A 2009 Poker Strategy !

As I have stated recently, my time writing will be limited to my other venture for a while, and I won't be posting a lot here on site for a while. I will be here as a moderator, just not writing and commenting as much, so this blog is an attempt to give an idea of what might be some good suggestions for the state of our poker games, next year ! These are suggestions, and although proven, not necessarily the ONLY things or ways to proceed ! I won't say this is my last strategy blog, but it will be a while before I post another. I really do hope some of you fellow Railbirds get some good out of it !

# 1 Remember that the Game of Poker is a year long game, that consists of a large number of sessions, and should be viewed as such ! Keep track of what you play, when you play and what the end result was of your play. Set weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual goals to achieve, and keep track of your progress towards them !....... Doing this will show you if you are profitable long term, and will make times of bad cards, variance, or sour luck seem not as bad, when you see it only has a short term effect on the long term game results !

# 2 Play a mixed schedule of different games, limits, and formats ! I believe most Railbirds are tournament players, and only a small percentage venture to the cash games. I think a balance of the two would serve most players better. Bankrolls can be built in ring games faster than tournaments, and a well rounded player will play in both. Most all of the famous Professionals we see on television play way more Ring Games than tournaments, and make the money there to pay for the tournaments they want to play in ! Mix up the games as well, play some Horse, razz or something different every once in a while, it helps keep from getting bored with poker. Don't be afraid to go experiment with play chips at first, until you are confident enough to play for real cash !

# 3 Define the style that you play, and personalize it, refine and re-evaluate it often, and always be open to new ideas, to incorporate into your game strategy ! Here is a blog to get you started in this, if you haven't done this yet.

www.railbirds.com/blog/132014/defining-our-styles.html

This is a good follow up blog to help get a good strategy going;

www.railbirds.com/blog/174018/poker-strategy.html

This is a Generic strategy, to use as a starting platform in designing your own personalized strategy

www.railbirds.com/blog/174073/the-generic-strategy.html

This will explain the reasoning further:

www.railbirds.com/blog/174174/situational-poker.html

# 4 Once you know what you are playing against as far as playing styles, adapt your strategy to the table you are on. Play the peoples style as much as the cards dealt, by this I mean watch how you play against the Eagle, he is the toughest to beat, The Lion will be strong so don't make rookie moves against them, but don't be afraid to call their bluffs ! The Jackals will test your patience, so play them when you are strong, and play them hard and fast ! If you are in a hand with a Mouse, be sure you have a hand to show down, you can bet they will ! Watch for a chance to milk an Elephant of his chips when he hits top pair and can't fold !....ETC.....

# 5 Make your bets and calls with confidence, as well as your folds when your read is that is the right play ! Confidence in your game, and your ability to profit is as important as anything as you have ! Making the right decisions is what causes you to win at poker, and making your opponents make wrong decisions will boost your bankroll well ! Don't make "Poor calls" they are called that for a reason, you will soon be poor if you call off your chips, bet them instead ! Keep the All In play for when it will maximize your profit in a hand that can't be beat, but if you have to go all in on a hand that can be beat, save chips in reserve to play on, in case you lose ! Here is a list of the common mistakes you want to avoid !

www.railbirds.com/blog/172765/10-common-mistakes-in-poker.html

# 6 When you have a good understanding of the game, you have an advantage over a lot of other players you will meet, so strive to understand the nature of the game, it will help you in dealing with the negativity of poker ! Here is a good start for you :

www.railbirds.com/blog/181508/understanding-the-game.html

# 7 Make self evaluations of your game, do it often, and be honest with yourself, as to where you are in it, and work towards correcting what needs attention to keep you on the road to profitability ! Here is a link to what I believe is the most helpful blog i have wrote here at Railbirds, if the reader understands what i am saying, and follows the basic guidelines !

www.railbirds.com/blog/167728/you-are-only-as-good-as-you-think-you-are.html

# 8 Work on your heads uo game, it will determine if you win the lions share of the prize pool in tournaments, and is almost required for cash games, as you will find yourself up against only 1 opponent in hands post flop, quite often when playing them ! Here is a basic heads up strategy that will get you started;

www.railbirds.com/blog/191115/heads-up-play.html

# 9 If you don't want to put in the time to read all of this, and possiably learn something that will help you show a profit in your game, or think it is just all wrong, or otherwise bad advice, then this blog is for you:

www.railbirds.com/blog/209781/new-poker-strategy.html

# 10 Have fun with it, and share what you can with those who are receptive, helping other Railbirds with their game, is one of the most rewarding things you can do on this site, next to meeting and playing with good friends !.......Good Luck in 2009, and I will always be available if any of you want me to answer questions, or evaluate a situation for you, look at hand histories, etc..... just ask ! ..... I am always happy to help, if I can !

There is a link to this blog at the top of my home page, for future reference, if you need it !

....play on ....Tc.....