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MCU poker tip: Know how your opponent is playing

It’s a mistake to categorize most poker players as loose or tight and respond accordingly without taking into consideration their present frame of mind. There are very few players who consistently play one rigid way.

The exceptions might be the true “rocks” who never waver, only playing their very best hands, and those rare super-loose foes who consistently show no discipline about hand selection. Aside from that, most opponents change their strategy frequently. Sometimes this is calculated and sometimes it is governed by emotions.

Notebooks

I’ve known players who keep notebooks about the way frequent opponents play. And, of course, some players use tracking software to record trends regarding their online opponents decision making. Fine.

Having a history of opponents’ play can help. But it isn’t always accurate. That’s because the poker players are often out of step with their past. Mood changes. Determination changes. Focus changes. And opponents can be playing much better or much worse at the moment then they typically have in the past.

More profitable

The important thing is to adjust your strategy to the way an opponent is playing right now. That’s usually more profitable than adapting to the way an opponent plays on average. — MC

“Stars” bars U.S players after indictments (Caro blog)
ALL (newest first), BLOG, News, Online
A win that inspires me (Caro blog)
ALL (newest first), AUDIO AND VIDEO, BLOG, Gambling, Video
Apple drops its “Texas Hold’em” software (Caro blog)
BLOG, News, POKER
Boston Marathon poll (Caro blog)
BLOG, Controversy, News
Eye surgeries delay P1 opening 12 days (Caro blog)
BLOG, Life, Personal
Failing to reply at the 2 + 2 forum (Caro blog)
BLOG, POKER
Full Tilt CEO arrested in NY, is sorry (Caro Blog)
BLOG, Ethics, News, Online, POKER
I used to be mentally retarded (Caro blog)
BLOG, Life, Personal, Psychology
I wake up with 311-point Scrabble word (Caro blog)
BLOG, Life, Personal
Jerry Buss dies — a friend of poker (Caro blog)
BLOG, News, People
Legal online poker bill clears committee (Caro blog)
BLOG, News
My affiliation with Advanced Poker Training (Caro blog)
BLOG, News, Online
My apology to web designers (Caro blog)
BLOG
My exit from the 2010 WSOP main event (Caro blog)
BLOG, News, Tournaments
My hippie photo that scared advertisers (Caro blog)
BLOG, Image, Personal, Photos, Press package, Psychology
My streak ends + Poker1 status update (Caro blog)
BLOG, Personal
New opening date set for Poker1 (Caro blog)
BLOG
Oldest WSOP dealer killed — my friend (Caro blog)
BLOG, Exclude ads, People, Personal, POKER, SPECIAL INFO
One final color alternative (Caro blog)
BLOG
Owner of Absolute Poker gets 14 months (Caro blog)
BLOG, News, Online

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Any Poker1 page takes you anyplace you want to go!

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Prediction*  •  Shopping  •  Zone 2*

↓ Tip collections ↓

All*  •  Gambling*  •  Life*  •  Poker*  •  Various*

↓ Contributor collections ↓

Brunson  •  Caro  •  McHaffie  •  Wiesenberg  •  Others*

↓ More collections ↓

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Published by

Mike Caro

Visit Mike on   → Twitter   ♠ OR ♠    → FaceBook

Known as the “Mad Genius of Poker,” Mike Caro is generally regarded as today's foremost authority on poker strategy, psychology, and statistics. He is the founder of Mike Caro University of Poker, Gaming, and Life Strategy (MCU). See full bio → HERE.

6 thoughts on “MCU poker tip: Know how your opponent is playing”

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  1. You are absolutely correct.. No argument whatsoever from me.. Thanks Mike’

  2. Hey, give Mike a “waver” on that one… (we read him for his poker, not his punctuation)

    1. Hi, Elliott —

      I corrected the error that Jake tried to alert me about last December. I didn’t see his comment until now. It was your comment that brought his to my attention.

      Thanks for joining our Poker1 family.

      Straight Flushes,
      Mike Caro

  3. There's a typo in the second paragraph; "waiver" should be "waver," I imagine. Great tip!!! Thank you as always.

    1. Hi, Jake —

      Here’s a way-late thank you for catching that spelling/usage error. I’ve corrected it now. I try to read all comments, but somehow I overlooked yours.

      Straight Flushes,
      Mike Caro

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