Lets Have a Look At Various Types of Poker Opponents
A few common complaints from poker players are they couldn’t stay in the game because someone always raised on the preflop or answered before the river or some such rationalization. These are undoubtedly green players that lack the experience to be aware that one can pay close attention to their opponents and be able to classify them. These sad beginners not only fail to classify them, they haven’t yet learned the prototypical categories into which poker players can be sorted.
Ignorance of these categories leads to lack of flexibility: the uninformed player is confronted with an unusual strategy and simply doesn’t know what to do. The feels unprepared and is unable to adapt.
The players with experience know that poker is not a game of precise information. It requires improvisation, well-honed instincts, acutely reasoned tactics, and the ability to adapt rapidly to an opponent’s style and peculiarities.
With this in mind, you know that no player can ever be totally prepared and it will take certainly more than one strategy and none of them will be without risk. If this is all you remember, you will be much more prepared to face the challenges that lie ahead without fear or utter paralysis.
To become more familiar with the basic types of poker players is your next step in learning this lesson. The maniacs, tight and loose types force you to maintain a singular attitude. As a rule, whenever your opponent deviates from his best game, you can profit. Good players love maniacs and beginners as opponents. It is true that the expert will lose some against them, but in the end will rack up more wins than losses.
Loose opponents: this should actually be one of the most pleasant and profitable types for you to deal with. These players play many more hands than they ought to and insist on answering with bad draws and weak pairs. The seldom bluff and do not protect their good hands properly. Their parameters are usually: VPIP over 40%, PFR under 10%, AF under 1.5 WSD over 40%.
Next for the tight opponents, not as profitable as the loose one, but worth your time. This type will play only the top hands and usually quite aggressively. These guys are easily read and will not protect their blinds. The odds don’t favor them either.
Any combination of the above types of categories is, of course, the most unpredictable of opponents. Here again, with luck on your side you will win more hands than you lose and come out ahead in the long run. Ideally, you want a maniac as an opponent, clearly the most profitable for you. Maniacs play whatever they are dealt and they live to bet, raise and re-raise. Some find this opponent overly stressful to play with. They should hang in there, though. It is not difficult to separate them from their money, provided their cards are okay and they hang in there until the final showdown.
Finally, there is the competent player. This type of player is naturally the most unpleasant of opponents. They are mostly unprofitable, tight aggressive players, with parameters approximately VPIP=20%, PFR=10%, AF=2.5. Against a strong player, you will simply have to do your best and hope for a bit of luck.
The author of this article plays online poker and gets Rakeback at Fortune Poker where they offer the highest Fortune Poker Rakeback.
