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An important warning to my friends in poker!

Note: Not at the old Poker1 site. A version of this entry was originally published (1993) in Card Player magazine.

Updated and enhanced: 2014 and 2024 (see changes at bottom).

I can beat most upper-middle-stakes games in my sleep. Oh, gosh! You’re going to think I’m bragging. Darn it, I already typed the words, and now it’s too late.

I’m not saying I could beat these games in my sleep simply because I’m a brilliant player (although I thought about saying it). All serious poker players can beat these games in their sleep! You. Your friends. Your dog. Anyone. You won’t always win, but you’ll have so much of an edge that you can play on automatic pilot (which is what I mean by “in your sleep”) and eventually win.

Tough times for pros? Which stakes am I talking about? Limit stakes from $20/$40 up to at least $100/$200 and all no-limit games. Which forms of poker? All of them! Why are these games suddenly so easy? Well, they’re not suddenly so easy. They’ve been getting easier and easier every year. I first wrote about this in 1993. And the strange thing is, the trend continues! Are pros finding these games easier to beat? No! Many pros are finding them harder to beat.

The warning. Tell me when you’re confused. Good. Now let’s talk about a very serious matter affecting you and your bankroll. In 1993, at my poker seminar at the Bicycle Club Casino near Los Angeles, I projected this warning on the screen:

WARNING!
Most serious players are becoming too creative
They’ll go broke unless they return to basics.

And I’ve been stressing that fact worldwide for more than two decades since.

This next part is just between us. There’s been much serious material on poker strategy written in those decades. It hasn’t just come from me, and a lot of it is powerful and credible. Unfortunately, it often dwells on very unusual or alternative strategy — utility bets, semi-bluffs, value bets. All these options, sadly, have now addicted most otherwise skilled players in upper-middle-limit games. They don’t seem to realize how far they’ve strayed from the basics. Instead of using these tricky high-powered weapons judiciously, appropriately, and profitably, they are currently using them routinely, inappropriately.

Why? Their reasons are complex. They want to impress opponents. They seek to amuse themselves. They feel a psychological need to find ways to prove their “superiority” to themselves. Who really knows?

But that’s why it’s possible for any astute player to sit in the midst of this Harlem-Globetrotter style of poker and, by playing a brilliantly basic game, defeat not only their average opponents, but also their strong ones! What I’m saying is that — and I’m saying this straight at you — if you continue with this compulsion to be creative without knowing the reason, your bankroll might die. That’s my message. That’s my warning. That’s all! — MC

CHANGES: Changes in 2014 were minor and unspecified. These are the main 2024 revisions — in paragraph 1, changed “limit” to “stakes”; mildly reworded paragraph 3, mainly to include no-limit games.

A–Z | Newest | Oldest
“The Mad Genius” gives his shortest poker answers
Hold 'em, Other games, POKER, Strategy
A very important poker secret
Hold 'em, Other games, POKER, Strategy
All-in with big slick (1-minute audio)
Audio, AUDIO AND VIDEO, Hold 'em, POKER
Bad poker decision illustrated
General, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Being brave when an ace flops in hold ’em
Hold 'em
Brunson: Accepting a gift
Entries by others, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Brunson: Finding the courage to raise
General, Hold 'em
Brunson: Hold ’em early schooling
Entries by others, Hold 'em
Brunson: How to bluff constantly and win
Entries by others, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Brunson: Intimidation at a world-class level
Entries by others, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Brunson: No-Limit Confusion
Calculation, Entries by others, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Brunson: Playing small hold ’em pairs early
Entries by others, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Brunson: Switching between limit and no-limit poker
Entries by others, Hold 'em
Brunson: The advantages of aggressive play
Entries by others, Hold 'em, Manipulation
Brunson: The flop isn’t your friend
Entries by others, Hold 'em
Brunson: The path to power poker
Entries by others, Hold 'em
Brunson: The truth about small cards
Entries by others, Hold 'em
Brunson: The wrong reasons to bluff
Entries by others, Hold 'em
Brunson: When calling doesn’t make sense
Entries by others, Hold 'em, Image
Brunson: Why raise if you don’t want a call?
Entries by others, General, Hold 'em
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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.

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  1. Still working on the Basic …….. I hope to get Brilliantly basic soon. By the way this article is one of your best in my opinion.

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