5 Basic Live Poker Tournament Tips

Poker players have many ways to play, but there are some basic rules that you should try to follow. These may seem simple and straightforward, but you'd be surprised at how many players ignore them.

You can look at this poker tip in two different ways. Either you didn't know about them and can use them for your benefit, or you already do and can keep an eye out for players who don't follow them.

Poker players who do not follow these tips will lose their chips to more experienced players.

Poker Tip 1: Wait before you look at your cards. Poker Tip 1.

Our golden rule for playing poker is to observe what other players are doing. You can't do this while you're looking at your cards. You should wait until your turn comes to act, then check your cards. Your attention should be on the players who will act before you and not your cards. You should only check your cards immediately if you are the first to act (sitting next to the bigblind). However, you can still look at players who have checked their cards after you.

Poker Tip 2: Do not lift your cards from the table. Poker Tip 2.

You've seen it on television: cover the cards with your hand, and only lift enough to see their value and suit. You should not remove the cards from the table in order to see them better. You can now show your opponent both your cards as well as your tells.

Poker Tip 3: Act in turn. Act in Turn

If you follow tip 1, you won't be able act out of order as you haven’t seen your cards. To become a better player, you need to understand that you can observe players who intend to act after you to get an idea of their potential actions. It doesn't necessarily mean that your opponents will do the same. Watch out for opponents who are holding their cards in readiness to muck them out of turn.

Poker Tip 4: Only look at your cards once. Poker Tip 4.

You should only look at your cards one time and try to avoid showing any emotion. If you don't know the value or suit of cards that you saw 30 seconds ago, you need to do a lot more homework in order to improve your poker game previous. You should spend as much time watching your opponent's cards as you do your own. See if you could set aside a regular amount of time each day to spend looking at your cards. Eg. Every hand, try to hold your cards for three seconds. You can tell if a poker player is looking at his cards for a long time. No matter how good or bad your hand may be, consistency is key.

Poker Tip No. 5. Poker Tip 5.

It is an art to show your cards. Poker players who are professionals will show their cards for specific reasons. They have a game plan and want to set up a trap. Do not show your hand unless it is something you are doing on purpose. Many poker players will tell you to never reveal your hand. Keep your opponent guessing. If you don't have a strategy, this is a good idea. You can show your hand if you want your opponents to think that you are very bluffing or only playing with strong hands. Or even to try to make a player tilt. It is not a good idea to play your cards in order to gratify your ego.

You can find hundreds of tips and strategies on this site to help you become a better player. They are all very valuable. They are available on the internet, and sometimes even from your opponent. These tips and strategies will be useless unless they are implemented into your game. You want to make them second nature and embed them in your subconscious.

You must be aware of the environment and yourself. If you focus on yourself, your mentality and the way you play poker, you will become a better player.

Poker - the Power of Body Language is an e-book that we published to help poker players learn, adapt and implement these skills. This book is designed to be easy to read and will subliminally implant the skills necessary to read and learn. This is the next step in becoming a better player.

You are the one who holds the power. Now is the time to decide your own fate.

Enjoy your poker game and remember, the power is in your hands!

Good luck at the tables.