Don't 'Tap the Fish Tank' and Let Beginner Free Online Poker Players Play!

Perhaps one of the most disturbing trends in poker in recent years even on free online poker sites is the increasing number of so-called "good players" that regularly criticize those who play poorly. Chasing away "fish" makes little sense for anyone who wishes to win money playing poker. The surest way to win money is to play against inferior opponents who don't realize that they're poor players. That's why people say that you shouldn't "tap the fish tank" or "tap the aquarium."

You want to people to gamble. You even want fish to get lucky a few times so that they'll keep gambling. That is why you should try to treat fish with respect. You want them to enjoy themselves and have a good time.

Applauding or praising a poor move may encourage an opponent to continuingly make the same mistakes. However, this may be outside of a players moral standing and would be considered a hustle or "setting the fishes bait".

If you don't feel like hustling the fish, then you should at least try keeping it jovial at the table. By creating a fun atmosphere at the free online poker tables, people will care less about the money that they're throwing around and start playing loose and wild. This is what you want if you're a good player. You'll be playing solid poker, while they'll be throwing their money away.

No one likes being disrespected and the chances are if you're obnoxious or impolite, your fish will find another bowl to swim in (table to play at) and inevitably take their purse with them. By pushing this opponent away you will have potentially pushed away money you could have won from their blunders.

Take a moment to think about if all players were decent? Poker would be one hard game to win at or more to the point make any money from.

The main goal of playing good poker is to make as many correct decisions as you can, while forcing your opponents to make as many incorrect decisions as you can. It's much easier to encourage bad players to make bad decisions, so you shouldn't scare them away. In the long run, you'll profit from their bad plays.

The game of Poker is competitive, and by pointing out opponents mistakes you will not only get the fishes back up- you will be helping them develop. They may take this one step further and decide to take some time away from the table to find ways to improve. Like most things- the more you play the better you become, especially when your opponents helping you realise your errors. Sure enough the fish soon develops into a competent player and the chances of taking their money has gone from a given to a struggle.

The modern game is fast becoming harder to win; this is partly due to the masses of knowledge that's available to learn from. The difference in standard today compared to when I first started playing many years ago is massive.

I continue to play free online poker where there's still plenty of cash available to win- but you will never catch me "tapping the fish tank"!!