Types of poker players

Poker players have a unique style and there exist many types of poker personalities with each having their own attributes and a distinct style of playing. While playing poker one comes across such varied styles of playing that you need to be able to identify the type of personality you are playing against. This helps in determining and devising your own playing strategy.

Most common types of poker personalities are:

• The Fish (The calling stations)

• The Weak-Tight players

• The Maniac (Loose aggressive)

• The Rock (Super tight)

• The Strong-Aggressive players

The Fish

The fish is considered the weakest image in poker personalities. They are most ubiquitous class of players who have poor judgment and worst hand selection strategies. They call about anything and everything, which has led to them being called by the name of ‘The Calling Stations’. Low on skill, they invest in many hands and tend to loose in doing so.

They are bad players and hence when they remain in the pot, it is quite evident that they possess a good hand. It is advisable to play straight in such situation. They also have a knack of bluffing with low hands.

The Weak-Tight Players

They are well versed with poker rules and bet on a slightly better hands. However, there is shortcoming that is they are afraid. Even with fair hands, they tend to check or call instead of raising the bet. They seldom raise and when you raise the bet, the most appropriate step for them is to call or fold. Hence, some aggressive players on the table can easily bully them.

The Maniac

The Maniac is a special class of players who play quite similar to the fishes i.e. many hands at a time but raise and re-raise their bets making it difficult for you to determine whether they are bluffing or actually possess a good hand. Playing tight game against these players is often a successful tactic.

The Rock

The Rock are known for their super tight play as they wager only on premium hands and as a result give a clear indication of the set of cards they are possessing. Playing very less hands and raising the bet by The Rock is enough hint for others to play cautiously and better stay away from that hand.

The Strong Aggressive Players (Sharks)

These players are the best out of all the above and one should aim to become the same. A sound player with excellent grasp of the game and equally good in changing tactics, devising new strategies, they are the controllers of the table. The ability to change gears at any point of time gives them the advantage over other players. They players fear the strong aggressive players the most.

With the above-mentioned types of personalities, it is easy to judge the player and hence play accordingly. Nevertheless, we should never underestimate the player capabilities and the fact that he may be projecting a false image on the table. Such players are very clever to make you believe of what they not really are.