This is a common mistake made by beginners. Patience is a virtue, and this is especially true in poker. When you start playing poker online, that’s exactly what you want to do; play poker. But that could mean staying in hands just for the sake of it, rather than thinking about your hand and making the logical play.

Generally, if you play more hands, you lose more hands. So establishing what hands to play and what hands to fold early could be key to your success. If you’re getting involved in over half the hands you’re dealt, you’re probably playing too many hands. Take a step back and re-think your strategy. Our PokerCraft feature can really help you here, letting you see your poker history and interesting stats like wins with certain hole cards and wins from different seating positions.

There’s quite a bit to remember when you start playing poker, but often it’s the little things that can cost you at the poker table. While remembering the table etiquette and what you should be doing, you could lose focus on what’s in front of you; the cards.

When starting out you should put first things first, and figure out what your best possible hand is or could be. Have you hit your flush? Is there an open ended straight? Simple things like this can easily be missed if you’re not paying attention and can cost you big.

One of the best things you can do at a table is know exactly who you’re up against. Are they, tight, loose, passive or aggressive? Well, you won’t know unless you keep an eye on them. And you can save yourself some chips by keeping an eye on them when you’re not in the hand. See how they act with other players, and when they come toe-to-toe with you you’ll have the advantage you need over them.

Poker is a game of ups and downs, and at a certain stage during a game the cards more than likely won’t fall your way. So don’t be afraid to walk away from a hand if you feel you’ve been beat. Raising with a  A♣K♣  pre-flop is usually a good move, but if the flop comes out 4♠6♠6♥ and your opponent bets big, don’t feel like you’ve to stay in the hand because you raised pre-flop.

A lot of beginners think in order to win, you need to bluff a certain amount during a game. It’s true that bluffing can be a big part of a game, but knowing when to do it and in which situations is key, and that knowledge only comes with practice.

So get to know your game, and more importantly your opponents’ game. Sometimes you’ll come up against players who always call at certain times, and you could end up losing big if you bluff into them. It’s better never to bluff than bluffing for the sake of it, so learn the do’s and don’ts of bluffing before you try it.

A good way to define ‘tilt’ in poker is the “mental or emotional confusion or frustration in which a player adopts a less than optimal strategy”, and is something that usually results from the player being in a bad mood. This generally happens from a bad run of form at the poker table.

Dealing with this can be hard, so if you’re a beginner it’s probably best to walk away from the table until you can relax again. Remember, online poker is meant to be fun! Tilt is a common feature at the poker table, so the elimination or at least minimization of tilt is an essential part of your poker game.

That being said, don’t start a new game of poker if you’re already in a bad mood. You won’t play your best, and other players can sense this. So take a break, even for a few days, and return when you’re back to your best.

In your home games with low stakes, it might be the social aspect of the game you enjoy so having a few drinks isn’t a problem. But if you’re taking the game seriously, alcohol can have a serious effect on your game. You might feel more relaxed, but it also means you’ll probably play a lot looser and may play hands you wouldn’t normally. So try to cull the alcohol, or you could find yourself getting some bad beats.

One of the obvious reasons to start at $0.05/$0.10 games when you’re a beginner is because as the stakes rise, so does the player skill level. The only reason you should move up to the next level is if you’re winning constantly at a lower level. Just because you had one great night doesn’t mean you’re ready for the next step.

Be patient and hone your skills, and gradually climb the levels as your experience grows. To get started playing poker online, just download our free real money poker app and you can start playing today. We’ve the most thrilling poker games available online at GGPoker, with features you won’t find anywhere else.