Common Poker Myths - 11 Poker Facts That Are Just Not True
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When we think about poker stories we think about monster pots, great poker game and plays by the pros, amazing card reading and more. What about the poker myths?
I’m sure you’ve heard about some of the myths mentioned in this article, maybe you believe them but after you read this poker myths article, you’ll understand that some things are not as they seem and it’s time to get some stories and facts about poker straight – These are some of the common myths surrounding the poker world and it’s time to shake them off…
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Now to some common poker myths and we've also included the video version of this piece at the bottom of the article, so enjoy!
1. Online Poker is Rigged
Maybe the most common myth around the poker world is that online poker is rigged, but it’s not surprising that this statement comes from players who mostly lose their money playing online poker and find themselves depositing money again and again to their poker account and bankroll.
So no, online poker is not rigged. Just as you can lose at poker cash games from bad beats, bad plays, bad games or even bad players who chase you down, the same applies for online poker. Just ask the poker pros like Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey and others, they also lose at online poker, but they don’t claim it’s rigged, they just change their game and win all over again, remember that poker is not 100% win at all times, you have to work for your money and work hard.
If this answer does not satisfy you, then you should know that every online poker room uses a Random Number Generator (RNG) that randomly chooses from a 52 card deck on every single hand.
So remember:
1. There are not too many bad beats
2. Cards are not fixed to keep the players playing
3. Cards are not fixed in order to build bigger pots
Master the game, learn more and get your game better and in the long run if you’re serious about poker and your game, you’ll be able one day to earn money at online poker and maybe even make a living of it just like many poker pros.
2. Cashing Out Curse
Believe it or not, but there is a myth that claims that if you withdraw from your poker bankroll, you will suffer bad luck in future hands and lose your money not too long after your withdrawal.
Well, there’s no sense to make you lose your money because the poker rooms take rake from your plays and if you can’t play, how will they earn their money? Ever thought of that?
Online poker rooms don’t care if you withdraw or not and are not there to teach you a lesson, just like you they are there to make money, so this is just another myth that is kept alive by bad poker players.
3. Good Poker Players Always Win
Have you ever seen a poker player that is always profitable and always wins? There is a myth that claims that if you’re a good poker player, you can win at any poker room and table and be profitable no matter where you play.
This is absolutely not true! Sure, in the long run the good poker players will win, but poker cannot guarantee you 100% win, even the best players in the world like Tom Dwan or Phil Hellmuth suffer losses from time to time from various reason like a bad poker day, bad plays they made, bad beats, poor bankroll management and other reasons.
The big difference is that good poker players always analyze their plays after the game and try to avoid mistakes made, thus improve their game while bad or mediocre players blame online poker for being rigged, bad players that don’t understand the concept of the game (“donkeys”), chase cards and pay ridiculous amounts for their chasings and other irrational reasons to their losses.
4. Winning at Poker is all about Reading Your Opponents
The myth is that winning at poker is all about reading your opponents. Well, it is true that your odds at winning the game will greatly improve if you’ll be able to read the opponents around the table, yet it’s not the only way to win the game.
First, you cannot really read your opponents at online poker rooms, you don’t see nor hear them, you cannot read their body language, hear their tone of voice, you cannot ask questions, yet you can win at online poker.
If you know your poker math, poker strategy and adjust your game according to the players you face at the table, you will win at online poker (and cash games as well) even without reading the physical signs of your opponent, seeing or hearing him.
5. Bad Poker Players Are Hard to Beat
The myth is that bad poker players will always call your bet and eventually end up outdrawing you when you have the better or best hand and that is why it is very hard to beat bad poker players, or is it?
You can beat any poker player around the table, you just have to adjust your game according to your opponents, know when to be aggressive against players who afraid to lose or play tight against players who call your every bet.
