The Rake--- Expenses need to be minimized

"Beating the Rake

To be realistic, the house already has an edge on you.

The rake is built in so that the house takes money from you in small, unnoticed amounts. There are a few guidelines you can go by to minimize this...

Some poker rooms will only rake the pot once it has reached a certain amount, so you want to play opposite the style of the table in these cases...

You can exploit tight players through tactics such as blind stealing and through buying free cards. Blind stealing is simply betting when only blinds are left in the game pre-flop. You can raise from the small blind position or from the position just before the small blind (usually the dealer's position) to try and steal the cost of the two blinds. Buying a free card is a trick best used in last position. If no one else has raised post-flop, then you bet. This will most likely cut down on the number of players (and potential money in the pot), but everyone who stays will tend to check to you. Then on the turn, after everyone has checked you don't necessarily have to bet again. That is why it's called a free card. It's best used with drawing hands, too.

When playing against aggressive players, you tighten up"More