Poker is not just a card game, but a game of people played with cards. As you progress through the stages towards poker expertise, you will experience moments when you realize how powerful this statement is. In this lesson we’ll be looking at some of the basic poker playing styles that exist and how to spot them. Whether you’re playing online or playing live, when you observe the types of decisions your opponents make you can really pick up on their tendencies, psychologically and emotionally – that can help you determine how best to play against them.

Poker is a game of observation. Therefore the first step to defining a player’s playing style is to observe their general tendencies. This factor is the central core of poker success. Learning your opponents’ proclivities is a must if you intend to become a winning player. Every action an opponent takes means something. Why from that position did player x raise or just call? It cannot be stressed enough to pay attention, especially when not in a hand (which should be the majority of the time) to learn how your opponents think and act.

Speaking of seven-card stud, razz poker is a variation of seven card stud that's played only for low. It will likely become either your most beloved or most detested game of all time. It's one of those love-it-or-hate-it endeavors that just might catch on with you and your friends.

Defining Poker Playing Styles

Texas Holdem, Omaha, and many others, as long as its a poker game then you are in a poker room. For this reason the types of poker rooms could be: In a Live Casino. On your Computer Playing Online. In your Basement Games Room. Any Building with Tables and Chairs designed for a Poker Event.
Of the 1,326 combinations, there are 169 distinct starting hands grouped into three shapes: 13 pocket pairs (paired hole cards), 13 × 12 ÷ 2 = 78 suited hands and 78 unsuited hands; 13 + 78 + 78 = 169. The relative probability of being dealt a hand of each given shape is different.

Each poker player can be broken down into two primary factors which will broadly define their playing style. They are as follows: tight vs. loose and passive vs. aggressive.

All Types Of Poker Hands

Tight vs. Loose

This first primary factor is shown in a player’s starting hand selection

Tight poker players usually play a small number of only the best hands.
Loose poker players will often play a wide variety of hands.

Being tight or loose doesn’t necessarily refer to how somebody plays their hand, but merely the selection of hands that they play. They’re either going to play a tight range of hands or a loose range of hands. How they play those hands – whether it is passive or aggressive – is going to dictate how you play against them.

Passive vs. Aggressive

A players passiveness or aggressiveness is displayed in their risk tolerance.

Passive poker players tend to avoid confrontation and play with a fear of losing.
Aggressive poker players raise more than call and are not afraid to put chips at risk.

By observing your opponents you’ll be able to categorize them based on what you see. Each poker player you encounter will have some degree in which these factors make up their personality but you have to start somewhere. The first step is to determine whether they are tight or loose. If an opponent folds most of their hands then mark them as tight. If they tend to play a lot of hands, mark them as loose. The next factor to determine is whether they are passive or aggressive. Do they call and check more often than they raise and bet? If so, mark them down as passive. If they bet and raise a lot you can mark them down as aggressive.

The Four Basic Poker Playing Styles

By assessing these factors you will typically see four general playing style combinations:

Tight Passive
Loose Passive
Tight Aggressive (TAG)
Loose Aggressive (LAG)

Knowing these broad characteristics will help you to figure out what a player has based on his betting action in a particular hand. If a loose-aggressive player is betting and raising you are less likely to credit him with a strong hand than if a tight-passive player raises or re-raises, since it’s something they don’t usually do.

Let’s examine these four basic playing styles in more detail:

The Tight-Passive

A typical tight-passive player generally doesn’t play many pots and will often just call pre-flop when they find a hand they like. They will play so tight that when they do play, everyone else folds. So, when they have a good hand they can’t make any money. This type of player is sometimes labelled as a ‘rock’ or a ‘nit’ and the general style of play can also be referred to as ‘weak-passive’. They are easy to bluff and will frequently fold to scary board cards, such as an Ace. The really timid players can also be paralyzed with fear and won’t take shots. This is because they tend to play with a fear of losing. Observant players who have identified a weak, predictable player will always be on the lookout for situations that can be exploited simply because the tight-passive player folds too frequently to aggression.

The Loose Passive

Loose-passive players like to limp into lots of pots. They will call raises “just to see a flop” and will remain in the hand whenever they hit any of it, however marginal. They seldom take chances or become aggressive in their plays and they tend to be “calling stations” when they do. Their whole approach to playing poker is to watch and let others do the risking. Many beginners or even players who’ve played for a long time can fall into the trap of just calling, calling and calling. This is especially true in low buy-in games. They are very obvious to spot and are easy targets. Unlike the tight-passive players, you’re not going to be able to bluff them – you never want to bluff a calling station! But when you do pick up a hand that is fairly strong, you should bet for value and milk as much out of them as you possibly can.

The Tight Aggressive (TAG)

The tight-aggressive player generally doesn’t play many pots. They are selective and generally only play the best starting hands. Unlike the tight-passive players, a tight-aggressive player will play their cards strongly. They are patient and wait for the best opportunities to strike but they are not afraid of betting. The best tight-aggressive players are often labelled as ‘sharks’ because a tight-aggressive style is frequently effective, regardless of the game variation or betting structure. Most observant opponents will avoid clashing with a tight-aggressive player since they’ll assume that they have the best hand and will fold under the pressure.

The Loose Aggressive (LAG)

The loose-aggressive player tends to raise or re-raise a wide variety of hands pre-flop and will often bet on most flops. They can be extremely difficult to read because they play such a wide range of hands. In no-limit hold’em there are some very skilled players who employ a loose-aggressive style of play to great effect. They use their chips as weapons and are constantly applying pressure on their opponents. They will bluff a high percentage of the time and are hard to play against. However, at the extreme end of the loose-aggressive scale is the ‘maniac’ who seemingly raises without rhyme or reason. The maniac’s tendency to overplay his hands means you will almost surely show a profit in the long run against this type of player.

Tricky or Straightforward?

Be aware that nobody fits into very neat or specific groups. Once you’ve put players into an initial category you’re ready for the next step – which is to determine whether or not they are tricky. This is not always easy because poker players tend to fall on a continuum that ranges between extremely tricky and completely straightforward. However, it’s an important step because once you put them somewhere on the scale you can begin to intepret their actions with greater accuracy. For example, let’s suppose a tight-aggressive player raises pre-flop from early position. If he is a straightforward tight-aggressive then you can credit him with a strong hand, such as a premium pair. If you’ve determined that he’s a very tricky player then he might also be mixing it up by raising with two big cards or a suited Ace.

The key to all of this is observation. You really need to observe the players at your table and pick up on their tendencies and understand what type of plays and decisions they make based on their personality types. If you can, st