Poker Advice for New Players

Author: Neha Agrawal

Starting out playing poker for the very first time can be quite a daunting challenge. Do you know how to play? Are you familiar with the rules of your chosen poker game? How much do you need to play and how much should you wager? These are all quintessential questions to ask yourself before playing. Luckily, there are a number of websites available that will offer sound advice to budding poker players, and there a series of handy hints which are now universally accepted as a sure fire way to ensure that you don’t go bankrupt on your very first day at the tables.

Firstly – and it might seems rather obvious – one should never outstretch their means at the poker table. What this means is that if you are bringing one hundred pounds to the poker table, then you should not blast it all on two games of poker at fifty pounds a stake. Instead, a far better idea is ration your money. By partitioning your money into piles, and wagering small amounts per hand, you will be able to stay in the game longer – and luck willing, take home more of the winnings.

It is also foolhardy to play a poker game that you have no idea how to play. Again, this might seem like simplistic advice, but you’d be amazed how many people just fancy a flutter at a game they don’t properly understand, just because the pot is good. There are a wealth of free poker games, handbooks, rule books, poker school corners and other much in demand resources available on the internet to properly teach yourself the rules of any poker variant. No player should be caught unaware at the poker table by attempting to bluff their way through the rules.

Players should also have a good understanding of probability, and the ranking of the hands. Not every poker game variant uses the same hands. Some variants exclude certain hands, and others include hands which are not internationally accepting in standard poker – such as the five of a kind hand, which can only be formed with the assistance of wild cards. If a player properly understands how likely they are to obtain a hand (probability) and what hand outranks another, they stand a much better chance of being able to pick up the pot.

Last but certainly by no means least – practice makes perfect. If you get the opportunity to play some free poker online, you absolutely must take it. Whilst this advice might seem rather ridiculous for a seasoned pro, it is the absolutely bare essentials for a new poker novice. Think logically, and the chances are, you’ll do reasonably well.