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If you're in late position (as in the last or near last to make a betting decision) you will get a good chance to see what everyone else does before you. Half the table may have folded their cards, or a couple of players may have just called a bet. If you're last to act you may want to punish such passiveness with a raise.

Play strong hands in late position, but mix it up with marginal hands like Q-10, J-9, A-9 and so on in an unraised pot. Plus, your aggressive play before the flop can add credibility to any strong play you might want to use on the next round if a garbage flop falls and you want to try a steal. Be ready to fold your high pair if you get a lot of action with a threatening flop.

Conversely, if you're in early position, such as after the big blind or next to them (Under the Gun, or UTG+1), you should stick to playing with strong hands that will hold up to raises. It's all well and good raising A-10 UTG but what if a player re-raises you from late position - what are you going to do now? And if you call, you'll be first to act after the flop has been dealt. You will have no idea what the player in late position is going to do after you.

Some players advocate not even playing ANY hands in early position, but if you do, make sure they're decent.

As much a vital tip with online poker as it is with live betting for cash, make sure you have your bankroll sorted before you start playing for real money.

It's easy to have dollar signs appear in front of your eyes and want to dive into that $50 tournament or $5/10 cash game. But if you don't have the funds behind you if things go bad, you'll quickly go bust.

The best advice is to set aside a certain amount of money you're prepared to bet with. If you take a hit, drop down the levels, build your bankroll back up, then make a jump up the stakes if you're comfortable.

As a rule of thumb, when playing cash games you should have 20-30 buy-ins set aside (especially if you're playing more than one table). For tournaments, a bankroll of 50 buy-ins is sensible. This way you can handle the swings and reload without any worries.

If you're looking to play seriously, learning to multi-table poker online is a key element of your online poker career.

Multi-tabling simply means loading up your screen with as many real money poker tables as you can possibly manage at once. Many pros will play between 16 and 24 online poker games simultaneously - whether they're cash games, Sit 'n' Gos, or tournaments - as this allows for faster play, more volume and a higher ROI (return on investment). Also, if you've signed up to one of our recommended poker rooms with a deposit bonus, multi-tabling will ensure a faster play-through of any real money bonus you want to activate.

The concept of counting cards is fairly simple – keeping track of which cards are still left in the deck, to help you decide on your next move. Although this is a popular tactic in blackjack, things are a little more complicated with poker. It’s especially useful when you haven’t yet made a strong hand, but you know that if the right card comes your way you are likely to be holding the winner.

1. Consider which cards you need to complete your desired hand, for example a heart to complete a flush, or a 7 to make an inside straight.

2. Based on how many of that number or suit are already visible on the table, you can count how many are left in the unseen cards (cards left in the deck plus cards of your opponents). These are your ‘outs’.

3. By dividing the total number of unseen cards by the number of your outs, you can get an indication of your chances of getting a desired card (the lower the number you get, the better your chances of hitting your card and winning the pot).

Finally, and this is particularly for you cash game fans, consider buying some tracking software. Heads-Up Displays (HUDs), such as PokerTracker 4, sit on your poker room's software and allows you to track other players at your table. It's invaluable if you're planning on taking detailed notes on regular opponents.