From time to time every player will get lucky and catch the cards he was chasing, that doesn’t mean you cannot win bad players, because if you play poker according to the right strategy of the table and your game then in the long run the odds are in your favor and you will win more than the bad players who will end up losing their bankroll, it’s plain mathematics and you cannot fool mathematics.
6. You Suffer More Bad Beats at Online Poker
Playing online poker means suffering more bad beats than playing at casinos, cash games and home games. Really?
There’s a reason this is a myth, because the cards at online poker rooms are drawn randomly just like at live cash games or at your home games with family and friends.
Do you remember that online poker is not rigged or fixed? So where does this myth come from? Well, there are two main reasons why you could suffer “more” bad beats at online poker games, but it’s not because the rooms are fixed, it’s because of these reasons:
1. You play more hands at online poker rooms, thus you’ll suffer more bad beats. Again, it’s all about probabilities and math.
2. You may suffer more bad beats playing online because players are not so afraid of playing poorly at online poker rooms.
7. In Order to Succeed at Poker You Have to Master Mathematics
There’s an assumption that good poker players are math wizards and geniuses, know to run complicated math in their heads before making any decision while playing their hand, thus winning more around the table.
It is true that knowing the basic poker math will help you win more, yet knowing the basics like odds of hitting a straight or a flush with one or two more cards to come can be enough to win at the table if you apply theses basics in your game, thus knowing when to bet, raise or fold…no need to be a genius.
8. All the Poker Pros Are Millionaires and Live the Good and Glamorous Lifestyle
Yes, this is another poker myth as not all poker pros are millionaires and not all of them live the exciting lifestyle you think about. You see, there are times when these pros catch a cold and losing streak and lose almost all their bankroll, forcing them to build it all over again, but that’s what makes them pros – knowing to get up and win the millions they had and lost.
Second, a lot of poker pros tend to gamble on sports and play the various casino games, eventually they lose a lot of money (yes, losing millions) and thus they are no longer considered millionaires after losing at those games and bets, no matter how much they won at poker games, they keep losing it at sports bets and casino games.
Lastly, many of these poker pros are “backed” by other people and because of that, the pros get to keep only a small percentage of the money they win at the poker tables. So, next time you watch poker shows like High Stakes Poker or Poker after Dark, remember that not all winnings go to the poker player’s bank account, most of it probably goes to the people who back them up.
9. The Player Who Wins the WSOP Main Event is the Best Player in the World
The $10,000 buy-in WSOP Main Event is considered by many as the unofficial world championship of poker, but that doesn’t mean that the winner of the event is the best poker player that year.
In this specific tournament which takes several days, then you have a break of a few months and then you continue to play the final table it takes a combination of things to win the event like luck and skill and sometimes amateurs beat pros in this long event, yet that doesn’t mean they are better poker players.
You want an example? Let’s put Jerry Yang or Jamie Gold against Patrik Antonius and Phil Laak, who do you think will win in the long run? Now you get the point and the fact that this is purely a myth.
10. Some People Are Just Born to be Winning Poker Players
Really? You think so? Okay, so let’s start with the fact that winning at poker in the long run takes a lot of time, dedication, will and learning, a lot of learning and game experience.
Sure, not all poker pros read all the books out there or had tutoring with poker masters, but they played and lost and played and lost but always learned from their mistakes, learned their opponents and dedicated their lives to the game of poker and master it.
Daniel Negreanu dropped out of high school, Phil Ivey started playing poker when he was a teenager, they are not geniuses, they just love the game and had years of experience playing the game and mastering it, never giving up and never surrendered.
So no, people are not born to be winners, they learn to become winners and successful poker players.
11. Men Are Better Poker Players than Women
There are maybe more men poker players than there are women poker players, but that doesn’t mean men are better than women in the game of poker.
There are plenty successful women poker players like Annie Duke, Jennifer Harman, Vanessa Selbst and of-course Annette Obrestad who won an online poker tournament without looking at her hole cards the entire tournament (except once when she was all-in). Now, show me a male poker player who won a tournament this way…
