series of posts about Poker tips and Tricks

If you are dealt a small pair and the betting before you is a large opening bet followed by a raise, you would be wise to fold as one of the other players is likely to be holding a big pair. If you have been on a rush, it may be okay to call the bet and at least look at the flop. If the flop misses your pair, fold and wait for a better opportunity.

If you are in the opening...

Raising early in the hand helps to set up a later bluff. If a player raises pre-flop and also after, then the bluff can be carried out by a significant bet after the turn card and the river card. It takes guts to do this, but a bluff only works by making bets that are larger. A small wager will not run off a player with a good hand.

You need to get the other player to imagine what you hold that...

Your position relative to the blinds is important, as to when to raise and when to call. If you hold a small pair and the betting was all calls or minimum bets then it may be a great time to raise. Doing this may make some of the weaker draws fold so that you have fewer players to beat after the hand is dealt. If there were calls and raises before the betting gets to you, it may be wise to...

his looks like a great starting hand as it contains two high cards. Do not fall in love with it as it misses many flops and can cause the player to waste too many chips. For some reason this starting hand misses more often that Ace King. There is no logical reason for this, but this has been this authors experience with this starting hand in Holdem.

If you hit the Queen, be careful, as you can still be beat by a...

One of the biggest poker tells there is when your emotions and playing style fluctuates. If you have pocket Aces or a 2/7 off suited hand you should have the same emotion and facial expressions. This is especially the case if you are playing against experienced poker players. Poker is not only about playing the cards in your hand but the ability to read what the other player have by how they conduct themselves and knowing their betting patterns. Experienced players...

When you sit down at the table to play poker you can learn a lot about a player by their chip stack. Generally if a player has a nice and neat stack of chips they are a tight player. Conversely, if a player has all their chips in a mess around their area they are probably a loose player. If you determine what type of player they are before a hand is even dealt you have already started the game with...

Bluffing is an important aspect of poker but there are a couple of players that you should never bluff against. Players that are not good and beginners are players that you should not bluff against. Only good poker players will lay down their hands. Many beginning players and players that do not know the game well do not like to lay down their hand. It is very difficult to pull off a bluff against a player that never lays down their...

Many poker players, especially beginners, will be overly excited when they are dealt a pocket pair. While a pocket pair is a good starting hand you should be careful and not fall in love with them. If you have pocket Aces or face cards you are in a good position but other pocket pairs you have to be wary of. The chances of you hitting a matching card to your pair are slim, as there are only 2 more of the...