Posted Wed May 10, 2006 7:38 pm GMT by Raisor
I've been playing poker for around a year, but was never serious about it.
I play with my friends about once a week, $5 buy-in, nothing special. I was never serious about it, just there for fun. But, I relized how bad my friends are. And if I got into it alittle more, I could win.
Now, when I'm in a situation where the action comes to me.
I look at my hand and one question runs through my mine. Call, or fold?
What questions do you ask yourself to help you make your decisions?
I know pot odds and such, but my friends don't think like that. They don't fold when they are getting bad pot-odds or anything. They probably don't even know what pot-odds are.
Another, I have a book, Phil Gordon's Little Green Book. I'm reading it, and then relize I forget what I just read. Might seem like a stupid question but, is there anyway I could make my memory better? Like maybe practicing with something every night? Maybe go through cards, and then try to remember what the order was?
Thanks, by the way I'm new 
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Posted Wed May 10, 2006 7:52 pm GMT by Tadzio
A lot of things run through my mind. The biggest question is usually "Am I ahead?"
I have a horrible memory for dates and names, etc. But my memory for numbers, vocabulary, quotes, and cliches (situational advice) is pretty darn good. Don't ask why there's a difference. I know there are many many books (some on tape) out there that claim to improve memory/speed reading/love life, etc. Go to your local Barnes & Noble, library or Amazon.com and look around.
Posted Wed May 10, 2006 9:19 pm GMT by tame_deuces
Memory is trainable.
We studied memory quite abit, and the research around and all the research material is pretty conclusive: You can 'train' your memory simply by using it and learning better ways to learn and recall.
But apart from that, there are some easy things you can do to better remember stuff:
1. Context. You'll recall something better if you recall it during a similar context as to when you remembered it. So whip out a deck of cards and some chips when you read your poker theory and actually deal out sample hands of the material you are learning. Or use pokerstove (a free program calculating pot equity) on your computer...whichever suits you.
2. Setting. You'll recall something better if you recall it in a similar setting as to where you learned it. Now, reading Super System at the casino tables might be overkill...but read it in a setting that can relate to poker in some way for you...for example where you play it online.
3. State of mind. This is one is hazy, but one atleast suspects that you recall stuff better when in the same state of mind as when you learned it, so read poker theory when you want to play poker, that's my best advice. :D
You also got memory techniques you can apply to remember stuff better. Some of the easiest are basic mmemonics, where you apply a simple story to what you want to remember. Like say...you want to remember 'orange, man, car, radioshack' You could say...'a man working at radioshack had oranges in his car'.
Learning the math behind poker is probably the best way of remember stuff.
Posted Thu May 11, 2006 9:00 pm GMT by Raisor
Alright. Need more help with the questions part though :/
Posted Fri May 12, 2006 8:53 am GMT by UrAteUp
When playing online or live I ask myself only one question with 3 possible answers. Should I raise, limp or fold? Depending on what I am holding and the position I am in decides which of the 3 actions I take (the only 3 actions you can take in poker pre-flop...  ).
As far as learning and remembering. I urge you to do more then read one book and try to memorize it. Read several and see all the different playing styles out there. As far as memorizing it, listen to what Tamed had to say. Also pratice. Run scenerios through your head and think how you would play the hand based on knowledge you gain.
Posted Fri May 12, 2006 8:55 am GMT by MasterShake
| Raisor wrote: | | Alright. Need more help with the questions part though :/ |
It's all situational. There are thousands of different situations that will determine whether you should call, fold or raise. Did anyone call behind me? Did they raise? Are the people in front of me going to call or fold if I raise? Is my hand any good? What position am I in? Do the blinds fold or defend against a raise?
You're going to have to read books and play a lot of hands to answer these questions.
EDIT: And of course read through a bunch of posts here on the forums. :D
Posted Fri May 12, 2006 9:31 am GMT by BeerWench13
Welcome to the forum! It's filled with loads of information. Browse and enjoy the wealth of knowledge and information. These guys have helped my game in too many ways for me to list.
