Online Texas hold’em is a great game for poker players of all kinds. Due to the variety of online poker softwares available on the Internet, you can usually find a level that is appropriate for you. At some point, you may find yourself playing above the level of your opposition. This is great and can be profitable. However, you must be careful to guard against overconfidence when you play online poker, as this can turn out to be extremely costly.

When Online Texas Hold’em Players May Become Overconfident

The most common time an online Texas hold’em player may become overconfident is when he is on a lucky streak, either within a particular session or over a series of sessions. When you are getting lucky, especially if you have been playing well, you may feel that you can do no wrong, that your play is strong enough to defeat all opposition. This can be quite a dangerous attitude, you should always strive to improve your game.

Dangers of Overconfidence in Online Texas Hold’em

The problem with this kind of attitude is that the luck will eventually catch up with you, and if your overconfidence is causing you to play recklessly, you may lose all you have gained as a result. You may be playing too many hands or bluffing too often, and savvy opponents will quickly take advantage of this.

Avoiding Overconfidence in Online Texas Hold’em

Try to play your same game whether you are up or down. After each hand do a quick self-analysis to see if you are making the right plays. If you find yourself making a few reckless plays in a row, it may be time to take a break from the game.

One theme I’ve noticed among poker blogs is that if you read enough of them, you’ll come across people who are taking extended breaks from the game or are getting out of it entirely.  And a lot of these people are the same ones who, three or four months ago, couldn’t stop playing and talking about poker. 

The reasons for why they are taking huge breaks or leaving the game behind always varies.  Some people have suffered too many bad beats or lost a significant amount of money while others are trying to spend more time focusing on their jobs or education. 

And just today, I came across an article where a person named PokerPeaker was explaining their theory that players should try and treat poker like distance running.  In other words, if a distance runner ran every single day at break neck pace then they’re going to get burnt out.  Likewise, he summarized from his own experiences that those who play poker everyday, all day, are going to get burnt out too.

Going further he believes that, like running, one can peak while playing poker during certain times of the week too.  His losses always came on Mondays and Tuesdays while his winnings took place over the rest of the week making his peak Wednesday through Sunday and his resting periods on Mondays and Tuesdays.

I think that this is certainly a very interesting perspective on the game of poker and one that probably reigns true for just about anybody.  After all, someone who plays poker hardcore for five months straight and takes no breaks is going to go a little insane with the game after a while.  And just like the bloggers who are shutting it down recently, I think the same thing may have happened to them.

Being a former collegiate distance runner myself, I am starting to subscribe to PokerPeaker’s theory that treating poker like distance running may be the best way to go in terms of enjoying the game over the long haul.

There’s no question that Gus Hansen is seen as one of the biggest stars in the poker world today.  The Dane is adored by the media, seen as a sex symbol by many women, and has the credentials and playing ability to back up his fame.  However, maybe even more intriguing than all of this is Hansen’s actual style of play.

Gus Hansen is a man who makes a lot of plays that other players would stay clear of.  For example, he’s the kind of guy who will raise like crazy, or even go all-in, when he holding Q-4.  Yet you know he’s always got a plan and calculates everything because of the way he constantly utilizes that recording devise he uses at the table.

That’s why I had to get a hold of his book “Every Hand Revealed” when it came out.  Part of it was that I’m always looking for a way to better my own game while the other part was that I was just interested in what he had to say about his playing style.

Well I definitely wasn’t disappointed after making it through the book as Hansen’s insights into the game are very entertaining and helpful to players looking to gain an edge.  For instance, Gus tells readers exactly how he varies his play from the beginning of a tournament to the end which should help those who aren’t exactly sure how to maneuver through the various stages.

He also takes readers on a journey through his assessment of the odds at the table and what he does in different situations he faced with.  His analytical style of play and ability to read opponents is something else that is revealed to readers which will only be an added bonus to players.  In all, Hansen’s book is definitely worth reading and I think it has already improved my play personally.

One thing that always puzzles me about poker is how it seems that certain people in the game can dominate live cash games and/or online ring games but they can’t find their way off the first couple of tables in a big tournament.  The reverse can be true as well where great tournament players will get taken for all they’re worth in a good cash game.

The reason this puzzles me is because the Texas Hold’em rules don’t change just because there is a tournament or a cash game.  It’s still two hole cards to each player and a board of five cards.  But perhaps the only thing that truly changes is the way that successful players play in each situation.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that the majority of of successful cash game players follow the tight/aggressive model that hauls in a decent amount of money.  Obviously some people are better at using the tight/aggressive style than others and thus they bring in more cash while they’re playing.

On the flip side, it often seems that aggressive players who are willing to go all-in at any given point (provided they have at least something in their hand) are the ones who double their stacks in tourneys and find themselves competing for spots at the final tables of a lot of tourneys they enter. 

These same players who compete in cash games will, in many cases, find their loose and reckless style to be detrimental to a bankroll.  At some tables, their loose play may scare super tight players away from pots but they’ll most likely be called with their all-in A-5 bets by someone at sometime.

Oftentimes in a tournament though, this all-in A-5 bet will turn out to be a winner because the tight players don’t want to risk their entire (or a large portion) of their stack by calling this bet.  And it is these tight players (who may excel at cash games) that are rarely ever found at the top of a tournament leaderboard.  They merely try to hang on and, in the process, never try to build their stack till it’s too late.

In my opinion, cash game players looking to play more tournaments and tourney players looking to get in on more cash games can learn something from one another.  It’s best to switch one’s style up when changing games.

Amazingly enough, there are quite a few people out there that will play a winning session of poker and not quite comprehend why they’ve done so well.  Some of it could be chalked up to the fact that they’ve improved their skills since the last time they played.  Some of it could be that they’ve just become a great player over night. 

But the most likely explanation though for someone who has good sessions here and there and doesn’t realize why is that they are finding fish to play with.  No matter how much one wants to harp on how great their skills are, a lot of players know that in the end the major money will come from the players who can’t play poker.  Not from amazing duels between two exceptional players.

Just knowing that profitable games come from playing with a lot of really bad players doesn’t help one out though if they don’t know how to find them.  The truth is that fish will be found at every poker room and at every table.  But it’s the quantity of fish that really makes the difference. 

One thing that I do when I go fishing is to examine the player’s money counts as soon as I get in the room.  For example, if I jump in a six-max Pot Limit game and see that three out of the five players that were there before I entered have way over the maximum amount of money you’re allowed to enter with, I know that they’ve been doing something right.  And that something has probably been taking money from bad players.

If this is the case, I usually try and get out of the room if there are plenty of these types in there and go find another room.  In addition to doing this, I also try and play at the peek hours when players who don’t play poker for a living are on.  I find that when it’s late at night or early in the day, the grinders will be playing  to make their living. 

It’s definitely good to avoid these types and stick to the easier players.