A poker player changes

How does one transform from a novice to an expert poker player? What does it take to be an expert poker player? Do you think you're still stuck to being a novice poker player? Read and learn a few things about the evolution of poker players.

Novice poker players or beginners generally have predictable poker strategies. This is because either their knowledge of poker is still limited or they're too scared to change their game play. The trouble for them is that they will be easily beaten by other poker players because of their predictability. The trouble playing with novice poker players is that your strategies may not work on them because they do not understand the complexity of what you are doing. The may fall to your bluff at the least expected moment, and that somehow disrupts your game play as a better poker player.

Some of these poker players evolve or change into the book smart. Notice the use of the term "some". This is because not all novice players evolve; some of them are stuck to where they are now, mainly because of their stubbornness that they stop from learning new things. Those who do evolve by reading books on poker are called the book smarts. They learn new plays and strategies in poker based on the books written by poker experts. Although this type of poker player is an improvement, still, book smarts are not that good. Their knowledge are limited to what they have read, not by what they have experienced, as opposed to expert poker players. That's why when expert poker players pull some surprises at them, they are easily shocked, and generally, they do not know what to do with those surprises. Clearly, not everything you need to know about poker can be found in books, even though a book claims to do that.

Lastly, but certainly not the least, is the expert poker player. The expert poker player is better than the book smart because he/she has practiced what he/she has learned from poker books by playing with other poker players. Expert poker players are skilled in changing their strategy even within a game, and that makes it hard to beat them. These expert poker players leave no room for predictability in their game such that novice poker players and book smarts will find it difficult to guess what these experts are trying to pull. This is the most difficult stage to master in a poker player's life, hence the phrase "many are called but few are worthy."