Skill Versus Luck in Poker
Most people misunderstand poker. To
be completely frank: most people only know poker from the low-stakes games
they grew up playing with their family and friends. In these low stakes,
home games luck often does play a much bigger role than skill. However,
this isn't real poker.
The money to be gained or lost in
a home game tends to mean next to nothing and everyone almost always plays
every hand to the end. Add in to that, dealer's choice & the ever popular
"wild cards" and you have a recipe for gambling on your hand, not playing
it. In these situations, it's often the middle hand that wins by catching
a lucky card on the river.
Another reason why luck has such
a big role in home-style poker games is that many of the skills we use
in pro-style games just don't come into play in a home game. Skills such
as patience in determining which hands to play, when to bluff, and how
to read your opponent just aren't used when playing such low-limit against
your family. If you are playing too many hands in a tough poker game, you
will find yourself short stacked in no time.
Patience
The plain fact is that if you play
too many hands in a pro-level poker game, you won't win. It's mathematically
impossible for you to last for any length of time. But, if you play this
many hands in a home game, you may fair better because the sheer size of
the pot from the hands you draw out on may offer sufficient pot-odds to
draw on that inside straight or whatever the case may be. Especially, if
there are "wild cards".
Bluffing
Another big difference between home
poker games and pro-style games is bluffing. Bluffing will actually succeed
in a pro game, where everyone will just call you in a low-limit family-style
game. It is extremely hard to pull off a bluff in the family oriented game.
The main reason for this is the limits are set against you. That 25 cents
you've raised the pot isn't going to be enough to scare anyone away, even
if it was a check-raise. Anyone would call that, even if they thought they
were beaten.
In a pro game, however, bluffing
is a sound strategy. If you've played very few hands, it's very possible
to steal a pot at the end of a hand by becoming overly agressive at the
right time. Your opponents will almost certainly put you on a strong hand,
if not the nuts.
Reading your opponent
Another very important element in
pro games is the ability to read your opponent. Are they full of crap or
are they the real thing? In most home games, there is so much money in
the pot (relative to the size of the amount to call) that there is no need
to even consider this factor. In pro poker, however, there is enough money
involved that a good read can be very valuable.
The simple fact is, if serious poker
was a mere game of chance, there would be no such thing as a professionaly
poker player and the people you see on the television constantly winning
tournaments (i.e. Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson, Daniel Negraneu, etc) would
just have to be the luckiest people in the world. This, obviously, is not
the case and many a professional poker can have very successful careers
by honing their poker skills.
Mike owns several websites dedicated
to Online Poker Sites
and featuring reviews of NoblePoker.
Article Source:
Amazines.Com
