Table selection
In online poker there are many edges available to players that have nothing to do whatsoever with actual play. Live poker features fewer such edges, and even the ones that are up for grabs are somewhat limited. These edges I’m talking about are poker rakeback or cashback, certain sign-up bonuses, value-added promotions, and table selection. Table selection is available for offline players too, although it is seriously limited by the nature of live poker play.
In online poker, players can choose between tens of different tables featuring the same (or close) limits. Table selection becomes very important here.
The same player can be a loser at one table and beat the other table without much effort involved. Remember that winner-level poker should be about playing your opponents and not your cards, thus, who you’re going up against makes all the difference in the world.
Don’t commit the foolishness to let the software choose a table automatically for you. In online poker, you can sit in on a game without participants knowing that you’re watching them. Take notes on them (that’s why poker rooms so generously offer this option) and by the time you take a seat, you’ll know who you’re up against.
“OK, I’m all convinced it’s important, but how exactly does table selection work?” You might ask. :”what type of player should be on the hunt for, and what type of player should I avoid”.
Though the answer to that question can as simple as: always choose tables with players who will lose money to you, and avoid players who will win money from you, I know the issue is more complicated.
The kind of player that best suits your playing style might not be the one that suits mine. You need to first recognize the type of player you can best counter. Once you’re homed in on the target-type, choose your individual victims.
It is a more or less widely accepted truth that loose passive players make the best victims. Online poker rooms show a statistic with the flops seen percentage next to each table’s name in the lobby. Taking that as a lead, one can get an idea which tables are the loosest. Mind you however, loose passive play is supposed to be the weakest strategy, that’s why these tables are regarded as “juicy” ones. Playing against loose rookies might not work that well for you.
There’s a fair amount of schooling going on in these games, and that can set even the most experienced and skilled of players on a tilt. The variance hits bigger in loose games, especially if they’re not even loose-passive, but rather just loose or loose aggressive. The flops seen percentage doesn’t say anything about that.
Some people prefer to go up and show off their blinds stealing skills to some extremely tight players. In Fixed Limit, this is not a bad approach at all.
Most tables in poker feature a mix of loose and tight people, and that is just fine. You can’t categorize a table “juicy” or “dry” just on account of the flops seen percentage. Experts often say tables made up exclusively of very tight or of very loose players cannot be beaten.
You don’t need a whole table to act manic, or like a rock, all you need are a few pigeons you can milk for good. If you get some good reads on players while watching them and you come to the conclusion that you could squeeze something out of that particular player, go for it. Nobody says you need to make war on the whole table. All you have to do is make money.
Pay attention to the implied complexities of table selection. A table full of rocks for instance, can often be set ablaze by a single maniac. Is it worth to take up that role? Will those guys respond? The answers to all those questions lie in observation, patience and proper execution.
“Download a poker torrent and watch the pros at work!”
