Every poker player has their own style. Identifying that style will serve you well when you play online poker, or play in live poker tournaments. There are four main styles that broadly cover most poker players, and if you can pin your opponents down into those styles then you will more easily be able to judge the decisions they make, which should give you an advantage.

Getting to know your opponents will take some time, but if you pay close attention to the first few hands, you should be able to make some decent judgements.

The main player types are:

Tight-Passive

A tight-passive has a conservative approach, playing few hands and avoiding large bets unless they are sure they are in a winning position. This style is recommended for beginners because it’s quite simple, and has a good chance of coming out on to, especially when playing online against loose players. This playstyle’s main weakness is that it is very predictable.

Loose-Passive

Loose-passive players call often, and have little regard for relative hand strengths. This playstyle depends heavily on luck, and is one of the weaker styles of play.

Tight-aggressive

This style of play involves playing more hands than a tight-passive player. A tight-aggressive player still chooses their hands carefully, but is likely to be able to steal more pots. Tight-aggressive players that are successful tend to be more experienced, and good at reading their opponents.

Loose-aggressive

These players tend to play a lot of hands, and raise often. This playstyle can be difficult to sustain for long periods, unless you are a very experienced player. If you are up against a loose-aggresive player, you should find it easy to capitalize on their frequent raises, as they often play weak hands.

Online poker is growing rapidly in popularity as gamblers prefer the comfort of home to travelling to a casino.