kenshi3
First post, hopefully I posted in right thread.
Its been 5 years since I played poker, the first time I played I bought in at a 1/2 no limit table for $100, first hand some big chip leader called me all in, he had pocket 10s, and I had pocket aces preflop, I called and lost and never played again until today.
Today after 5 hours of 1/2 no Limit sitting at the same spot, I played probably 5% of the hands, My 2 biggest wins were from the same old man who called my all in at turn with nothing =/ So I guess I got pretty lucky. I bought in with $200, max buy in is $300, My highest chips at 1 point was $420. When I lost another $30 in 1 game, I started playing suited mid tier connectors, Ace 6 off suit, etc.. when I usually wait for pocket pairs, AK AQ or AJ. and everytime the flop the came, if i don't hit anything, I would just fold if someone bets. I was only able to bluff 1 game when I had pocket 4s and the board was JJ9. I'm pretty sure everyone knew I was new to this game since I was shaking when betting, forgetting blinds, always folding etc.
At the end of the day I still won $50 after 5 hours. I just want some tips on how I can play this game a little faster and not wait around for a decent hand to play all day?
Also, would it be wise to join tournaments for fun? It only costs like $50 when playing cash game is like $200 lol. How would one get prepared for tournaments?
Thanks !
jontm
Small buy-in Tournaments will be a lot less stressful money wise and more fun in terms of the satisfaction of your finish order. Playing single tables online, preferably even for microstakes though even free to play will give you a chance to repeat basic concepts over and over again and train your tourney brain to recognize the games dynamics.
M-zones and INdividual Chip Model are two things I would think any player will want to evenly roughly understand...good start.
With that said, cash games have their own advantages such as not fighting escalating blinds and being able to walk away at anytime for a profit, or reload, so what is that you enjoy most? Your hand selection will open up as you learn to read the situations better and understand which opponents you should playing looser against. Tight is probably right for now, boring is it maybe, find opponents that are also and just get a little crazy here and there to bring your comfort level up.
compuease
Good advice from Jon above. So where are you in the world, perhaps some local small tournaments?
And I promise, I'm not THAT old man..;)
sn1perb0y
Welcome to the forum :), I personally like tournaments and hate cash games but that's just me.. try to play both and see what you enjoy more and which "style" do you like more..you could like both. They have some differences.
I advice you to read a couple of books, for cash games Harrington's book is really good ( i haven't read it, but the reviews are great, and because its mainly for cash games)
Also there are a lot of great threads about strategy here on the forum so just roam around and read whatever you can put your hand on...
Cheers
Bfillmaff
kenshi3;368022 wrotethe first time I played I bought in at a 1/2 no limit table for $100, first hand some big chip leader called me all in, he had pocket 10s, and I had pocket aces preflop, I called and lost and never played again until today.
Welcome!
Lesson # 1: Don't sweat hands like the above. Pocket aces will lose 1 out of every 5 times, all you need to do is win enough on the other 4 times to cover the one that you don't.
1/2 NL is on the expensive side if you are just starting out!
EdtheTed
Yes, good advice from jontm above. I don't think 1/2 cash games are really for making money because you cannot beat the rake unless you have a real table of fish. It _is_ for 1. relaxing and having a drink and being social. 2. ignoring the fact that you will probably have to raise 8x to 10x the BB in order to get it down to 2 or 3 players. 3. waiting to hit the bad beat jackpot to make _serious_ money. 4. learning a bit by observing people and their mannerisms.
If you try to play 1/2 "faster" then your variance will increase and you may not like that. Small buy in tournaments are a great way to enjoy the game without spending a ton of money. Depending on your location, try to find a .50/1 home game, or a home tournament that includes a cash game when a few people bust out. You can still lose as much money as you want, but the people are very helpful and friendly.
Foxrod
sn1perb0y;368048 wroteWelcome to the forum :),
Also there are a lot of great threads about strategy here on the forum so just roam around and read whatever you can put your hand on...
Cheers
+1, I don't post much poker related stuff but i do read alot of the strategy's some of the more seasoned well rounded players/members post, it's a great source...
You'd prolly need a Poker glossary for all the acronyms used, I know i do...lol
GTA Poker
EdtheTed;368215 wroteYes, good advice from jontm above. I don't think 1/2 cash games are really for making money because you cannot beat the rake unless you have a real table of fish. It _is_ for 1. relaxing and having a drink and being social. 2. ignoring the fact that you will probably have to raise 8x to 10x the BB in order to get it down to 2 or 3 players. 3. waiting to hit the bad beat jackpot to make _serious_ money. 4. learning a bit by observing people and their mannerisms.
If you try to play 1/2 "faster" then your variance will increase and you may not like that. Small buy in tournaments are a great way to enjoy the game without spending a ton of money. Depending on your location, try to find a .50/1 home game, or a home tournament that includes a cash game when a few people bust out. You can still lose as much money as you want, but the people are very helpful and friendly.
