This
article is primarily for lower stakes online
poker, but the advice can be used in your
live game too. It is is based on my online
poker playing experiences and the studying
of the game I've done over the past two
years.
Choosing
the right table is one of the most important
factors to being a winning poker player.
One of the biggest leaks in most no limit
holdem players games is their lack of game
selection. Take a minute and make No
Limit Holdem Table Selection a priority
in your game and you will see positive results
in the bankroll.
Do not just sit down and start playing poker
in the first seat you see open, or even
worse getting on the waiting list for the
first available table. Even worse - if you
do not leave a bad table once you know it
is bad! Get up, there are plenty more. Don't
be an ego player - go find a more profitable
spot. Don't sit there and play at a bad
table!
There is absoultely no need for this, especially
if you are playing online poker. Yes, if
you are playing live sometimes you don't
have the choice of tables, but online poker
is different. Most online poker rooms offer
numerous tables at the stakes you're looking
for.
Online poker rooms love the '1st available
seat' option they offer. It gets you playing
quicker and contributing to the rake quicker.
Most sites even have an automatic seat finding
button you can push. When you log into bodog
poker, for example, you can enter a quickseat
mode where it puts you in an available seat
with out ever taking you to the lobby. This
is a Huge Mistake!
Take a few minutes and do some table
selection. Always at check the lobby and
do a quick look over the available tables.
On Poker
Stars, you can view the average pot
size, and the % of players seeing the flop.
This gives you a good base to pick out a
juicy table or two.
With so many different tables to choose
from online you should always
search out a good table
and second
LEAVE a bad table as soon
as you realize it is bad.
Here are some of the things that I look
for when selecting a NL table.
I'll normally play in the smaller stakes,
the $50 buy-in and sometimes if I've been
running good the $100 buy-ins.
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1. PLAYERS & POT SIZES...
As a general rule, 6-8 players with a fairly
large average pot size.
With most online
poker sites you can see the average
pot size and how many players are seeing
the flop. Large pots are better as this
generally means more loose players, playing
no limit I'm looking to win big hands when
I've got the nuts, not to grind down opponents
by blind stealing and small pot stealing.
I avoid most really tight games, rocks are
boring and unprofitable typically. No limit
is about getting paid off when you hit your
monster, not stealing blinds all day.
A good table for me is one that is loose,
but that is also not overly aggressive.
I'm looking for a lot of players limping
or calling small raises pre-flop.
2. The average number of
players seeing the flop...
If you can see the average # of
players seeing the flop, this is a hugely
vital stat to use. Lower limits you can
easily find something around 35-40%, which
is pretty darn loose. Find this stat and
then get one with a higher than average
pot.
Sites like Bodog
and Sportsbook.com
will show you how many players are seeing
the flop on average. I look for games with
high averages seeing the flop, anything
over 40% is usually good and very easy to
find online.
The majority of times this makes for a good
table as a tight aggressive player will
play between 20% and 35% of any given hands
on average, and in my opinion 35% is loooooose.
3.
Watch the Button go around the table at
least once - and pay attention!
Now that you've found a table with numbers
that look pretty good its time to actually
take a quick overhead view of the table
and see what happens. Open up the table
but do not sit down, or if you want you
can sit down but not take your cards yet.
If you are playing at Poker Stars, here
is a screen shot of the table.
Take an open seat and pay attention! Watch
the button go all the way around the table
and take an initial assement of the table.
Here are the things to look for:
| A.
Players limping and then
calling a late position raise
with weak holdings (hands like
KQo, KJo, KTo, and other dominated
hands like QJ (this
is a good sign) |
| B.
Look around the table at the current
stack sizes - normally avoid tables
where more than 3 players have
3 to 4 times the maximum buy in
amount. These players can easily
push me out of pots or have me
committed early. They also might
be solid players. (bad
sign) |
| C.
Take notice of the cards people
are showing down. Look for weak
holdings outside of the blinds
offsuit small one gappers, Ace
rag unsuited, and the plethora
of other bad cards people play
with. (more
junk the better)
|
| D.
Take notice of who raises and
who calls raises - are premium
hands raised huge or limped with
and are other players calling
raises with weak holdings (good) |
| E.
Any Maniacs at the table? - is
there a crazy bettor or people
who seem to be out to hit miracle
cards by calling big bets? (good
depending on seat)
If you can get position on them
(acting afterwards) you can get
paid off when you hit a monster
against them. The only problem
is that you almost have to hit
your hand to beat this player
so you need to also feel confident
that they will also pay you off
when you do. |
| F.
Who are the two worst players
at the table? (can't
tell? BAD) Pick
out two players that are playing
weak and have made mistakes. See
who is playing really loose, who
is playing really tight. |
| G.
Look for players making small
raises (1-2x the BB) with premium
hands or even slow playing. (good,
probably inexperienced players) |
|
4. YOU MUST HAVE A GOOD SEAT
RELATIVE TO THE REST OF THE TABLE...
A. This means sitting directly to the left
of the Maniacs and the other Big Stacks
so you always act after them. If you have
a big hand you have the option to disguise
it by letting them bet it for you. If you
have a weak hand you can let it go fairly
easily.
B. Give up position to short stacks/tight
players - no problem letting the act after
you if they are only going to play strong
hands or not get involved often.
If you find the right
combination of table factors and good relative
seat then snag it! Since you've been watching
the action already you can post as soon
as you sit down if you want. This helps
portray a loose image. If the big blind
is 4 seats or less away from me I'll wait
and post as soon as I sit down, although
I sometimes post right away to make people
think I'm loose.
5. IF THE TABLE TURNS COLD,
GET UP AND MOVE...
Nothing is worse than staying at a bad table.
Many times you'll find yourself sitting
at a table with a bunch of tight and aggressive
players. Unless you are wanting to work
on your game, get up and move and go make
money. Don't think that you've got something
to prove.
6. TAKE NOTES...
I logged on to Party Poker yesterday to
play a tourney with some friends and there
were over 70,000 players playing right then.
You'll probably never see a player again
but if you find anyone who is horrible,
take a note and especially when you find
the good players, make a note. It could
save you your stack later.
I recommend reading through Full
Tilt Poker Download Guide for a step
by step tutorial on setting a your online
poker account. This is a great resource
for new players.
Thanks and we'll see you at the tables!
Spry
KickAssPoker.com
Check out my FREE
Poker Strategy Videos!
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