Poker-Player-Styles - - www.CasinoPokerPlace.com

Poker Player Styles:
Your poker game will bring several types of players to the table. You want to know the different styles of players you might run into so that you can identify them and adjust your poker game accordingly. In general, there are players you want to attack, and those you want to leave alone.

Loose-Passive (Amateur):
This is the typical "amateur" play style, since these players like the action and just want to play and have fun, leading them to play just about anything that "seems" remotely playable. These players are sometimes referred to as "fish," since they are easy to defeat. They will often just Check or Call - even marginal hands like Ace-trash, low to medium pairs, and they will call just about everything, hoping to pull something out of thin air. These players are also sometimes termed "calling stations," since they'll call most anything. Bet into these players whenever you have a decent hand. If you bet too much, you'll probably scare them out, so bet just enough to keep them in the hand, contributing to the pot size and "milking" them for whatever chips you can get them to put in at each betting stage. Be careful trying to bluff these players though, as their "calling station" tendency could backfire. If you do bluff them, attack them very aggressively with a significant Bet or Raise in order to effectively bluff them.

Tight-Passive (Tight):
These "weak" players are typically fairly easily beaten. They just hang out waiting for great starting hands and big flops, and then they come after everyone all of a sudden. When these players seem to suddenly "wake up" and start betting significantly, get out of their way, unless you also have a strong hand, since they probably have a good-to-great hand (that's about all they'll play, since they don't like risk-taking). These players can "survive" a long time since they don't risk many chips at all. These players are very easy to bluff out of a pot, since they're highly risk-averse (avoids risk-taking unless they have a real, strong hand). These players tend to play "honest" - betting roughly in proportion to the strength of their actual hands, making them easier to read.

Loose-Aggressive (Maniac):
This style is typically referred to as the "maniac," since they'll aggressively bet or raise with just about anything and they play far too many starting hands, using their aggressive betting style to make up for their lack of good hands. Be very careful when you encounter these types, as they can quickly injure you. Since they play so many hands, you never really know when they have a trash hand, a real hand, a draw or a monster. Players like Gus Hansen use this style very effectively. Basically, remain patient and figure out how to get under these players' skin and trigger their aggressive response systems, doing so when you're holding a great hand, and they'll often bet heavily into you, exposing most or all of their chips to you.

Tight-Aggressive (Solid):
These players choose their starting hands carefully, and instead of "limping in" (check/call) to see a flop, they will either Bet or Raise significantly if they do play, otherwise they will usually just Fold without seeing a flop at all. On the Turn and River, they will usually make aggressive Bets/Raises when they hit their hand. These players are typically only risking their chips when they have a strong hand. When they do bet, they bet heavily and quickly build a significant size stack by winning just a few key hands. This style is easy to spot, so you'll quickly get typed by the other players if you're using this style. To address this, you must occasionally shift quadrants to throw players off, and deliberately playing as if you're a "maniac."

By raising smartly with strong hands, and then mixing it up occasionally with nicely-timed bluffs, semi-bluffs and blind-stealing, you'll be able to keep your opponents off balance, never knowing what to expect from you. Truly understanding these poker player styles is essential to winning. Knowing your own style and "table image" is important, as it will help you predict your opponents' moves, and ensure you profit and win bigger every time that you play. Most pros will play Tight-Aggressive, with occasional forays into the other quadrants to mix things up and keep everyone off balance, guessing about what they might do next.