Poker strategy for beginners

It’s been quite a year in the world of big-time poker. We’ve seen the EPT come to the fore as the world’s premier poker tour. We’ve witnessed a marathon final table at the WSOPE. And we’ve seen the pros that we idolise at the World Series at their unbeatable best and their cantankerous worst. And it’s the WSOP that has created the biggest poker story of the year. The decision to delay the final table sparked a huge debate in our office and the poker community at large. TV ratings were definitely up on last year, but the delay wasn’t popular among most poker followers.

However, one man who was no doubt happy with the delay – not least so he could move to London and escape paying tax on his winnings – was Peter Eastgate. His first-place payout totalled $ 9,152,416 – quite a return on his $ 10k buy-in and a figure that should once again boost the number of players questing after that one big tournament score. But multi-table tourneys are probably the least stable form of poker in terms of guaranteed income. So if you’re looking for a more steady cash flow during the credit crunch then sit-and-gos or cash games may prove a better bet.

Whichever game you choose though, playing at your best for as long as possible is crucial to your bottom line. There are all manner of things which can result in you playing your C-game rather than your A-game, so think about how you can stem your losses when playing badly. This could be the smartest investment you make this month.