A lot of people are under the impression that success in online poker is something that either requires a great amount of skill, or a great amount of luck. This impression is of course true in a sense, however it really depends on what we consider to be 'successful'. If success at poker means that you must amass a million dollar bankroll, then that impression would be 100% true. For most people, this kind of success is simply unrealistic and you might be just as well off purchasing lottery tickets.
Fortunately, being successful at poker does not mean making a million dollars. The definition of success in poker is relative to the goals we set for ourselves just as in anything in life. If you deposit $50 on your favorite poker site, and you set out a very modest goal of doubling it up to $100 without going broke and achieve it, well then you are a success. It doesn't matter what your goals are so much, as long as they are realistic.
There are many skills that can be learned, things you can do, and tools that you can utilize to help you achieve whatever level of success you're looking to attain in your poker career.
1) Study There is a wealth of knowledge all over the internet that thoroughly covers every aspect of poker imaginable. Make sure to check out the many online poker forums and articles to see what can be learned there for free before purchasing expensive books - most of which are inferior to twoplustwo in terms of content.
2) Make some poker friends With all the internet forums and communities out there, you should be able to meet some people online to learn with, and discuss hands and situations with. Many people help each other by watching and listening to each other play a session over programs such as skype and teamviewer.
3) Use Software There are some really great programs out there to help you while your playing as well as help you to study the game when you're not playing. Poker Tracker 3, and Hold'em Manger are the most popular and sophisticated tracking software. They import the hand histories of all your games and compile data on all your opponents as well as yourself. A Heads Up Display or HUD then displays the statistics derived from the database right onto the poker table. There are many power filters that will allow you to see what cards, positions, and/or situations you are losing money in so that you can figure how to remedy the problem. There are also a number of Auto Hotkey programs that make multitabling easier such as TableNinja. Pokerstove is a great little program that allows the user to input the hole cards of 2 or more players in a hand as well as board cards and calculates each players' equity in the pot, which is an excellent tool for reviewing a hand where you weren't sure what the right play was.
4) Bankroll Management This is extremely important. Regardless of how skilled you are, you'll likely wind up bust without good bankroll management. You should set a minimum buyin requirement to play each level. Many players find 20 to be acceptable, though everybody is different and it really depends on your skill level, stakes played and also the number of tables you play. As long as you're willing to drop down to lower stakes right away when your bankroll drops below your minimum requirement, you stand a much better chance of keeping your bankroll. Especially when the level you will be dropping down to is one that you have beaten consistently in the past.
So remember, success at online poker simply means achieving your own personal goals, however modest they may be. Start off small and gradually challenge yourself and you too can enjoy success in online poker.
For more information on this topic, feel free to drop by http://phatstackspoker.com
We provide free articles and videos for microstakes players looking to improve their game, as well as affordable coaching.
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