Strategy is important – a sentiment that can be applied and attributed to many things in life. From working out how best to advance our careers to working out how best to maximize our pension plans, and many things in between, we use strategy every day. Having a plan can be critical; having a strategic approach to life can be both valuable and rewarding. The same is true in sports. Ask any team manager how they win matches and they will, likely without exception, mention their game plan, their strategy.
Now think about playing poker. Perhaps you don’t always have the word strategy come to mind as a first thought. Maybe you think it is all down to the luck of the draw, so to speak. However, whether you are sitting at a table in a Las Vegas casino or playing a casual game with fellow poker lovers on Joe Fortune Casino Online, your approach to the game is very important. It’s all about how you play, as much as where and when you play.
But isn’t having a poker strategy just for the professionals? Well, it may be of paramount importance to those who play in high-rolling tournaments and professional matches, but it can add to the fun and skill levels of anyone involved in this most wonderful of card games. So, how are players working on their different strategies and how does this help both the enjoyment they gain and the success they achieve? Let’s find out!
From Bluffing To Folding: Timing And Tactics Can Be Everything
You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away… to shamelessly quote the famous song about card players. It could be said that this is one of the most important strategic considerations for any poker player. Of course, having a strategy about when you should fold or go all in is important, but how do players calculate, formulate and execute this? I’m certain that players in major poker tournaments have finely tuned tactics, but even they have to keep working on it.
When it comes to bluffing, we have another completely different strategic approach. You will have heard the term “poker face,” and I don’t just mean in the context of the famous and somewhat catchy tune by Lady Gaga. Put simply, it’s about whether you can hold a firmly fixed face without giving even a hint about the quality of your hand. Naturally, the hand you actually do hold is part of your strategy too. As any dedicated player will attest, calculating the probability and possibility of your opponents having a better hand is also a strategic consideration.
Timing and tactics are, as you would expect, both unique to each player, but also hold some universal principles that guide them. For example, the idea that you should play some of your weaker hands as strongly as you do your excellent hands is one way of bluffing, as is the approach that says you should only play when you are confident of success. These tactics and the associated timing may seem like common sense, but in the tension of a game, holding firm is not always as easy as it may seem.
Strategic Poker Is Play Driven By Both Knowledge And Intelligence
It has been argued in the past that poker is a game of significant probability, some chance, with a side of luck. There is some truth in this. Even so, the assertion neither excludes nor devalues strategy, knowledge, and a certain level of emotional intelligence too. In some cases, people suggest that skills learned at the poker table can be transferred into other real-world situations, perhaps in the world of business, commerce, or trading, for example.
Whatever strategy you adopt or tactic you opt to employ at the poker table, knowledge is power and being intelligent with your choices is crucial. It doesn’t matter if you are playing online poker with people from around the world, enjoying a casual game with friends at home, or even sitting at a table in Las Vegas: sticking to first principles can be the key to any good poker playing strategy. Both emotional and general card playing intelligence can be a lethal combination.
By way of conclusion, and based on my knowledge of both poker and poker plays, I would firmly assert that poker strategies are something you will find at any table or in any online casino poker game, regardless of who may be involved. What I would also argue is that professional players have a much more numerous set of strategic arrows in their quivers, helping them to gain an edge over their competition. Even so, from the casual amateur to the World Series players, strategy counts and establishing intelligent approaches is never a bad hand to play.