Five Of The Dumbest Things I Did Playing Poker

When trying to do something for the first time – skateboarding or carpentry or well, anything really – it’s best to learn as much as you can in order to properly understand it. This goes double for the game of poker.

I really enjoy the game, but there was a time when, well, I didn’t really have a clue what I was doing. Boy, did I mess up. And, with some embarrassment, you can find out the 5 stupidest things I’ve ever done at the poker table. I hope these mistakes are something you can avoid.

Dumbest Move #1 – I sat down at a table in a local casino with my $50. I was ready to play. But half way through the first hand, I couldn’t even make the bet! Why? Well, because at the time I didn’t know that poker tables have different table limits. And I was sitting at a table that had a $10/$20 limit.

I had enough to ante-up and that was about it. The thing was: I had a great hand, with three kings and an ace. The kind of hand that, with sufficient cash, I could have won by strategically raising. But I learned my lesson and always check the table limits before I sit down now.

Dumbest Move #2 – Another stupid move I did more than once was at an online poker site, and not using the muck option when losing a hand. This could be one of the biggest mistakes a new poker player can make. Why? Because, as with my case, if you show your hand at the end of each game and everyone gets to see if you were actually betting on anything good, or just bluffing, they now know how you play the game and will kill you on every hand – especially if the players are good poker players.

Giving away your playing style is pretty much the singlest stupidest thing you can do in poker. Giving your opponents that advantage means you are effectively just handing them the money. Not clever.

Dumbest Move #3 – Playing every single hand! A lot of new poker players and some old bad poker players feel the need to play out every single hand instead of folding, sitting out and biding their time until they have a hand good enough to stay in with and have a decent shot at winning.

There is absolutely no reason to play every hand! Yes the thrill in poker is playing, understood, but if you lose your money fast your playing time is over. So fold if your hand is not worth playing. There will be another hand to play, so play smart and don’t get caught up in the excitement of the atmosphere and the draw of the cards. Be smart and you may walk away from the game with more cash then when you sat down!

Dumbest Move #4 – Staying in the game “just because”. Some players feel the need to finish the hand whether or not they have a chance of winning just because they already put money in the pot. Are you kidding me? I did this when I first started playing because I was excited and felt there is “always a chance I will pull it out and win. Yeah, right.

For example, if you have a pair of twos but nothing is coming up for you and someone else is raising over and over, then fold. Cut your losses and wait for the next hand. If you know you aren’t going to win, don’t throw good money after bad. Save your money.

Dumbest Move #5 – Know the Game! I can’t say this enough, the worst goof up I ever did was when I joined in am Omaha Hi/Low tournament. Now I had never played the game before, so I read up on how to play before the tournament started and thought, ok, I understand the basics of the game and the rest I will learn as I play.

So, I sat down at the table and started playing Omaha Hi/Lo for the first time. It didn’t go well. Only half an hour in, I knew that I was out of my depth. I was winning when I thought I’d lose and losing when I thought I’d win. However, I struggled through to the intermission. At this point, I took the time to reread the rules of the game.

At that point, I saw how you really play the game. I found that I was folding great hands and wasn’t even aware of it. I might have won so much money that day. But I didn’t really understand the rules. Never will I act the know-it-all and play a game for real money that I had never played before. What was I thinking?

Well these are some of my stupid mistakes and it’s been lots of fun sharing them with the world, hehe. But I hope if I helped anyone out there stop making the same kind of mistakes I did it was worth the shame! Always remember in poker, know the game and know the table you’re sitting at. And never, ever pass on the muck!