In feudal Japan, a shinobi or ninja was a mercenary or covert agent specializing in deception, espionage, and surprise attacks. While Japan’s era of samurai and shotguns is long gone, the country does have one or two surviving ninjas. However, the dark arts of silent assassination and espionage are dying. Fortunately, the art is kept alive in other forms, such as learning how to play poker like a ninja. Needless to say, it doesn’t involve assassinating someone but learning the other aspects of being a ninja, such as how to observe and gather information about your poker opponents, how to be quick in making decisions, how to hide your genuine expressions and intent when playing poker, etc.
Furthermore, ninjas symbolize intelligence, strength, discipline, and skill. These legendary fighters are masters of stealth techniques. They are highly trained in gathering enemy information, infiltrating territories, and analyzing their strength without being detected. Ninjas utilize tactics, illusions, and strategies to achieve their goals. Similarly, poker games demand a lot of strategies, skills, and discipline. You can become a poker champion by mastering the art of controlling your expressions and emotions. Also, it would help if you learned to make quick decisions and prioritize what’s important. Like a ninja, poker players need to get information from their opponent players and use it against them to emerge victoriously.
So, are you ready to learn how to play poker in ninja style? Here are a few things you can apply during your next game.
- Remember to keep your nerves under check throughout the game
Staying calm and composed is a surefire way to become a poker champion. But imagine if ninjas overreacted to every little thing or took things personally. They would never achieve their goals and might even get caught.
So, if you want to take your poker game to the next level, you must control your emotions. Irrespective of what’s happening at the virtual poker room or the poker table, don’t let your nerves betray you.
The key to maintaining a competitive edge over the opponents is the focus. It would help if you did not get distracted from your goal and finish the task at hand. Therefore, when playing online poker games, ensure to turn off your email notifications, social media alerts, text messages, etc. These things might distract you and take your mind away from the game.
- Master the art of camouflage
Did you know deception is a superpower? Often, you would see ninjas wearing black attire and masks in movies. Their appearance helps them blend with the surroundings and become a part of the shadows. Similarly, you can master the art of camouflage and deception to appear unpredictable to your opponents during a poker game. Your opponents won’t understand your betting pattern and style of play, which gives you an upper hand.
So, ensure always to keep your opponents guessing which cards you are holding.
- Learn to acknowledge your mistakes
Perfection is a dream that everyone’s after. However, nobody in this world is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes, and you must believe that you will make several mistakes during a poker game. Even experienced poker players are not immune to this.
Suppose things don’t work according to your strategies and plan, don’t beat yourself up for it. Instead, you need to acknowledge your mistakes and move on. It is essential to learn from them so the same mistakes aren’t repeated. That’s how ninjas learn and improve their skills.
Also, you must be willing to take risks. If you have self-doubt, it will ruin your game, and you might lose. Learn to face defeat graciously and know that you cannot win every round of poker.
An additional tip would be joining poker communities to discuss your mistakes and learn from others. It might help you to even learn a few new tricks for your upcoming online poker match.
- Don’t forget to practice and sharpen your skills
Nobody becomes a ninja overnight. It is an art that must be practiced and honed. Similarly, you need to hone your poker-playing skills through practice. Play practice games as many times as possible to learn the rules by heart and try out different tactics. These free games will also teach you to learn from your mistakes.
Practice games are designed similar to poker tournaments. You’ll face your opponents and get the opportunity to sharpen your skills. Furthermore, you will become adept at handling complicated situations and keeping your emotions in check. Improved decision-making abilities and better focus are other pluses of playing practice games. When you feel confident in your skills, you can switch to partake in tournaments.
Wrapping up
Poker is one of the most entertaining and challenging card games to master. The game requires the application of advanced cognitive and mental skills. Players must control their emotions and learn the art of deception. Successful poker players need to be unpredictable so their opponents cannot call them out on their deception. Therefore, only learning the basic rules of poker will not take you far. You need to think and act like a ninja to achieve your goals. Adopt stealth as your secret weapon, and don’t let your opponents understand what cards you are holding.
So, if you are ready to play poker games online, keep in mind the ninja-style playing tips mentioned above. If you can master those skills, it may take you far.
