I've been playing poker for several years now and consider myself to be an above average player. There's something about poker that always troubles me, no matter how good you get, you won't win without some luck. I know obviously poker is a game where your skill is proved in the long run but wouldn't it be more gratifying if you could simply beat those players you know are terrible every time? I mean, would you ever see Shannon Elizabeth enter a chess tournament and beat Garry Kasparov and then brandish her spastic smile? I suppose my point is that poker isn't gratifying in the sense that you can't concretely exercise your skill every time you play...wasn't it Sam Farha who said it was harder to play against newbs in the WSOP? Isn't that a crazy contradiction?! I don't find the amount of time I put into poker rewarding when I get outdrawn on the river by a bastard chasing his gutshot straight..or when when my JJ all-in in a tourney lose to A-4 and then see the guy who just stacked me type..."lolol pwned !". Maybe I'm just a bad player and I hit my learning plateau. Hope this made any sense to you guys, just sharing my 2 cents...flame away.

please don't ever post again

If there were no luck Phil Hellmuth would never lose.

some people don't like playing against very bad players because, whereas the semi-bad player strategy somewhat resembles a strategy one can relate to (they can be classified as tight/aggressive,tight/passive, etc.) and is easily identifiable, you have to pay closer attention to the bad players tendencies and change your play accordingly simply because they're unique to each bad players. once you change your play though, you will be able to exploit the bad player's strategy more than you ever could an average player. also, with average players, most of the time your own default strategy will work against them.

but what makes a player bad? can a bad player level an experienced player without knowing it? I would argue yes, but the experienced player should catch on quickly while the bad player, if he is truly bad, will not change his play to accommodate his opponent's strategy. if he did, the bad player may in fact be good.

basically, if you're a bad player you're going to lose money and if you're a good player you're going to win money

If you're playing to prove your intellectual superiority, definitely take up chess.

Maybe not. But don't you find that it's more than compensated for by all those times that same crazy so-and-so chases his gutshot and doesn't outdraw you? If not, you're obviously not charging him enough.

Welcome to the Forums.

Good Luck.

See what you find to be the problem I find to be the beauty of the game. You can be one of the greatest in the world and you are never going to be perfect and always win. This is why for the few video games I've been known to play I don't pick games that can be unquestionably beaten, I prefer games that there are always wrinkles that can be added for different play each and everytime. Yes donks are going to draw out or make bad PF calls vs an all in but thats what keeps you coming back. If poker was a game that had an indisputable amount of skill such as chess it won't draw players that are out of their league and therefore the money dries up. What you end up with is only the very best playing and as has been said by others if you are the 10th best player in the world and you are sitting with the other 9 then you are the fish. The whole point of the game is those times when luck out does skill and its what keeps the donks lined up and the Moneymakers playing the ME every year. Without that this game becomes pretty boring.

Hallo,
I am reasonably new to poker and very new to this forum.
Is there an introduction section or do i just jump in and post away
in any section I am interested in?

Welcome to the Forums.

Yep, there's nothing to stop you diving in to any part. You might find this Beginners Questions Forum especially useful to start with, but like I say, dive in anywhere.

Most of the Forums have 'stickies' or FAQ sections. If you have questions you might want to check first to see if they've been answered in those sections.

Probably best if you start a new thread if you want to ask a question. (Your question has turned up in the middle of somebody else's thread. I'm guessing you hit the REPLY button which isn't what you meant to do. Best to go to a particular forum and hit the NEW THREAD button.)

Again, welcome to the Forums.

If you want to improve your game, you've come to the right place.

Good Luck.

If the bad players never won, they'd never play and never give money to the good players. The good players would be forced to play against other good players and most of the money disappear due to rake.


Learn to love it when you're playing with donks, even if their gut shots are sucking out on you. Eventually that money will come back ... if you are a good player.

good first post. Is there a question you want answered? Advice you are looking for?

I am using this forum as a tool to better my game. Already showing signs of improvement, I recomend the same to you sir.

I'd alway prefer to play a game where Shannon Elizabeth is a participant over Kasparov. I love chess but the moneys no good.

DiamondDog

thanks for the welcome, and thanks for the answer and advice.
I look forward to using the forum.

Cheers,
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