Ten Things You Can Do TODAY To Improve Your Poker Game

 Here are 10 things you can do TODAY to improve your poker game

1. You can start reraising your pet with a polarized range.

Most amateur poker players raise with one of the following ranges before the flop

Most amateurs simply raise with their premium hand. This is a terrible strategy as it allows all their premium hands to face up. It allows their opponents the ability to call when they have the right implied odds, or fold if they do not. Your opponents can make perfectly informed decisions if your hand is turned face up. This will cost you a lot.

After realizing that raising only with premium hands is a loss strategy, people tend to shift to reraising with a range. They raise with both their premium hands as well as hands they feel are strong, such A-J or 7-7. This can work against players that call reraises using hands that are easy dominated such as A-9 and K-T. However it does not work against players that only call reraises using premium hands or hands that do well against linear ranges such as 2-2 or 6s-5s. It is not common for thinking players to call reraises prior to the flop with hands that perform poorly against a narrow range of hands. They recognize how harmful it can be to be dominated regularly.

The ideal range for reraising will most often be polarized. This means that the ideal range includes the best hands like A-A, Q-Q and J-J as well as those who are not good enough to raise, such Ac-9d, Kd-5d and 9s-6s. It is possible to call instead of raising with the majority of your good but not exceptional hands such as A-J and K-Q or Ts-9s. This allows you to determine if you are a good flopper before you commit a substantial amount of money.

Raising before the flop in a polarized style allows you to play more aggressively and increase your premium hand's profitability. They will find it difficult to play against you when they aren’t sure if your opponent has the nuts or not.

2. You should start continuation betting more in heads-up poker. Although most players know that they can continue to bet on the flip if their hand improves, it is often difficult to bet on the continuation when the flop is completely missed. If you are only facing one opponent, and especially on flops which should be favorable for your range but not for your opponent's, you should always continue bet.

You should always continue to bet if your preflop raise is made from the early position. Checking behind on 8d-7d-2s, 6c-5c-4c are two examples of flops you might want to consider. These should be better for your opponent’s range than yours, and should therefore be worth checking. However, if your raises are from positions that have a decently large range, as I recommend in my book, you can continue betting on all boards a high percent of the time since any flop could connect with you hand. If you raise only with a narrow range from a position, it is best to stop betting on certain boards because you may find that the flop is too bad for your range.

3. Start two barreling more.

Although many players feel comfortable placing continuation bets on most flops they still need to remember that they should always be firing again when they turn the table, even when they have nothing. Players have become more aware of the possibility of a continuation bet and are calling and raising them with a wider range. Your opponents may call your continuation bets with wide ranges. You should keep betting the turn with wide ranges until they make further adjustments.

You should also make it a point to place a bet on the turn every time the board dramatically changes. This includes when an obvious draw is complete or when you get additional equity. Surprised at how often a bet on the turn will steal the pot?

4. Start getting comfortable postflop.

As you progress to higher stakes you'll find that large pots result from betting after the hand has flopped. Problem is, most amateurs have not played before the flop. Local casinos aim to quickly finish tournaments so that players can jump into cash games.

To move up in tournament poker, you need to be comfortable not having all of your money in by the flop. Although this can create more uncertainty in your hand's relative strength but it will make you feel more confident about where your money should be invested.

5. Begin putting your opponents on a range hands.

If you're not giving your opponents a wide range of hands in every hand of poker, then you are not playing correctly. Paying attention only while you are playing in a poker hand will cause you to miss out on crucial information about your opponents. This can lead to you losing a lot of equity every time you enter a tournament. Inattention can also lead to a loss of time in learning how to set up ranges. You will see a significant improvement in your poker skills if you make it a habit to practice every time you are at the table. Paying attention to nothing will make you lose.

6. Learn other forms of poker.

It is important to know how to play shorthanded and heads up poker, especially if you plan to participate in tournaments. Because they have to play weak hands, the vast majority of amateur poker players fear losing against them. In reality, they don’t understand how hand value changes. This leads to them overadjusting or underadjusting, leading to massive errors.

If you play at a full table you don't have to worry about this, but tournaments are where you must play short handed because the biggest prize is at stake. If you don’t know how you can play shorthanded, you will be severely handicapped.

This principle is applicable to all cash game players. When you are able to start a cash game with just a few people or at night when the table is about breaking, these are the most lucrative opportunities in cash games. This allows you play more hands against the weakest player at the table and gives you a much higher win rate. You will lose these great earning opportunities if you refuse to play shorter handed.

It is also a good idea to learn other games, besides no limit hold'em. Learn to play other games and you will find it easier to get rid of your default poker strategy. You shouldn't spend too much time learning other games. The majority of your time should be spent on the game you believe will make the most money in the long term.  10 Tips to Improve Your Hold’em Game