Many people don’t know their opponents.
Which is one of the key elements to winning poker.
When you don’t know how your opponents play, it makes it harder to know what cards and strategies to play against them. There are many different types of players at any given table. Some loose, some tight, and some are passive. Some good, some bad and some average.
Betting patterns are a Poker Tell. A lot of new players tend to over bet pots, and not get good value from the hand. They may win the pot, but probably could have got more.. in the long run when not over betting.
Each player type can be taken advantage of.
A tight player can be so passive that you can bully them out of a hand easily at times. A loose player can have their stack crippled by slow playing one hand against them. As with the average, bad and good players, each of them have a playing style.
The good player knows how to mix it up, and when to.
Take advantage of the fact your playing online poker, and take notes.
Not just mental notes, saying wow this guy is loose or very tight, but actual written notes.
Most poker sites have a tag or note box where you can write and store this information. If the site you play on does not have, break out the pencil and pen.
Fish
These guys are just playing their hand, not yours. If you bet big and they have a bad hand, they will fold. If you bet big and they have top pair, they will call provided you do not do something scary like put them all-in. They will not bluff much at you.
Weak-tight
These guys also just play their hand, but will call less than the fish. They are not willing to lose all of their chips on top pair unless they think you are a maniac. Bluff these guys out of a good number of pots (but not much so that they will attempt to trap you later on).
Loose – Passive
These guys are similar to fish but understand the game enough to where they know when the only thing they can beat is a bluff. However, they often think you are bluffing and will rather check-check, then check raise.
Tight-aggressive
These are your tactically sound players. However, their No-Limit ability differs largely based on how well they read their opponents. In general, they are much more eager to bet at the pot than call. Against these players, changing pace is necessary. You should occasionally trap these players with strong hands and occasionally go over the top at them. By continually changing pace, you may be able to bully them into becoming too weak-tight or by becoming passive. Notice which direction they are going into and then take advantage of that strategy.
Hyper-aggressive
These guys like to bet and raise. It is almost impossible to tell if they are bluffing or have the nuts a lot of the time. These players can be dangerous, but you need to make an effort to trap them. While it is good to test them by raising them, do not always do this with a hand because it will become a clear signal to them. Do not let these guys know what you have by raising. Play your hands differently and certainly trap them sometimes when you have a strong hand like a set.
Tilting
Much like a hyper-aggressive player, the difference is their reasoning for betting. Often these players will have suffered a bad beat and in the following hands will push more then usual.
Some people have other names for ‘player types‘ I am sure you have your own,
even though the names maybe different, their styles are not.
