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Tips to Help You Bluff Successfully in Poker Games

“If you can’t beat them, bluff them.”

There is no poker player in the world who hasn’t heard of this. Not only that, but many professional players even follow this as a policy while playing. Bluffing is an integral part of Poker and also a necessary skill for survival in the game. Knowing when and who to bluff is an art in itself. In this article we are going to point out a few ways of bluffing that will help you master the art.

Don’t bluff too many people

The magical number here is two. Don’t try to bluff if there are more than two people at the table. You cannot scare away too many people. Let’s say you bluff with five people at the table. You might scare two or maybe three of them into folding.  However, there is a very strong chance that the next player might have a hand strong enough to call your bluff. Therefore, you must be attentive to the number of people at the table while bluffing.

Don’t bluff against new players

More often than not, new players have no idea of how a bluff works. They tend to call bets frequently regardless of how strong or weak their hands. So if you don’t want to get beat down by a new player and ridiculed for the rest of your life by your poker buddies, don’t bluff against them.

Limit the frequency of bluffing

Regardless of how cool it seems in the movies, learning how to bluff well takes a lot of patience and practice. Most inexperienced players feel that they can win the game by bluffing more often but that is almost never the case. Good poker players know how to control their frequency of bluffing. They know that they should bluff only when they can corner their opponent into folding. You should never bluff just because you haven’t in a long time.

Use bluffs to break the monotony

If you have used the same strategy for a long time, it might become apparent to your opponents. This will leave you vulnerable to other good players. You can use a bluff or two to get out of the same betting pattern and mix things up a little. Not only will this leave your opponents guessing, but it will also spice up the game a little for you.

Pay attention to the players sitting out

The players sitting out for the round tend to give out more information than those currently playing because they know that they are inconsequential. However, you can gather valuable information from these people and decide your bluff strategy accordingly. If you see that a person who has folded is looking upset after seeing the community cards, you have a higher chance of bluffing the other players and taking their money.

Finding the right balance between bluffing and playing honest is not easy. It takes years of practice and observation to get to that point. What are the things you keep in mind while bluffing? Are there any red flags that stop you while making a bluff? If yes, then do let us know your thoughts in the comments section!

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