Why Do I Lose Money Playing Online Poker
Why can't I win money playing online poker?
This is a question that many, many frustrated online poker players ask. The
real problem is that most online poker novices are not capable of being critical of themselves and
instead would sooner say that the reason why I lose money playing online poker is because the poker room
is rigged, it's set for them to lose or some other rubbish.
If you have ever thought a poker room is rigged then maybe I can give you a list of more possible reasons why you lose money playing online poker.
Now without seeing your specific game it's going to be hard to say exactly what's going wrong (this is why I have so many student game review videos on the site) but I'm fairly certain that most players will have at least a few of the most common leaks that I am about to mention, in their game. Just a couple of these mistakes is all it takes from knowing
how to win at poker to losing.
Most Costly (and common) Mistakes In Poker
Below are the 10 most common things you should look at before asking yourself why do I lose money playing online poker. I have also included some links at the end of the articles to point you in the right direction to fixing some of these issues.
1. You have bad bankroll management.
So many players play well above the levels
of their bankroll and because of this go broke a lot. You want a comfortable cushion because even when you play really well you should still expect to have days where you lose multiple buy ins just due to variance.
2. You have no table selection skills.
A lot of player that just start out and even some that have been playing for a while have no table selection plan. A lot of money in poker comes from finding weaker opponents than you and so you should actively seek them out. In a heads up SNG you can check screen names of players sat down by using a site called sharkscope. If you prefer cash games then an easy way to find fish is to look in the lobby for players sat with less than a full stack but close to one. All good players know to keep their stacks topped up to full so that they do not miss value in any hand that presents itself. Fish on the other hand will often not have a clue about this and you'll see them sat with an odd number of chips say 89 blinds rather than 100.
3. You believe that a poker site is rigged.
The poker sites are not rigged to steal you few bucks, why would they be? These sites earn money from rake not deposits so they want to make sure money everything is legitimate to keep players playing and the rake flowing. again ONLINE POKER IS NOT RIGGED!
4. Your ego is too big.
Another common trait especially amongst
heads up poker players that want to 'prove they are the best' by only playing other winning players. The truth is that even if you are better, you will add so much more variance into your game that your graph will go up and down like a yo yo. I'm not saying to never play good players as part of a balanced strategy to improve but understand that the fish are the real targets in poker.
5. You chase too many draws.
Some draws are good to call to hit, others are fine to raise and some, yes some are fine to fold. An example may be when you are out of position against a player that is not too spewy and you call his bet, shallow stacked, with only a gut shot (you have 4 out). I see far too many players just chase, chase, chase or calling on later streets with little to no implied odds. So if you don't understand when to draw and when not to then you may want to
hire a poker coach or talk to some players that do know in our
strategy forum.
6. You don't really understand board textures.
You may not really understand the difference between a 'dry flop' or a 'wet flop' which is an important part of hand reading and then helps with when to bet as bluffs or bet for value (as you think you easily have the best hand).
7. You over play hands.
Many a time I see players going crazy in a heads up SNG with weak top pairs, on dry flops (see above) against opponents that are quite tight. You need to think through situations more in depth to understand why you are betting and what worse hands he can really have that you expect to get called by.
8. Not understanding if you're betting for value or as a bluff.
Another common mistake with newer players is not fully grasping the exact reasons why they are betting in a lot of situations. So often you hear people say things such as "I'm trying to fold out his draws" or "I don't want him calling with a draw and hitting" when in truth, if you have the best hand, of course you want him calling with draws. Your job is to bet an amount that denies him the correct odds to call long term but gets him putting chips in the middle for you. You won't win every pot because sure draws hit sometimes, but unless you let him put money in the middle, how are you meant to win? (see the point of this whole article is coming together).
9. Playing fit or fold poker.
This basically means you are calling pre flop to either hit the flop and continue when you have a hand or if you miss then you easily just give up. This is easily exploited by good players.
10. You play when tilted, drunk or tired.
In poker tilt is a real issue. It affects all of us but some worse than others. When you're tilted, the logical part of your brain is not working and instead the emotional side is taking over.
Often when you are tilted it's normally due to losing a few big pots, or a bunch of games all in succession. My best bit of advice that will stop you setting your bankroll on fire is to simply stop playing when you are tilted. Just take a break, chill out and come back another day. Online poker will be there tomorrow and you will be less likely to lose when you are once again calm and rational.
Best pages to learn winning poker
There is so much information on Tagpoker to make you a winning poker player that some people are not sure where to start. If heads up poker is where you want to begin then you need to check out:
The beginners guide to beating heads up poker.
Tagpoker's free poker training videos
Brokerstar's full heads up sit and go poker course
6 Max Cash Training
Tagpoker students forum
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