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Poker is a complicated game. It has a lot of variables that can impact the game down to every single hand. Different players, different cards, the dealer, then there's calculating odds, reading hands, tilting. A lot of things can affect every single hand of every single game. A lot of variables in poker are out of the player's control. Bad beats happen. Sometimes you get your money in as a heavy favorite but still manage to lose. Sometimes you play a hand so well but still can't get maximum value out of your opponents. Some of these poker variables though, can easily be affected or even controlled by your decisions. Knowing how to do this is very crucial in your growth as a poker player. Some of these variables are knowing when to bluff, putting your opponent on a range, reading your opponent, making him think you have a set of cards different from what you holding, and a lot more. Being able to read your opponent is one of these very valuable skills in poker. This enables you to make good intelligent decisions based on what you know about your opponents. You can make decisions based on your reads on them. You can also play to make them think you have a hand totally different from what you are holding. But what happens when you lack the information to make a good read? What do you do when you are faced with someone totally new and mysterious? In times like these, it is always good to have a default strategy you can fall back on. A strategy that's better than just randomly going 50-50. And that strategy is stereotyping. Believing that stereotyping is a legit strategy to use all the time is really dumb and ignorant. Just because people look the same on the outside doesn't mean they think the same on the inside. Failure to recognize this will drain your cash and make you look stupid on the tables. In some cases however, stereotyping will actually be beneficial for you. These are the cases where you have absolutely no clue as to how your opponent plays. In these situations, using stereotypes will be slightly better than blindly guessing what your opponent is like. For example, if you move to a new tournament table and immediately find yourself in a hand with a player you have never laid eyes on before, the first stereotype that does come into your head is a very valuable one. This isn't something that will have a huge impact, but until you have something else, you will have to rely on this. Whatever stereotype comes to your mind, if you have no other information, then you have to go with what your gut tells you. If a 75 year old man raises when the board pairs on the river when there was a flush draw possible then chances are high that he's not bluffing. If a drunk fat guy with his mistress behind him does the same while taunting you in a similar situation then chances are also high that he's just bluffing. The rest of the world knows that stereotypes are no match for actually getting to know someone and thinking logically about things. But in the world of poker, where tiny edges can add up to make a ton of money, don't just flip a coin. If it walks, talks, and quacks like a duck, then more than half the time, it is a duck! For more psychological poker and the best poker articles, visit increaseyourpokeriq.com.

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Poker is a complicated game. It has a lot of variables that can impact the game down to every single hand. Different players, different cards, the dealer, then there's calculating odds, reading hands, tilting. A lot of things can affect every single hand of every single game.