Tips for Playing Poker at a Casino

For those players who have experience in playing poker at online poker sites, the move to live poker in a casino can seem like a daunting experience. This article looks at some tips for playing poker at a casino – to help you get off to a winning start in the live environment.

We will start by comparing the ability levels of live and online players at specified buy-in levels. Next the speed of the games is considered and ways to avoid being distracted by the slower live games discussed. Finally we look at the extra information available when playing poker at a casino – the body language ‘tells’ which can assist you in making good decisions.

Casino’s attract many recreational ‘gamblers’, at a specific level the opposition is likely to be weaker than you are used to online for a number of reasons. The key point here is that winning players are losers alike can only play at one table. While in online poker it is far more likely that the ‘fish’ are playing at a single table – while the winning players are playing at 4, 6 or even more tables simultaneously. The fact that you can only play 1 table, combined with the relatively slow speed of the live game, means that the middle limits attract fewer ‘pros’ live than online. Simply put, the equivalent live game will usually be significantly weaker than in the online environment.

The slow nature of live poker, for those used to the online variety, can easily lead players to become distracted. While folding 20 hands in online poker may only take 20 minutes, this can involve not being in a hand for an hour in a casino poker game. To help with the long spells of not being involved it is important to closely watch your opponents while you are not in a hand. This will help you pick up valuable information on how they play certain hands and certain situations – information that you can use to your advantage when you are finally involved in a hand.
Physical tells are an important aspect of playing poker at a casino. These work both ways – your opponents will be looking for your tells at the same time that you are looking for theirs. The classic distinction of ‘acting weak when strong and strong when weak’ has its merits. However this is only part of the over all story. Information available includes the speed and force of betting and whether an opponent starts to speak during a hand (especially when they do not normally do this).

In a casino many opponents will indicate whether they intend to fold a hand before the flop. A good tip for playing in this environment is to ‘look left’ before you act in a hand. If several players to your left look like they are ready to muck their hands you may be in last position – meaning that you can play more hands for a profit.

To summarize, casino poker games are generally weaker than the same betting levels online. The game will seem slow for those used to internet poker – ensuring that you use the time between hands to watch your opponents will give you an advantage when you do play a hand. Look for physical tells from your opponents when playing live, players who telegraph their intention to fold are also common.