Guide to High Stakes Poker Betting

High stakes poker is the dream of many poker payers but is also dreaded by some. In high stakes poker, a little miscalculation can be very costly. Many high stakes player paid their due diligence playing low stakes and mid stakes poker to not only build their skill level but also their confidence. Playing low stakes and mid stakes poker also helps to build a player’s bankroll which is very essential. Without a large bankroll, playing high stakes poker will remain a mirage.

High Stakes Poker And A Large Bankroll

Not many players are qualified to participate in high stakes poker. There is a skill level needed to compete with the players at the table. High stakes poker players are usually highly skilled and good at reading the tells of other players (for live games). Asides from poker skills and psychological strength and knowledge, a great factor that buys a player a place in a high stakes poker game is cash. High stakes poker games can have a minimum buy-in that ranges from $20,000 to $500,000. It is not unusual for high stakes poker players to buy into a game for as high as $1,000,000. High stake poker games have blinds that range from about $300/$600 to as high as $3,000/$6,000 or higher depending on the game and casino. 

It is therefore crucial for every high stakes poker player to have the financial resources needed to qualify to seat and play with other high stakes players. A large bankroll is essential for every high stakes poker player. 

How Large Should The Bankroll Be?

The financial capacity of a high stakes poker player should be large enough to buy into a game and withstand the losses that are sometimes inevitable in a game. Such a player needs a large bankroll since there will inevitably be fluctuations in luck. High stakes players need to be able to handle losing tens of thousands of dollars in a single playing session.

How To Build The Bankroll Needed For High Stakes Poker

Building the bankroll needed for high stakes poker takes time, sacrifice, discipline, and consistency. Many times, before a player rises to high stakes games, such a player would have paid his/her due diligence at low stakes and mid stakes tables. This might take a long time depending on the consistency and skill level of the player. Another advantage of grinding at low stakes and mid stakes tables is that it develops a player’s skill level and upgrades the thinking level of the player. After spending quality time at low stakes and mid stakes tables, a player should be developed to think and compete with top high stakes players in the game.

Thinking Like A Pro

A large bankroll might buy you a place on a high stakes table but can it keep you there? The aim of every high stakes poker player is to win most if not all of the games played. As the name depicts, with high stakes games there is more riding on it, and is usually not just played for the fun of it. To be able to compete fairly with top high stakes poker players you need to think like a pro.

When playing a high stakes game, a player should be able to understand and control his/her thought process and simultaneously have a good read on other players to gauge how others at the table will react to every action taken. 

To think like a pro, the experience might not be enough. Thinking like a pro is a combination of knowledge and experience. Some believe that watching high stakes poker games can provide the knowledge needed. Watching high stakes games has its benefits but you might not be able to understand certain actions without taking time to be schooled. If you are interested in making big and regular wins on a high stakes poker table, enrolling in one of the top poker schools available online is of great advantage. Learning from a person who has a good mastery of high stakes games helps you to understand their thinking pattern and scrutinize games with an eagle eye. Learning from someone with a good mastery of the game helps you to better understand the actions of high stakes professional players.

Another aspect of thinking like a pro is the ability to keep a neutral expression. As you are watching other players to determine their tell and reaction to certain actions on the table bear in mind that you are being watched as well. It is therefore important to master the act of watching others without giving yourself away. 

Pro poker players have a great memory. They are able to remember important information when needed. These players have an incredible memory that allows them to recall tells and other crucial information that may have occurred months or even years earlier. 

Confidence 

Learning to think like a pro is good but should be combined with the confidence to put into play the things you have learned. A confident player is able to switch things up and remain unruffled when another player at the table switches up the game. Every good high stakes player has unwavering confidence in his/her ability.  

As important as a good skillset is in poker, the place of luck cannot be neglected. There are going to be days when the game might not go in your favor causing you to lose a good chunk of funds. Losses have the ability to make even the best of players question some of their decisions but it should not be enough to make a player doubt himself/herself. Without confidence, your skills might not take you far. Confidence in poker is like the vehicle that drives your skills. 

When playing the game of poker, you will most likely find yourself playing against players who have mastered the act of shaking the confidence of others. A resolute belief in your ability is key to maintaining your calm head while playing the game. It is also important to be able to tell if the hand you are dealt can give you a big win or not. If you don’t believe you can make a win from a hand, then folding might be a good option. If you don’t believe you should be on a high stakes table, then you should wait and develop until you believe you should be at the table. Your confidence matters!

Discipline

When playing high stakes poker, discipline is needed. If you are dealt a hand you don’t believe in, you must be disciplined enough to fold your hands repeatedly if need be until you get a hand that you believe in. Losing patience in low stakes or mid stakes games might not cost a player as much but in a high stakes game can be very costly. Discipline works with confidence. Being unruffled when things are switched up will prevent a player from making poor calls or unrestrained bets. 

It is possible to lose all when playing high stakes poker. Discipline enables you to take a step back to the lower stakes game if your bankroll is depleting. Sometimes a player might lose all and have to go back to low stakes or mid stakes table and rebuild. Discipline can protect you from making wrong calls that might cost you severely. 

Constant Learning

Like every other thing in life, poker skills need to be constantly and regularly improved. Poker is a constantly evolving game and a player that will stay on top must constantly learn, improve, and try out new things. A great player keeps up with the latest game types, rules, innovations, and gameplay techniques as they emerge. Irrespective of how good a player is, if the player doesn’t improve, the player is soon forgotten and left in the past.

Being one of the first players to get on top of new development in the poker world will put you ahead of other players such that you won’t struggle to meet up. A player who regularly updates his skills and gets abreast of recent developments builds his/her confidence level. In other words, one of the ways to build confidence is to constantly improve. 

There are multiple variants of poker each with its uniqueness. Constant learning encourages versatility and improves a player’s ranking. 

Live And Online High Stakes Poker

High stakes poker can either be played live or online. All of the guides discussed in this article should be applied when playing high stakes poker whether live or online. The major difference between live and online games is that live poker has a stronger element of human interaction, whereas online poker depends considerably more on arithmetic and strategic play. 

For live games, players know what they are up against and can get a read on other players. The ability to read other players and discover their tells is a huge part of live games. Due to this factor live players tend to be more adventurous switching things up and sometimes bluffing. Some consider live games to be more entertaining because of the interaction among players. High stakes live games are much slower than online high stakes games.

Online high stakes poker on the other hand relies more on mathematics and implied odds. For online games, the players are anonymous which makes it quite difficult to get a read on other players. High stakes poker games played online are generally faster than live games. 

Depending on a player’s preference, high stakes poker can be enjoyed live and online.

Conclusion

High stakes poker is not for every poker player. For a player interested in high stakes poker, some of the important factors are:

• A large bankroll
• Thinking like a pro
• Confidence
• Discipline and
• Constant learning

There are poker schools available to teach the art of poker. These schools play an important role in boosting a player’s skill, thinking, and confidence.