fundoopoker.com

28/09/2011

For the most part, poker is an exciting game with plenty of action going on. However, most poker players will be familiar with playing for periods of time when they are not getting involved. This could be due to a poor run of cards or just having to avoid some crazy opponents who are splashing chips all over the place. Many poker players switch off during such periods, but this is a big mistake.

The best and most successful poker players will never lose focus at the poker table. Even if they are not involved in a hand for a prolonged interval, they will still be watching what is going on. There is very good reason for this – they are gathering information. In poker, information is power and the more you know about your opponents, the better your chance of beating them.

Benefits of Observation 

Poker is a game of decisions - every time the action is on you, you have to decide whether to fold, call or raise. Many beginner players base such decisions solely on the cards they are holding in their hand and the cards in the middle of the table. As players get more experienced they learn to consider other factors such as the stage of the tournament or pot odds.  If you want to be a consistently profitable player, then you need to learn to use all the information at your disposal before making a decision.

The more information you have, and are able to process, the better your chances of making the right decision in any situation. For this reason, you need to gather as much information as you possibly can while at the poker table – and knowledge of your opponents is hugely valuable. If you know that your opponent in a hand is very loose, you should treat them very differently than if they were tight. Simply by watching how your opponents play you can gain a lot of information about their style and use that to your advantage.

Action and Reaction

Generally speaking, in poker you are either being proactive or reactive. In a proactive situation, you are aiming to put the pressure on one or more of your opponents to make a decision. In such a situation, you want to know how your opponent is likely to react. If you have been paying attention to how that person has been playing, you can judge your action accordingly and be more likely to make the right decision.

In a reactive situation, your opponent has made a move which requires you to react. Again, if you are been watching how that player has been playing, then you have a much better chance of reacting in the right way.

Obviously, this is not an exact science, but it does improve your opportunities of making profitable decisions. As an example, let’s imagine that you’ve noticed an opponent that is playing very few hands and only showing down very strong hands when they do get involved. That player makes a raise and you have a pair of sevens. It is much easier for you to fold this hand knowing that your opponent very likely has a stronger pair. Conversely, if a player that had been raising a lot, and often getting caught out bluffing or having weak hands then you would be far more inclined to feel your medium pair is good to play.

Taking Notes Online

Experienced poker players that play exclusively on the live circuit are quite likely to regularly come up against the same players. Over time, they will build up a lot of information in their head about opponents they often play against. It’s an impressive skill to be able to memorise such information and utilise it when necessary. When playing online poker, the sheer volume of opponents you are going to play at some point would make holding such information in your mind virtually impossible.

However, there is one huge benefit to playing online that you really should be taking advantage of. Most online poker rooms provide the facility to take notes on your opponents. Every time you come up against an opponent you have notes on, you can check back on information you have previously gathered on them. This can prove to be phenomenally useful and give you a big edge.

Summary

Quite simply, if you know more about your opponents than they know about you then you are straightaway at an advantage. Although you will not necessarily be able to always know why they have done what they have done, or how they are likely to react if you put in a raise against them, you will be far more likely to make an educated guess that ends up being correct. Every single online poker player should be using note taking as part of their strategy, but many players don’t bother. Make sure that you watch what your opponents are doing and record that information. There is no doubt it will benefit your game in the long-run.