Learn Texas Holdem

Is there a correct way to play? Yes and no. Winning players do have subtle differences in their styles but what you'll find is that what they have in common outweighs what they don't. They are usually in with a hand and aren't afraid to bet it; differences lie in situations the players excel in and how they seek those out situations and avoid others. Each player has his/her strengths and weaknesses which includes the type of opponent they do best against and worst against. The type of game also dictates how different the player's styles can be. A no limit structure allows more creative play since the potential earnings from each pot are so big. In limit holdem it is very hard to get too creative and still win.

When is the right time to adjust your strategy and when is the wrong time?

Wrong time:

- You are losing in a specific session. Your typical play that has won in the past isn't working for whatever reason so you want to adjust it.

- Other players are winning with weak hands. Now some adjustment should be made in how you play against them, but getting in with too weak hands will make you vulnerable, even if you are a better player. Even an exert player needs the edge of having better cards (generally) to beat the game; you don't want your only edge to be that you play better than the opponents.

- You are rattled for some reason, like a guy raising every other hand.

Right time:

- You've applied a strategy for a number of sessions and you aren't winning. After each session you should be picking apart your play to try and figure out what you did right and wrong, but especially after a losing session. There is variance in cards that can last a long time so even if you aren't winning you could still be playing correctly. What is important is to be able to filter through the play and know that what you are doing is right. You do this on a hand-by-hand basis. An example might be if you lost AA on the river to a guy catching two pair. That hand isn't something you did wrong. Another example might be if you called a raise with AT and lost a big pot to a tight player when you both hit an Ace on the flop. That is something you could have played better.

- You have consistently beat one limit and have moved up to another limit to find that your winnings have dried up. At this point you need to flesh out your understanding of the game to continue winning. This will be the transition from low limit holdem to middle limit and then from middle limit to upper limit.

Ninety percent of the time when players change their strategy it is for the wrong reason. I can say that with confidence both because of my personal experience and players I know. The common thing is to have a run of bad cards and then completely forget what used to win. Then if you are really unlucky, you might win some big pots playing badly, reinforcing the wrong behavior, which takes you farther away from good play. It is human nature to want to tinker with stuff to fix it as opposed to just sitting there and keep losing. The best advice I can give you is to try to form a strategy away from the table and then implement it at the table. And if you are going to test out different plays and such, do it when you are running well, not when you just lost the past couple hands.