Types of Poker Players

Poker players, and indeed entire poker games, can be characterised as either tight or loose:

Loose Players
A loose player stays in every hand until the showdown, bets and raises with mediocre hands, and although they can be lucky and ocasionally draw a great hand, they generally lose more money than they win.

Tight Players
A tight player folds most hands before ever making a bet. They don't spend money throwing chips into the pot to save earlier bets. They know a bad hand is a bad hand, and generally avoids bluffs.

In short the best situation, is to be a tight player in a table full of loose players. Be patient, lose a little money on lots of hands, till the right hand comes along then play big, raising at every opportunity.

The stats available at most poker rooms offer a slight glimpse into how 'loose' a table is, simply play at the table which has the highest percentage of players who betted at the flop.