Should a Big Texas Holdem Poker Pot Affect Your Play?
Life is all about adapting to changing circumstances and Texas Hold Em poker is certainly no different. No two sessions are ever the same, which is one of the major reasons why so many people love the game and keep continuing to play it over the years. In fact, not only are two sessions never the same, but rarely are two hands in a particular session ever the same, as contributory elements such as number of opponents, the cards each person holds, amount of money or chips left to play with, the success or failure of attempts to bluff opponents etc all combine to affect styles and methods of play.
Changing Opponents Will Require You to Alter Your Stlye of Play
Plus of course it is not just attempts to bluff opponents, but also the fact that in a long session players will be leaving the table and replaced by new ones all the time (unless it is a poker tournament), which can result in having to get to grips with their playing style and attempts to bluff all over again from scratch, which is particularly annoying when you feel you have just cracked it with someone who then gets up and leaves! Players changing is usually even more of a factor when playing poker online than it is when playing in a casino card room or poker venue where players are physically sat in front of you at the table, as factors such as loss of internet connection and distractions at home force players to leave the table.
A Big Pot Can Affect All Players Still Contesting the Hand
Along with the factors mentioned above, the size of the pot and how much money is at stake usually always plays a role in how an individual proceeds with the hand. The more money is at stake and available to be won, the less likelihood that a player will fold their hand and give up any hope or chance of winning it, which can make it harder to bluff opponents out of it if you hold a weak hand. Although conversely it can also encourage more players to actually try and bluff their way to winning the pot as the reward for succeeding are far greater and may be worth the risk in their eyes of losing slightly more money.
Not only do some of the best Texas Holdem poker players know when to stay in a hand and when to fold their cards, they will also know when to adapt their playing strategy in accordance to a changing circumstance such as the type of opponent(s) or the size of the pot on offer, and is one of those things which only really comes with experience of playing poker over the years and learning all the time from past successes and failures.