Rake is insanely beatable at live 1/2
kenshi3
Update:
Came back from River Rock casino today and made $340 profit ! I pretty much just folded 95% of the hands and only played pocket pairs sometimes not even AKo when someone bets like $15 in 1/2 NL.
I ended up lucky again, it was a 3 bet and I called all in pre-flop with 9s and i hit quads on the flop lol. The other 2 ppl had AK and KK, and paid me off.
It seems like 1/2 NL is such a waiting game, because chances are people hit top pair and stuff, and it's real hard to bluff them off, so you gotta only go in with premium hands =/
Any books that teaches you how to be better at this 1/2 NL, I would love to move on to the next level
sn1perb0y
kenshi3;368320 wroteUpdate:
Came back from River Rock casino today and made $340 profit ! I pretty much just folded 95% of the hands and only played pocket pairs sometimes not even AKo when someone bets like $15 in 1/2 NL.
I ended up lucky again, it was a 3 bet and I called all in pre-flop with 9s and i hit quads on the flop lol. The other 2 ppl had AK and KK, and paid me off.
It seems like 1/2 NL is such a waiting game, because chances are people hit top pair and stuff, and it's real hard to bluff them off, so you gotta only go in with premium hands =/
Any books that teaches you how to be better at this 1/2 NL, I would love to move on to the next level
No No No, please don't fold AK to a single raise.. AK is the 3rd best hand in poker.. you get AA 1/220 times and by then people know you are very tight and all you get are 3$ worth of blinds.. Also as shown you will get very bored folding and folding AK and AQ etc.. that you will end up going all in with 99s and hope to suckout.. fortunately you were lucky and sucked out in a 20% situation.. read Harrington's book on cash games, it will help you tremendously
JimmyHo
So if you didn't hit quad 9s, what would have been your overall net session result? 1/2 is such NOT a waiting game with an adequate bankroll. With 1/2, you want to see more flops and ensure you have 100bb+ behind you at all times.
Wouldn't QQ be the third best hand pre-flop?
GTA Poker
troll post itt?
sn1perb0y
pokerJAH;368384 wroteSo if you didn't hit quad 9s, what would have been your overall net session result? 1/2 is such NOT a waiting game with an adequate bankroll. With 1/2, you want to see more flops and ensure you have 100bb+ behind you at all times.
Wouldn't QQ be the third best hand pre-flop?
oops i meant 4th X_X pretty close :tongue:
kenshi3
If I didn't hit quad 9s . I would be down $200 which would be my buyin. Currently reading Harrison books. Since I give the image of very tight passive player. How do I use this to my advantage? Should I bluff people off on flops?
Lately I started playing online microstakes usually 0.1/.25 . Was up 30 bucks due to lucky all ins. Now back down to even which is $45. Online seems Alot harder than live. Seems like players always has something good when they call. Difficult making profits online for me right now.
Also what should my strategy be when 4 players are tight aggressive and 4 are tight passive and one is loose aggressive who plays 8/10 hands and value bets everytime on the flop? In live.
sn1perb0y
kenshi3;368491 wroteIf I didn't hit quad 9s . I would be down $200 which would be my buyin. Currently reading Harrison books. Since I give the image of very tight passive player. How do I use this to my advantage? Should I bluff people off on flops?
Lately I started playing online microstakes usually 0.1/.25 . Was up 30 bucks due to lucky all ins. Now back down to even which is $45. Online seems Alot harder than live. Seems like players always has something good when they call. Difficult making profits online for me right now.
Also what should my strategy be when 4 players are tight aggressive and 4 are tight passive and one is loose aggressive who plays 8/10 hands and value bets every time on the flop? In live.
As a tight passive, which means you don't bet, you usually call... This way you can check of your huge hands to balance and let them bet into you, or do some check raises on wet flops with flush/straight draws etc... I prefer tight aggressive, you can take pots easily even if you don't hit with your good hand because you have the tight image..also you can get value when you hit..
I think online is very different, You need a very disciplined and have a very good understanding of variance and bankroll mangment (which i'm no expert in)..Also range of hands are different live and online..
It is good that you can recognize and pay attention to how each player is playing.. It depends on the position,is the loose aggressive on your right? then tighten up and try to get with him in pots where you have a good starting hand..For tight passives try to get with them with suited connectors and hit your flush/straight and stack their KK or whatever.. Also if you didn't hit then bet into him, passive players usually fold if they don't hit their hand and if you feel resistance then they have it..
At the end of the day, poker doesn't have rules you can play any two cards the way you think is best and it could work.. The above was my opinion and not facts.
Hope it helps :)
GTA Poker
sn1perb0y;368493 wroteyou can play any two cards the way you think is best and it could work..
