TEXAS HOLD'EM TIPS
FOR BEGINNING PLAYERS

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Ten Quick Texas Hold'em Tips
for Online players

Tip One: Don't Forget It's a Game: Someone once said "Poker players don't read books." That's not so true anymore. The problem is most books concentrate on the mechanics of winning poker. It's easy to learn the basic fundamentals. Once you learn the "proper way" to play Texas Hold'em, it's also easy to forget it's a game and lapse into predictable play. Especially on the Internet. Casinos are designed to keep you stimulated. Your home or office probably has the opposite effect. You'll also see many more hands per hour online, which can psychologiacally make each hand seem less "valuable". If you find yourself playing robotically, not adjusting your play to the table and each player at the table, or you're not mixing up your game, you're guilty and should play another day when you're fresher. One of the qualities of the best poker players on earth is the ability to play at their peak for extended periods of time. Try to develop this skill yourself if you play long sessions.

Tip Two: Online tells: The most important tells in online poker revolve around betting speed. The easiest ones to pick up are the "dramatic pause" tells. A long pause followed by a bet usually means the player is strong, and wants you to think he is weak. A long pause followed by a check usually indicates a weak hand. This player either wants you to check so he can get a free card, or wants you to think he has a strong enough hand to "think" about betting. You'll rarely be check-raised by anyone who took a long time to check, it's not a normal betting pattern. When check-raising most players want everything to look as normal as possible to help make sure you'll put in a bet before they spring the trap. If you do get a check-raise from a player who paused heavily before the original check, be very careful.

Tip Three: Stop Using the Auto-Buttons: These buttons that automatically register a check/bet/raise are available on all good poker sites. Don't use them. The check/fold to any bet and check/call any bet can cost you a pot. Since this button registers your play almost instantly, use of this option makes it obvious to any observant player that you don't have a hand strong enough to bet. If a player before you checks and then you check instantly, you run the risk of drawing a bet from a player who would have checked if you'd taken a little time to play allowing you to see a free card. When betting you should either wait for the same period every time, or mix it up randomly. Don't use the buttons, just have a plan of some kind and stick to it, so you don't vary according to the strength of your hand. Bright players will figure you out pretty quickly if you don't actively avoid betting pattern tells.

Tip Four: Watch For the Use of the Auto-Buttons: You learned in tip three to stop using the check function auto-buttons so you now know why it's a good idea to watch for the use of it by other players. You should also watch for instantaneous bets and raises on the turn and river. This usually indicates a powerhouse hand and an attempt to get you to call by "badgering" you into it. No one likes to fold to a bully, right? Watch for this play and be careful when it happens. There are also some players who try to play in "opposite pattern mode" to confuse the table, so these tips won't apply across the board, but they're usually fairly reliable.

Tip Five: Never Show Your Hand: I'm convinced that this is the best route to take. Some players believe in the ancient art of showing either a bluff (if they're a tight player) or a good hand (if they bluff a lot). This fools no one. It's better to never show. It helps your image at the poker table and makes you a little tougher to figure out. If someone asks you what you had say you "forgot". They usually reply to that with "LOL." Conversation over.

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