A Simple Poker Truth: Learn How to Play What You’re Dealt, Not What You’re Dreaming Of

[Omar.Imrane]

We all love dreaming about Royal Flushes and monster hands, but poker quickly teaches you a different lesson. Most of the time, you’re not dealt perfection — you’re dealt something average. A small pair, a marginal hand, or sometimes complete trash. And honestly, that’s where real poker begins.

Winning at poker isn’t about waiting for perfect cards or miracle hands. It’s about knowing how to play what you’re actually dealt: reading the table, understanding your opponents, managing your chips, and staying patient when the cards refuse to cooperate.

A Royal Flush is so rare that if you wait for it, your coffee gets cold, your tea gets cold, and sometimes the table closes before it shows up 😅 Most sessions are built on small decisions with average hands, not on fantasy scenarios.

So what about you? Do you usually wait for big hands, or have you learned how to squeeze value from average cards? Any funny stories where a “nothing hand” turned into a surprising win?

 

[black and]

There are countless stories of junk bringing victory. Poker is a game that depends heavily on luck. Sometimes even bingo players can be winners despite their lack of skill and experience.

 

[austral]

You play by thinking in terms of ranges, position, pot size, and opponent type, not whether the hand looks pretty.
You just need to know when to bet, when to control the pot, and when to walk away.

 

[margmilo44]

Waiting for monsters feels safe, but it’s usually just another way of bleeding blinds and missing opportunities. Learning how to stay patient, read tendencies, and make good decisions with average holdings is where the real edge lives. That’s also where the mental game matters most, because it’s easy to get frustrated when the deck won’t cooperate.

 

[Roller]

In poker, one of the fastest ways to lose is to play the hand you wish you had instead of the one actually in front of you. Chasing miracle cards, forcing bluffs that don’t fit the board, or refusing to fold because “it could get there” turns skill into hope—and hope is not a strategy. The best players accept reality instantly and make the most profitable decision with the information they have right now.

 

[antonis32123]

I don't want to play only big cards . I want to play more hands , especially in position with good pot odds . Play suited cards , play pairs . But unfortunately I don't get good hands often , I miss [he glop so many times , unlucky extremely I am .

 

[diegovasques90]

Medium-sized hands are generally the ones with the most chips. They will defeat AK, AQ, AJ, KQ and make you rich.

The detail is to know when and how to play those average hands. In the UTG region it is almost impossible.

 

[dompoker]

Sometimes, I have entered with whatever comes, sometimes I have won, most of the time I haven't, when I realize that my bankrol was diminishing a lot, so the best thing is to wait for regular or good hands to enter the game, or maybe it depends on the luck of each person.

 

[csabika94]

Let's add that it matters what you play! Cash or competitive? In both cases, if you have already developed your respect, you do not always have to force only the premium cards.