I like to do this
kenshi3
Well just got back from RR again for another 4 hour session.
The table was full of china mainlander regs ( yes i live in a town where 80% asian) The dealer had to keep telling them to speak English only. It was hilarious.
Anyways, back to the point, I cashed in $200 in 1/2 no limit. Within first 10 hands, I won 2 $80ish dollar pots with Flush beating the guys straight. Then I started getting crap cards, always 9-2o, K-3o, A-5o etc. Then I started to play super tight. I started only playing 5% of the hands to the point where everyone on the table knew if i betted, i would have a decent hand.
I was holding at + $150 for the longest time. Then, this lady pays me off on my Flush at the end beating her 2 pair.
Anyways, since I'm intoxicated atm, I only rmb 1 hand where I woulda need help on. This table consisted of 4/10 tight aggressive players, 5 loose aggressive players, and me myself prob the only tightest passive.
I had 4c-4d . I was trying to test out my tight image, and once (6) players betted $2 and I was in position. I raised it to $20. Then this loose aggressive dad calls me, he was short stack $80 left, like a while ago he was $300, and I'm at $340 steadily
Flop comes:
Jc8c5d He bets $20, I called.
Turn comes:
6c
Then he bets $20, and i folded.
Second hand:
For the past 5 rounds, the pre-flop bet didnt exceed $2, then this guy short stackish ( $80 ) tight aggressive dad(differnet one) raises to $20, I was holding AKo, should i have just put him all in or what? cuz i folded.
Did i pussy out or did i do the right thing?
At the end, when I started putting my chips away, this lady mourned: "this guys super tight"
I was like lol and peaced it +200
Happy chinese new years from BC
EdtheTed
1st hand. Everything is an over pair and if you make the flush it is really low. I do not see the point in continuing that. Also 4,4 does not flop well or improve, so hands like Q,J or K, 10 are better for those moves. For the 2nd hand all in is ok. I think calling is ok as well. Folding is weak.
sn1perb0y
as Ed mentioned it is better to make moves with J10s,67s,JQ etc because you can hit sometimes and if not you can bluff at it and you probably would have some draws.. while small pocket pairs are usually for set mining. They don't hit too often and its very hard to continue as a bluff..
I would like you to put ranges on people.. for example in the pot with 44s.. the guy limped and then call 20, then lead 20.. so first he limps (not premium) then he calls 20.. he probably has a small pocket pair or some medium strength hand.. then he leads 20 on a Jc8c5d.. he leads which is rarely done by set of 88s or 55s, he can't have JJs because he didn't raise pre.. he leads 20$ into around 50 which i find weak so he could have something like a QT with a gutshot and over card or maybe a weak J like J9 etc(me personally i'd raise to 55 in this spot).. Its like a puzzle and you need to find your way to what he has and narrow down your ranges on every street as you are getting more information..
For the Ak, I'd like an all in..if you put him a range or AJo+ and 99+ you are a 52.3% favorite.
Congrats on your winning session and don't be annoyed about what people say about you style.. They are whining because its working :D
kenshi3
Thanks for the reply and help guys.
Update:
Lost $300 2 nights ago.
Hand 1:
Was facing villain to my left, hes a regular player 25 + asian guy, TAG I believe.
I don't remember the exact details but, I had AhKc , i raised to $12, 4 ppl called including villian.
Flop comes:
Ad Jc 10d
I bet $25, villain re-raises me to $65, the other 2 limpers folded. I tanked and called.
Turn:
9d
Villain bets $65
I folded. Should I have manned up here and just went all in when my stack was only $100 left? I cashed in $200 to start. I was scared he hit flush. Sigh.
Hand 2:
Hero has pocket 6s, facing the 45 yr old TAG guy to the right with only 5 players left on the table,
Hero only has around $100 left.
Villain bets $15 pre-flop. Everyone folds except me and I called.
Flop comes:
345 rainbow.
Villain bets:
$25, Hero calls.
Turn:
Jd
Villain bets $35, Hero folds.
Good thing tonight, I won it all back using my tightest strategy. Got paid off when I had kings and aces and ppl went all in with 9s.
Can anyone explain , how you bet to "see" where people are at? When should I bet to see where someones range is. I've been putting ranges on people, but I think it's gotta get some time to used to.
Also, I cashed $100 on pokerstars. Played 0.5/1NL, and got my bankroll crushed when I had kings and 3 betted and the guy put me all in and he had aces and crushed me. Now I'm scared to play online, and I don't pay attention if I play lower stakes, I just don't think I'm earning enough money to be worth my time. Most likely because I don't multi-table like everyone. I just like to play 1 table and focus on that one. I wonder if I should deposit some more for online play. So far I'm down $200 in online play right now. =(
I was up to $170 at 1 point with the $100 but kings vs aces... starting to think its rigged...