What Does Playing With Conviction Mean?

As a beginner player you will want to be playing with conviction in your games of Texas Hold'em poker . This means that you’ll either raise or fold, but not limp in the games, if you're unsure don't play, and make sure that when you raise, you raise correctly. At first glance it's easier said than done, but luckily there are rules and strategies in place to help you play poker with conviction. When you play with conviction you will certainly have the edge over your opponents.

Don't Limp In Poker Games

First of all, it's important to understand what limping is all about. Limping is the act of simply calling instead of raising. This is to say that if someone else bets, a player who limps would typically call that bet. It is metaphorically dragging one's feet into a poker hand. When you are assertive, and you're playing with conviction, then you are the type of player who raises and causes players behind you to fold. This gives you the very best position when the hand moves to the flop stage.

And another thing that raising does, is it places doubt in your opponents’ minds. This is true of the big blind as well, because it forces the players to think twice about playing their hands, as opposed to folding. Remember that betting in poker is all about moving your chips into the centre of the table, and players are unlikely to do that if they feel that their opponents have a stronger hand than they do. Thus when you play with conviction, it's entirely possible that you will win the pot even before the flop.

Selective Poker Play

The golden rule in all games of poker is the following: play as few hands as possible, especially if they are not strong hands. The mistake that many novice players make is that they tend to get overzealous and play as many hands as possible without folding. This is the biggest mistake that you can make because it will devastate your bankroll in double-quick time. The golden rule is the following: play at most 20 to 25% of the hands that you're dealt and far less than that from the early position. Remember that when you are playing with conviction, there is absolutely nothing wrong with folding as many poorer hands as possible – you'll save yourself a ton of money in the process too. Playing selectively is arguably the most important rule in the game.

All about Standard Raises

Recall that in games of Texas Hold’em, you can raise to the value of the chips that you have in your bankroll. The are periods of play when a particularly small or particularly large raise is required in poker games, but there is a golden rule about raising. And it is as follows: as a poker newbie (novice/greenhorn) you should raise to a maximum of three times the size of the big blind. Let us assume that the big blind is $15, your raise should be a maximum of $45. This type of raise will generally discourage your opponents from calling you with the weak or marginal-strength hands. What it does, you show your opponents that you're serious about your hand and it sews doubt in their minds about their hands!