15 Common Poker Mistakes — And How to Avoid Them

Why a list of mistakes?

Most books focus on "what to do." The result: a player reads, gets excited, sits at the table — and keeps making the same mistakes. Fixing bad habits matters twice as much as learning new techniques. This list is ordered from the most severe leaks down to lighter tactical slips.

The 5 fatal mistakes (Preflop)

These are the mistakes that cause especially deep losses — because they repeat on every single hand:

• Playing too many hands (VPIP above 25% at a full table)
• Cold-calling a raise from early position ("maybe I'll hit the flop")
• 3-betting too small — inviting calls
• Limping (call-only) on the Big Blind — and not closing the hand with a C-Bet
• Not adjusting your range by position (playing the same hand from UTG and BTN)

5 classic postflop mistakes

• Giving up the C-Bet on dry boards (K-7-2 rainbow) — almost always profitable
• Being afraid to check-raise — giving up value against the opponent's medium ranges
• Chasing a draw without calculating pot odds
• Bluffing calm rivers where the opponent is not ready to fold there
• Clinging to "I already put chips in" — the sunk cost fallacy

5 bankroll and psychology mistakes

• Playing a limit too high for your bankroll (fewer than 30 buy-ins in cash games)
• Not leaving the table after a big loss — clear tilt
• Playing sessions that are far too long
• Not reviewing hands after a session
• Not setting session goals (stop-loss and stop-win)

How do you know which mistakes you're making?

The best tool is PokerCraft on GGPoker (built-in, no extra charge). It shows your VPIP, PFR, 3-bet%, and your losing hands. After one hour of review, you will identify at least 3 mistakes you repeat. The PokerGG.co.il agent also helps members spot patterns in Hebrew and without judgment.