As in life, you typically know when you are making a bad decision in poker. This occurs when the move you are planning to make goes against your better judgment. Although you know what you are about to do is the wrong thing, you do it anyway. As you sit there with no chips in front of you, you are left thinking "why can't I make the correct decision when I knew what to do?" Here is a little something that can help you work on making better decisions. Obeying these 10 Commandments of Texas Holdem can help keep you out of trouble, and hopefully lead to some great rewards.

1. Thou shalt be the aggressor.
   When you watch the pros play, you rarely see them calling bets to the river. Yet, when playing with amateurs, you will see it happen nearly every hand. Passive play allows others to dictate the action at the table. When you play aggressively, you are the one in control.



2. Thou shalt assume a preflop limp-raise means KK or AA.
   How many times have you seen this happen? A player limps in from first position and the button raises the pot with a good hand like JJ. The first position player then makes a big reraise and the button is put to the test. Unless the limper is a very aggressive player, you can be confident that he needs a hand like KK or AA to make that type of move.



3. Thou shalt not ignore pot odds.
   The best example of this is when a player calls huge bets on the flop and turn with nothing more than a flush draw. His odds are 4 to 1 of hitting the hand, while he is getting much worse odds on his money. Never make a call because "you had a feeling it would hit." Make the call because it was the right call to make.



4. Thou shalt not bluff bad players.
   As the number of new players increases, the skill level of the majority decreases. Many times, good plays will not be rewarded for a bluff because their opponents do not know they should lay their hand down. You raise preflop and continue betting through the river with a broken hand only to lose to a player calling you down with pocket 2s.



5. Thou shalt not overplay one's hand.
   In the last article, we talked about how players can lose focus when they see pocket aces or other high pocket pairs. The same holds true when you hit top pair with an Ace kicker, or when you have an overpair. Analyze the situation and do not talk yourself into a huge bet or call when you think you may be beaten by a set, flush, straight, or other powerful hand.



6. Thou shalt not play when tired or on tilt.
   Both of these situations can lead to some horrible plays. When you play tired, you may miss tells at the table or not read potential winning hands on the board. Players on tilt often have the mindset that they can double up and recoup their losses in one hand. This is very dangerous thinking that typically puts you further in the hole.



7. Thou shalt not play for more than one can afford to lose.
   Whenever you are playing poker, you need to be able to separate yourself from the money on the table. The chips should no longer represent cash, but rather weapons in an epic battle. Once you start thinking "if I lose this hand my car payment will be late," you have already lost. Play at a level where you can make the best move based on the information at the table and not the consequences away from it.



8. Thou shalt not slow play aces.
   This doesn't mean you can't limp in hoping for a reraise opportunity. Just remember when four other players limp in behind you, you only have 1 pair after an aceless flop and need to play it accordingly.



9. Thou shalt not make opening bets based on hand strength.
   The standard opening raise is typically 3 to 4 times the value of the big blind, if no one has yet entered the hand. Whether you are attempting a steal raise with 67 suited or you hold pocket kings, a standard raise disguises the strength of your hand and keeps your opponents guessing.



10. Thou shalt not ignore the signs of opponent strength.
    Your opponent raises preflop and you make a loose call with a suited ace. You miss the flop completely, but make a probing bet only to find yourself up against a reraise. Your opponent has shown strength preflop and on the flop, so now is not the time to push in all of your chips on a bluff.