How to Become a Master Poker Player

Poker is played by an estimated 100 million people across the globe, which is good for anyone looking to play — you won’t need to look very far to find a game — but less good if you’re just finding your poker feet. As with many popular games, players are passionate about poker, which means playing standards in general are pretty high.

The good news is that with a little bit of know-how, anyone can quickly develop their poker skills and become an above-average player. If you’re looking to improve your game, then follow our tried and tested tips outlined below.

Play as Much As You Can

You’ll need to dedicate some time towards studying the game of poker, but there’s no substitute for simply playing. With online poker bigger than ever before, it’s never been easier to find a game, regardless of your preferred poker variant. Once you’ve got a grip on the rules and the flow of the game, look at playing as often as you can, be it with friends or against strangers online. Ideally, try to play against opponents who are slightly better than you are — you’ll learn a lot just by watching them.

Play Around With Strategy

There’s no single strategy that’ll work every time you play poker. If there was, then everyone would use it. It’s best to have a few different poker strategies up your sleeve, and then take the time to learn when and how to use them.

Also keep in mind that poker is a dynamic, ever-evolving game, so what works today won’t necessarily work in a year’s time. The best poker players make a habit of continually adapting their strategies.

Study

We talked earlier about playing poker regularly, but keep in mind that actually playing should only account for around 80% of your poker-related energy. The other 20% should be dedicated to studying. While it does require some discipline to stay at home and read up on the art of poker, you’ll notice the benefits of doing so — the vast majority of poker players skip the studying part, so just by putting in a little bit of time, you’ll be giving yourself a serious advantage.

In this digital age, there’s no shortage of ways to study poker. There are digital books, online courses, and online forums. The best approach is to focus on studying one topic at a time, which will slowly but surely result in excellent all-around play.

Level Up Your Game

You can feel that you’re getting better at poker, but you’ll only know for sure once you begin competing against a wider variety of players. While you may start playing with friends, at some point it’ll be best to transition to online play, since that provides access to a better cross-section of players. From there, players can progress to established online and in-person tournaments.

These can be difficult to get a seat at, but things like the PokerStars Power Path offers a pathway to some of poker’s most prestigious tournaments. Even if tournaments are a step too soon, players tend to see an improvement just by playing online, since the games are open to a global audience.

Understand the Psychological Element

A player can fundamentally understand good poker play yet still fail to make an impression at the table. What separates good from great players in most disciplines, not just poker, is their ability to manage the psychological aspect of the game. By that, we don’t just mean the art of bluffing, but also the ability to stay focused for the duration of a game. Online poker sessions can last for hours, and tournaments are the same. Having the ability to perform at a high level for all of those hours is what sets the best players apart from the rest. Practicing meditation, enhancing focus and discipline, and even working out and learning to limit stress can all make a big difference at the table.