Keep control of your emotions. Poker can be a huge ego-boosting, adrenalin rush, but it can also be a terrible, confidence-sapping downer. You will, inevitably, experience the extremes of both emotional states, sometimes within a few minutes and a few hands of each other.

If you get hit and lose a big pot, try not to let your opponents see how devastated you are. While you are recovering, do not become morose and depressed - or worse still, angry - but instead ask yourself what, if anything, you did wrong. Could you have played the hand better, or did your opponent just get lucky? If you made a mistake, learn from it; if you played correctly and “took a bad beat”, at least take comfort from the fact that you played the hand well and that you are improving your game. Remember that in the short term, there is a lot of luck in Texas Hold ‘Em. In the long run, however, the cream will always rise to the top.
If you get beaten, try muttering, “nice hand” or even “very nice hand” - it’s a fairly non-committal comment and it acknowledges the cards, rather than your opponent: so it always has a slight edge to it.

If you win a big pot, particularly if it’s a lucky win don’t brag too much. You really don’t want everyone staring you down and seeking revenge. Keep your head down and mutter how lucky you are.

As for the behaviour of others, poker can be a rough, tough game, though, unlike in the movies, you will probably not see the guns come out at the end of a big hand. You will, however, at some stage face angry, frustrated, losing opponents who claim that you are ignorant, lucky, foolish, incompetent and that you don’t know the game. “How could you call?” they’ll ask you. If you’re good with your tongue, knock ‘em dead. If not, smile and tell them you’re learning the game. Then, resolve to get them agam, just as soon as you can.

Above all, don’t forget, this is not a genteel parlour game. It’s war - hand-to-hand combat - and the pressure never lets up. If you don’t like the sound of that, it’s time to look for a different kind of game.