I see new players in the card room recently. Not a lot of new players, perhaps one every couple of times I play. I imagine these new players are sitting down for the same reasons we all sat down our first time. They want to play Holdem.

We all want to play for different reasons ranging from having fun, to the first stepping stone to the World Series Of Poker, but we are all there just the same. I see the regulars start to salivate at the sight of a new player. They know the likely outcome before the new player is dealt their first hand.

With all the exposure to poker these days someone sitting down for their first time has the opportunity to gain much more knowledge than almost everyone who sat down for the first time before them. There are excellent books, almost daily poker shows, home games, and the internet available as information resources. New players sit down and mistakenly believe they are well armed and ready to do battle.

In my experience the more a new player believes they are equal to anyone at the poker table, the quicker they find they are leaving the table – broke. Here are some of the most common beginner mistakes I observe being repeated over and over. Fortunately for better players these mistakes are not limited to only beginning players.

Respect the limit – It does not matter if you are playing at the lowest limit available in your card room or the highest limit, the limit of the table must be respected. Playing low limits and thinking each bet is paltry or insignificant because of the stakes is a fatal flaw. You have lost before you play your first hand.

Making too many decisions – Playing good poker is boring. There is nothing exciting about playing good poker, making the least number of decisions possible. If you find yourself having to think about what you should do with your hand in each round of play, you are making too many decisions for your level of experience. You will see other players make great plays that were tough decisions, but you are not them yet.

Playing too loose – I suffered and still occasionally suffer from this even though I thought I started out playing tighter than most players at the table. It is a fun to play loose. It is also expensive to play loose. Two things happen from playing too many hands. The first is you find yourself playing in situations where you really should not be playing your hand. The second is playing too loose tends to mean chasing in hopes of having the best hand on the river. For more experienced and knowledgeable players this is a right choice but not for a beginning player. Stick to hands and positions in your charts from your books or other sources.

Rocks and their friend Tom – Poker terminology changes almost weekly but player types never do. Rocks are players who throw away hand after hand, and when they do play, they show down only the best hands. Tom is a brother or sister of most Rocks.

Tom is an acronym for, ‘Tight Old Man’. Tight old men do not gamble much, and most older men and women you sill sit down with are Toms. They have a limited amount of money they can put towards poker. They may be losing players, but they are tight players and can hurt you. When you are in a hand, and a young Rock, or Tom (no matter their sex )enters the pot before you, stop and think. If you do not have a very good starting hand, you are not losing much by throwing it away preflop. If you call you are probably playing against one of the top ten or twenty Holdem hands.

Everyone at the table knows how to play – Many players once they get a few hours of playing time start thinking they are better than most of the players at the table. This is a major mistake. Everyone you have seen from a prior session knows how to play. They may have looked like poor players due to poor cards or frustration, but they may really be the player you should fear the most. Do not let your ego drain your wallet.

One final thought…if you ignore these few pointers as a beginning player because you know better, you won’t be sitting at the table long. You may not play long anyway because Holdem is more complex than it looks from the outside. Only experience can help you, and you need to play as long as possible with your chips at the table. Don’t be afraid of other players when you sit down, but give them your respect, as they were sitting at the table before you, so they know a little bit about the game. Finally, have fun!