Three Common Mistakes in Texas Holdem

Poker Tips is a portal with a lot of material for those who are just starting out in poker. With the participation of these users, we have noticed mistakes that are very common among them. Avoid these mistakes and your game will be much better. In this article, we describe three common mistakes made by beginners and how to avoid them.

Playing at a level above your ability

Playing Texas hold'em at medium to high stakes can be quite exciting. Winning a pot in a game with blinds of $10/$20 can give you a huge profit right away, and it's a temptation that many inexperienced players fall prey to. But playing at limits that are too high for you is a surefire way to lose a lot of money.

“Micro” or low stakes can be quite boring and frustrating, but if you can’t win at these games, it’s even worse at high stakes. We’ve heard of countless people who have leveled up with the argument that “low stakes players are too crazy” and then done very poorly at the new stakes. In mid to high stakes games, there will be mostly mid to high stakes players. You need a lot of money to be competitive at these stakes, which is another limitation for new players.

Also, think of poker as an investment in the financial market. You have to be responsible and manage your money (bankroll). In poker, just like in the stock market, you can have a bad period. If your bankroll management is not adequate, you will go broke during these times! As a general rule, never enter a table with more than 5% of your poker money. Also, do not mix your personal money with your poker money.

Play at a level that is most comfortable for you and within your bankroll. Once you are doing well at that level, move up to a higher level and play for a while. There will always be higher limit games waiting for you when you are ready. For more information on this, see the article handling your money (bankroll management).

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Pay (Call)

That's right, inappropriately calling/calling bets can be one of the worst mistakes a Texas Hold'em player can make. Calling can be an effective action, but more often than not, beginning players call bets for the wrong reasons.

Many people call because they are afraid. If you are afraid, then the correct action is to fold or give up the poker game. Others call out of curiosity, to see what cards will come next, or to see what their opponent had. This type of behavior will make you lose money.

Calling bets is a weak action because it doesn’t give you any information about what your opponent might have, and it doesn’t give you a chance to win the pot without competition. Opening or raising should be the most common actions if you think you should enter the hand. Calling bets should be reserved as a chip-saving strategy, not a way to “get lucky.”

We list some good reasons to use “call”:

• When you are in a draw, that is, when you have a reasonable chance of making a good hand if certain cards come. Example: you have 4 cards to a flush after the flop and your opponent has made a low bet.
• When you want to deceive an opponent by feigning weakness. For example, if you have an excellent hand after the flop and your opponent comes betting heavily;
• In a marginal situation that is not good enough for a raise. Example, with a low pair in the starting hand, late position, in a round where several people entered with the minimum bet.
• Don't fall into the trap of calling with bad hands just because it seems cheap. Be aggressive and on the attack when you enter the hand. This is the most effective way to make a profit in poker.

Reasons for NO pay bets:

• If you have a chance of a straight with a “hole in the middle” (gutshot draw). In this case, only one card would complete your straight, with a chance of approximately 16%. So only call if your opponent’s bet is very small in relation to the pot;
• If you have a flush draw but your opponent bet big. If you have a flush draw on the flop, you will only complete it 36% times. In this case, if your opponent bet the size of the pot or more, for example, the most correct thing to do would be to fold the hand;
• You have a low pair on the flop. On an AK 7 flop, and you have a 7 in your hand, you have made the lowest pair on the board. In this case, avoid calling your opponents' bets, since there is a good chance that one of them has made a better pair than you.
• If your opponent bluffs a lot. Don't call bets with weak hands just because your opponent bluffs a lot. You'll end up helping the villain. Wait for a good hand and then call, or even better, raise the bet. Likewise, don't call bets just because you're irritated with your opponent.

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Bluffing excessively or at the wrong time

Bluffing is a technique used in poker to deceive your opponents and win more money. The problem is that at “micro” or low levels of Texas hold'em, bluffing is not as effective or important. Most opponents at these levels are weak, so bluffing becomes unnecessary and even dangerous.

A bad opponent is more likely to call/call bets for inappropriate reasons (see above), because he doesn't know how to calculate the strength of his hand or doesn't know how to analyze the community cards properly. There are correct times to bluff at these levels, but you should really focus on playing concise and aggressive poker. That alone will be enough to dominate the cheaper games.

Bluffing is certainly a vital part of poker strategy, but it’s especially important against intermediate and advanced opponents. At lower levels, overusing this technique is not only wrong, it can also cost you dearly. If you’re still learning the game, take bluffing out of your toolbox.

Conclusion

While you're still new to the game, avoid making these mistakes above and you'll already have an advantage over thousands of opponents.