Poker players work long and hard to get better at the game, sometimes dedicating years – and even decades – to learning new poker strategies. Everyone is looking for the ultimate guide that can help them win more often and use poker no deposit bonuses to their advantage.
Some say that the Game Theory Optimal (GTO) strategy is one of the surest ways for players to dominate online poker with minimal losses. But since the theory is rather complex, it takes a lot of time for players to incorporate GTO into their playing style – if at all.
Now is your chance to learn a bit more about what GTO really means and take your first steps towards utilizing this poker strategy to your advantage.
Game Theory Optimal Explained
GTO might sound complex at first, but this poker strategy has a simple and straightforward goal: reduce the chances of other players exploiting your weaknesses as you play offline and online poker.
If you make specific too frequently – or not frequently enough – you give your opponents a chance to figure out your strategy and block your moves. So, how can you avoid giving others the ammunition that can take you down? That is where GTO comes in.
Essentially, this poker strategy uses two levels of defense to protect you while you play:
- Mixed strategies.
- Learn to deal with different poker ranges.
When you combine those principles, you minimize the chances of exposing your weak spots to other players at the table.
How to Keep Track of Your Range
In poker, hand ranges refer to the list of possible hands you can get in a particular situation. To become a successful poker pro, you need to do your best to narrow down your opponent's hand range. That way, you will get a better idea of his or her potential to get a winning hand.
To do that, you need to watch your opponent's action closely and try to detect repetitive gambling patterns. Keep track of the type of hands that make your competition call, raise, or fold to get a better idea of their gambling strategies.
Once you have a general understanding of what your opponent tends to do in any given situation – his actions will give his hand range away instantly. For example, if you notice your opponent only raises when he has a card combo of JJ or higher, you can use this knowledge to your advantage.
The next time he raises during a game, it automatically helps you narrow down the list of hands he can possibly have. This information is crucial to your decision-making process, as you will know when it is better for you to fold and when going all-in is a smart option.
You should also make sure that others won't be able to figure out your own hand range, and mixing strategies can help you achieve just that.
Mixing Strategies When Playing Poker
To keep your opponents off your scent, you should change your playing tactics from time to time. If you are normally a cautious player and only place bets when you have a strong hand, try bluffing every once in a while. That way, you will be able to confuse your competition, as they won't be able to figure out whether you're a tight or loose player, a risk-taker or not.
You should determine how to mix your strategies ahead of time, as there are many possible ways to approach this tactic. You can decide to rely on your gut feeling to determine when to change your poker play or choose a more planned method of mixing your strategies.
Some players divide their poker session into sub-sections by looking at the clock. They decide that every X number of minutes – they will change their poker strategy. Others, however, prefer to count the number of hands they play before they mix things up a bit.
It is Only the Beginning
There is so much more that can be said about GTO – but we all have to start somewhere! At the end of the day, the goal of this poker strategy is to make your gambling patterns undetectable – so other players won't be able to use your own moves against you.
Do you think you have GTO down pat?