Find a Poker Tutor:

If you like the personal touch, finding a poker tutor (also called a poker mentor) might be the fastest way to improve your game. A poker tutor/student relationship is generally more casual than that of a poker coach/student relationship. Instead of paying a poker coach for a block of time and hammering out question after question, a tutor is the kind of person you’ll talk with over a beer. While you may get more questions answered in a short period of time with a poker coach, you generally won’t have as much time to get into details of a particular hand.

Finding a poker tutor is fairly simple. If you have a friend that has a game you respect, he might be a great tutor for you. Another option for finding a poker tutor is by joining one of the popular poker forums and simply asking if anyone would like to be your tutor. If you play a lot at live casinos, talk to a few people that are consistent winners. You’ll be surprised how easy it is to find someone willing to help you.

Hiring a poker coach to tutor you is a great way to get instant answers. When should I bet at my draws? Was this the correct play in this position? It’s easy to spend hours and hours online searching for quality answers to your questions. A poker coach however, can generate quality answers in a very short period of time. Plus, a lot of the information you’ll find online is written by people who shouldn’t be giving poker strategy advice to begin with.

The biggest drawback to hiring a poker coach is the fee. Most quality poker coaches charge in the $50-$250/hr range. Also, when you have follow up questions, you can call your mentor on the phone for some quick answers. Since a coach charges for his time, this isn’t something you’ll be able to do as easily.

If you prefer to teach yourself, there are plenty of great poker training software programs that players can utilize. Training software is a totally different approach from having a poker tutor or coach. While you don’t have the ability to ask questions to a human being, you do have access to all sorts of information about your game. Using a variety of calculators and hand history anaylsis tools, poker training software offers players a chance to dig deep within their game.

Programs like Texas Calculatem and Poker Office generally cost in the $50-$100 range, and offer a wide variety of learning tools.

Poker instructional videos are another great way for players to self analyze their game. Watch professional poker players discuss their thought processes during actual online play. Some of the best instructional video sites have hundreds of categorized videos, helping you to become a profitable player at your favorite games. The visual aspect of poker instructional videos makes this a great way to get proper strategy concepts stuck in your head. Learn from professional poker players such as Daniel Negreanu, Brian Townsend, Cliff ‘JohnnyBax’ Josephy, Mike Matusow and others.

Most poker intructional video sites have monthly fees in the $25-$30 range, and some have initial signup fees between $99-$150.

Different people learn in different ways. If you’re one of those blessed people who can hear something and know it, hiring a poker coach or finding a mentor is a great way to go. If you do better by watching something in action, you might want to think about signing up for a poker instructional video site. If you’re a mathematical or analytical person, a nice training software program might be the way to go. Whatever type of poker tutor you choose, make sure it offers a style of teaching that suits your individual learning style. This way, you’ll get the most bang for your buck, and your game will improve quickly. Good luck!