To the general observer, a round of online poker is won by the individual with the strongest hand. But people who play will know that there’s a lot more to it than that. From bluffing to raising, there are plenty of avenues to make opponents fold winning cards. Online poker tournaments involve playing against hundreds of players from all corners of the world. Each opponent boasts their own arsenal of plays, tricks and strategies – some more advanced than others.

For beginners wondering how to play Omaha poker or Texas Hold’em, it’s crucial to understand the fundamentals. This entails knowing the various hand rankings, identifying the strongest hands available during a round and knowing when to play. It’s only time to progress when you’re comfortable with these basic steps. Read on as we discuss five advanced poker tips.

Don’t leave a pattern of play

Playing in an unpredictable manner is one of the best strategies. Outside of your hand, poker is about collecting information to build a profile of opponents’ playing personalities. Once you spot patterns in betting, it becomes far easier to get a gist of what cards they’re holding, thereby allowing you to make calculated decisions based on sound judgment. For example, if you notice someone folding most hands and only playing when holding strong cards, you know they will have a strong hand if you’re in a head-to-head scenario. Collecting intel during the game puts you in a superior position to make the right call compared to someone who doesn’t have that information.

Regardless of which online poker variation you play, experienced opponents always try to read your game to predict whether they have the stronger hand. Maintaining a level of spontaneity through bluffing, raising, checking and folding is the best way to stay unpredictable. Ironically, losing a round when bluffing can, in some instances, lead to a fruitful win in the later stages of a game because someone will presume you’re bluffing again. Once opponents spot a pattern in your play and understand how you react to certain hand ranges, the rest of your game can be tedious, tricky and de-motivating.

Understand your opponents

Following on from this, identifying weak and strong players is another useful tip. Poker tournaments and regular games can last several hours, with gamblers often experiencing long lulls of weak hands and poor community cards. During these moments, it’s easy to see your stack of chips slowly decline, which is why it’s important to exploit your opponents’ whenever possible. This is generally easier against weak players. Moreover, distinguishing between good and bad players is a great way to avoid poverty traps in poker. For the sake of longevity in a game, try to avoid going head-to-head against experienced players. Rather focus on weak opponents.

Know when to fold

As odd as it sounds, knowing when to fold is vital for a successful game. One of the most financially harmful situations is holding a strong hand that can be beaten. For instance, if you’re holding an eight and jack of hearts and three additional heart cards are placed down by the dealer, you have a flush – the fifth strongest hand. As amazing as this seems, there may be an opponent who is also holding a flush but with a king of hearts, which means they would win because they have the highest card. If you disregard this fact, it’s easy to get carried away and stake (over) half your chips only to lose to a higher card.

Be sure to keep this in mind and remember, unless you or the dealer place down an ace, your hand can be beaten. Sometimes folding a strong hand can be the best decision, otherwise you would have called the aggressive bets and lost big.

Build the pot when holding the nut hand

A nut hand in poker is when a player’s hand is unbeatable. Of course, the ultimate unplayable hand is a royal flush, but this seldom occurs. Each round produces different cards, which means the nut hand changes from one round to the next. When you’re fortunate enough to have a nut hand, your priority should be to maximize the pot by keeping as many players active as possible.

Beginners tend to fall into the trap of staking large and scaring off the opponents only to win the small and big blinds. In the first two rounds, let the opponents do the betting for you, call them and stay under the radar. More cards on the table increase your chances of opponents being more invested in the round. The river is your chance to bet big, but don’t overdo it as you want as many players to call in order to build the pot.

Gamble responsibly

Gambling responsibly is crucial to a happy and healthy life. Be sure to only bet what you can afford to lose. If you don’t do this, you may suffer hefty financial repercussions that can change your life for the worse. Setting limits such as how long you can play or how much you can stake are great tricks to having a long-lasting and fruitful gambling career.

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Outside of poker, we have endless online casino games to choose from, such as live dealer casino games, online slots, roulette and much, much more.