For your questions, most of what MasterShake has said is true. There are dozens of questions you ask yourself before making a play. This only takes a matter of seconds, but you have to try to analyze your situation. One thing I highly recommend is playing very tight when you start at a new table. Learn what your opponents are doing. Watch them to see if they have any tells. Watch what hands with which they raise, call a raise or limp.
Pay attention to your position. If you're one of the first to act, try to figure how the rest of the players who still have yet to act will respond to your action. If you limp, will they raise? If you raise, will they call? If they call your raise, what hands would they most likely have to make the call? Also consider how much is in the pot, how much you want to bet based on whether you want many callers or you want to thin the field. How strong is your hand? What are your odds for playing the pot?
There are too many questions to list them all since there are so many different situations in poker.
My suggestion is play, play, play. The more experience you have, the easier it will be to make these decisions.
Get to know your opponents, especially live. Do they always scratch their nose when they have a big hand? Are they struggling to swallow (watch the adam's apple on this one) and is that a sign that they're bluffing? Do they act disinterested when they're holding a moster but show rapt attention when they're weak? Watch them. See how they act and react. Get a feel for what hands they will raise or from what position they raise most often. A player that raises a lot in a round is either on a mad rush or they're very aggressive with marginal hands. You have to determine which it is.
Pay attention! People give themselves away a great deal more than they know. I've even noticed tells on pros while watching hands on TV. Everyone has them, you just have to determine each player's individual tells and what they mean.
The more you play the better you will become. Well, hopefully this is the case. The more hands you see, the easier it will be to calculate odds and outs. Play. When you're done, play some more. When you have the simple stuff figured out (what hands you should raise and when), then work on the subtler aspects of your game and play some more. Work on playing the player and ignoring the cards, then play some more. Basically, play as much as you can and as often as you can and learn from your mistakes. Remember those times you bet when you shouldn't have or vice versa. Use them the next time you play. There is no substitute for experience.
Posted Sat May 13, 2006 6:26 pm GMT by Raisor
Would someone mind posting any example situations for me?
Posted Sun May 14, 2006 5:27 am GMT by snoogins47
| Raisor wrote: | | Would someone mind posting any example situations for me? |
That's what the theory and hand analysis forums are for Other than reading books and playing, browsing around the various poker forums is one of the better ways to get exposed to how to think, what to think about, etc. Welcome and good luck
Posted Tue May 16, 2006 3:16 pm GMT by Raisor
"That's what the theory and hand analysis forums are for Other than reading books and playing, browsing around the various poker forums is one of the better ways to get exposed to how to think, what to think about, etc. Welcome and good luck"
I usually do browse around on the forums I can find that are still active. It's hard to find a fourm where people post around once a day.
I did look at some hand analysis. But, I still don't know what questions to ask in my head at that time. When I get my cards at the table, only one question runs through my head. Call or fold.
Posted Tue May 16, 2006 3:50 pm GMT by Muck
Then you’re underplaying you’re aces :D
Posted Tue May 16, 2006 9:08 pm GMT by JohnnyCache
| Raisor wrote: | "That's what the theory and hand analysis forums are for Other than reading books and playing, browsing around the various poker forums is one of the better ways to get exposed to how to think, what to think about, etc. Welcome and good luck"
I usually do browse around on the forums I can find that are still active. It's hard to find a fourm where people post around once a day.
I did look at some hand analysis. But, I still don't know what questions to ask in my head at that time. When I get my cards at the table, only one question runs through my head. Call or fold. |
pay less attention to your cards. Pay attention to the game and look at your cards when it's your turn to act.
Fold more. Raise more.
Posted Sun May 21, 2006 9:11 am GMT by jimmer
i probably don't think like the majority of players.
i am someone who plays the players, more than the cards.
the first thing i think is; how do the others play.
for example if i'm playing someone who is reeeeeeeally tight and they put in a raise, inless i have AA AK, or KK i fold. howeveer if i'm playing someone i consider to be loose-even if they put in a reasonable raise, i'll happily play anything (yes, that's right-anything!)
Don't get me wrong, the cards are very important. It's just not the first thing that goes through my head every time the action lands on me.
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