Rules from a Poker Shark
Play each hand individually and don't keep thinking back to, 'Hey, what would Phil Hellmuth or someone like him do now?' Each hand is different. And that makes me think: each bet is different, too. Don't think of the last bet you made when you're making this one. Each bet has nothing to do with the last one. They're independent, you understand? If you've been losing all night don't let that stop you from betting high on a particular hand if it's good. The fact that your luck has been rotten up to this point doesn't mean your luck will be bad on this hand. Don't play scared poker, either. Scared poker means that when you're betting you don't go all the way. You remember that you have high grocery bills or something and you get frightened and pull back. If you're going to do it, there's smart poker, too. This means that when you know you're licked you drop out without having to prove how brave you are.
"Another rule: count the number of players in the game. That sounds funny, doesn't it? You see, some jerks don't realize that the number of players affects the odds. 'What's the matter with you, stupid,' I say to these guys. 'If you're holding queens in a game of draw with four others your chances of winning aren't that bad. But that same hand in a game with seven players won't get you across the street.' Queens just don't make it in a big game. The reason is simple. It's the odds. If you're under the gun in a seven-man game with aces, open. But don't do it with queens. And you probably shouldn't do it with kings either, though lots of people will give you an argument on this. At any rate, pay attention to the number of people in the game.
"What else can I tell you? Some of my friends ask me how to deal with players who draw a single card. That's a legitimate question. Maybe they're fishing for a flush or straight, or maybe they're just bluffing me. What should I do? Well, you know, whatever he's trying for, the chances are pretty bad that he's going to get it, whether it's a straight, flush, or full-boater. Odds-wise he's probably going to miss, so it's a pretty good bet to bet against him, even if he starts raising like hell after the draw. You'll find out that way if he's a bluffer, and that's an important thing to know about anyone. Bluffers are addicts. They can't stop bluffing. Every time they bluff they think it's for the first time, and that it's going to fool you cause it's so unusual. Even if they've bluffed a hundred times already they still think it will be a surprise. Don't ask me why it's like that, but it is. Once a bluffer, always a bluffer. A really smart player plays it close most of the time, and then throws in a bluff. Then back to conservative play. Then later another bluff, maybe a couple in a string. That's good poker, at least as far as I'm concerned. Keep them off balance.
"My advice to the poker player is this: Stay away from the sharks. They're good, really good, much better than you can believe. Don't think you can fool them by playing some weird style either. They know all the tricks better than you. Some people think poker is a game of luck, and that they can fool the good players. Do you know what? I tell the people who say that they're nuts!"