Editorial

Sunday, 26 October 2008 00:54 Last Updated on Tuesday, 03 February 2009 05:49

Poker is a fascinating game which comes with its own set of rules and set ways of playing. Most people start out by learning all the basic ways and means of playing the game by the book. This will teach you how to play and you can even do moderately well more especially at online games once you have all the written knowledge committed to memory.

But it’s only when you’ve been playing for some time that you start to see the much larger picture that poker presents. That’s when you learn the unwritten rules and techniques of poker and these you can only learn by playing and observing.

The first thing you begin to notice is that there are several differing styles of play and different players will fit mostly into different and individual playing categories. Once you can recognise each style of play and how each player around the table fits in with them, you’ll be able to put each of your opponents into the corresponding group. This will go a long way to improving your own game.

This is equally true of online poker, where you need to gather all the information on your opponents that you can. This will help you to decide what kind of players you are going up against. It will also help you to gauge your own betting methods.

To help you figure out what these types of player are, we’ve put together a short synopsis of what each group is and what characteristics you should expect from the players that fit into them.

Tight-passive players are known for playing cautiously. They rarely take risks on any kind of hand so are best suited to the limit Texas Hold’em games of poker. When you identify this type of player at your table, should they call your raise you can be pretty sure they have a strong hand. To deal with a tight-passive player, the safest way is to raise at the flop and pre-flop, then keep a close watch on what they do. If they come in with a large bet, your best course of action is to fold as they are almost certain to be holding a strong hand.

Loose-passive players are also referred to as calling stations as they are prone to call any bet that you place. In general it’s best not to bluff this kind of player, especially as they rarely fold once they’ve seen the flop.

Tight-aggressive players are also occasional bluffers, although generally they will only play good hands. This is the tactic that most poker theorists will recommend, although it can be quite obvious to an astute player. You can usually be pretty sure that once they obtain a good hand they will almost certainly wager for large sums aggressively. Going up against this type of player is risky and can cost you a big slice of your bankroll if you are not careful. The tight aggressive may not play every hand, but when they do, it is always aggressively.

Loose-aggressive players on the other hand are the most versatile players. This style of playing can be observed in some of the most successful players worldwide and they are usually the high rollers of the Texas Hold’em games. Their very flexibility means they can easily switch between different playing styles in order to keep their opponents off balance. This makes them hard to read and even harder to second guess.

By being able to identify your opponents’ playing styles, you’ll gain an advantage at your table. However, the boundaries of each style are not always clearly defined. The best players will be able to alter their styles to keep their opponents off-balance, but you’ll at least have a better understanding of the type of poker players you are up against.