Continuing your Texas Holdem education
How long does it take a person to become an all-round player at Texas Holdem? Well keeping in mind that to be an all round player at this form of poker involves having knowledge of limit holdem, no-limit holdem, pot limit holdem and also being adept at cash games and tournaments alike. Then we have differences in stack sizes and game sizes from full-ring to heads up play. So it is clear then that becoming adept at Texas Holdem involves a very serious course of poker education and this is not something that can be mastered in a few short weeks or even months.
Most people do not master even one form of holdem for one very important reason. This is because they fail to master themselves or they fail to understand themselves as people and end up trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. It took me many years of trying to finally get around to having an all round education at Texas Holdem. Because of the ever changing nature of the game and the fact that the playing dynamic is constantly changing then you really have no option but to continue learning about the game.
I have found that during my career that I have gone through periods where I have made very good money but then lost money. Usually this is nothing more than just plain old fashioned variance but often there are deeper and darker reasons for bad runs and this can either be a combination of bad play or bad value in games where your opponents are simply too strong for you. So it is clear then that skill and results do not always go hand in hand.
I have heard of many players who have made very substantial amounts of money who then let their ego get the better of them and played too high against players that were too good. I was one such player once upon a time so I am well aware of the dangers. learning Texas Holdem isnt just about learning how to play cards, it is also about learning about yourself and how you own attitude to risk and mindset fits in with playing poker full stop.
I always believe that a close and thorough study of poker highlights a lot about persons own personality and character. Playing poker exposes this and you must be alert to what your inner voice is telling you. If you are uncomfortable within a poker environment then the chances are that you will not do well playing poker in that environment. This could apply to the stakes that you are playing or the poker that you are playing or a combination of reasons.
Many people are simply not cut out to play poker at all and it has absolutely nothing to do with intelligence or a lack of it. People without discipline or are strongly risk adverse will be unable to make the grade and these people may be highly intelligent.
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