watch a training video and loosen up (too much is bad as well). It was subtle-and I think to learn these parts of the game takes experience, stuff you dont read in books. Its something else. Its about who you are, how you think, and pushing those limits-trying to adapt so that you can win. And lets not forget the inevitable coinflip that you need to win as well, so you need to get a lil lucky as well-even hitting some 20%s and 30%s.

Little green book is good. Read, Study, Think, Talk (strategy and hands with friends) and practice what you learn. That will make you better. I wish someone would tell me how pateint you need to be as well! Even when you learn and develop your skills in MTTs, sometimes its just losing the flips that holds you back! So keep at it!
 
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here is phil laak's advice... get Theory oF poker, Harrington's Tournament Volume 1, (i liked 2/3 too) and Super System 1 ; study those 3 books


then masssssssss play to finetune ur timings on various strategies u learned
 
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I really don't believe too much in reading books/training sites. In my opinion, I think that each person needs to develop their game on their own. Sure training sites may help with some basic tricks, but for the most part, just getting out there and playing is the best way to get better.
 
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That's an easy question to answer: Just cheat like I do!... Just kidding. You need to read and play. Both.
 
Pokerstudent

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I think both are key. But there should be a split ratio. 70/30 play to learn. 60/40? Depends what you need. What type of learner of you? When you were in school, did you learn best by reading the textbooks, listening to the lesson, or doing the homework?

Poker study is essentially a course now. That's why I laugh when guys still think it's all about gambling. We know there luck, but there is so much more skill. For example, I like listening to podcasts. That way, I can replay them over and over. Listening and understanding is completely different.

Start with Deuces Plays with Bart Hanson. By far the best free learning podcast out there. There are free tutorials on youtube and pokertube. Play some small stakes hands and do the OPPOSITE of what you would normally do. Just to see what typically happens. Mix it up.

Good Luck
 
Pokerstudent

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Playing a lot is key but you have to do it the right way. In Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers" the idea of "deliberate practice" is discussed.

Basically if you just keep doing what you have always done then you won't improve even if you play a lot. You have to deliberately seek out parts of your game that you need to improve, figure out what you need to do to get the improvement, and then every time that you play focus on improving that weakness.

Just to clarify, Gladwell never actually mentions poker but the ideas in the book are helpful for anyone seeking to improve in any field.

Of course study is important too. Everyone has different learning styles, I personally have gained the most from reading Ed Miller's stuff and joining a video training site. Forums like this one are a great help too. :)

Good luck

GLADWELL!!! His books are great!!!!!!
 
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Bdex

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I actually sucked real bad, i didnt know how to bet right i didnt know how to kinda know if someone was bluffing or not till i went to a cascino and sat at a real table. I learned so much, i used to only play online, and you really do learn alot better with on hand experience.
 
CRIMINALMIND

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I would suggest both, read and play. I played a long time before I knew what position, pot odds, betting amounts, top ten hand, etc. I read a lot of poker books and played alot of poker. It takes practice to be good at something, but it takes knowledge and theory to understand what it takes to be good at something.
 
buzzmania

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being a novice player hands on has been one of the best things for me.reading post from the forum and then hitting play money tables using different styles and strategies through trial and error have helped me alot.i have learned there are no stupid questions when not sure of something either.hands on,trial and error and reading.what works for me may not work for you.
 
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