1st Live home Tourny - need tips

[aBnart]

im 18 and i've been an internet poker player for about 10 months and im going to my first live 1 or 2 table (prolly 15-20 players) home tourny next sunday 50$ buy in and i was wondering what things i should look for while playing how i should look, what should i avoid doing, how to pick up tells and such

[lolita16]

I'm assuming you are referring to "live home" tourney meaning a local casino, not someone's house. I don't know of many casino tourneys that have an entry pool of 15-20 people though so correct me if I'm misunderstanding. Protect your cards (by putting your hand over them or a chip or marker of some sort), declare your action (call raise or fold), and unless you are very confident in your card reading ability, turn your hands over on the end. As for tells, they are mostly overrated but you will occasionally catch some. In small limit games and small tourneys, my experience has been that they are similar to those described by Caro in his book and video. Players act strong when they are weak, and act timid when they have a big hand. Watch the way chips are placed in the pot. If they are fired in, be more inclined to think bluff. If they are gently placed in, be more apt to read strength. Don't place a huge amount of significance on tells. Pay more attention to the way players bet or raise. Be observant and notice what types of hands your opponents are playing and raising with.

Two of my early lessons in NLHE after playing years of limit holdem were don't go crazy with AK if you don't flop to it, and beware of top pair top kicker when getting raised. Good luck!

Regards-

[aBnart]

i was actually talking about a tourny in someones house lol anyway thanks for the tips

[mackthefork]

Play tight when the blinds are small, change gears later when blind stealing will increase your stack size. (if you are still in /images/graemlins/grin.gif!)

Be brutally aggressive (imo anyways) when you have a strong hand, like AK on a K75 rainbow flop, make em pay.

Regards Mack

[MissOt]

yea i was also wondering what adjustments, a kid like me, needs to make when i start playing live home tournies. what are some things i should look for and how should i play? right now i feel that when i enter a pot, the person can look right through me and see my cards. how do i avoid that and feel more confident and just play the solid poker i am used to playing online?

[MikeGuz]

Tells are important, bet/raise sizes are too.

Couple of things if these are experienced players or just some kids who saw Gus Hansen on TV and think they know the game.

I was playing with a young Gus guy a while back he was decked out with the shades and spiky tinted hair (real piece of work) he was in almost every pot and had some of the biggest tells I have ever seen. He loaded up (counting out his exact bet) as soon as the cards came out. I could play my hand with out looking at my cards.

Anyway, good luck in your 1st real game.

[MissOt]

these guys are good they are much older than me and have been playing a while. this is a normal game for them that i am joining.

i can play pretty fearless online. i can bluff/push with a draw whatever. i just dont see me being able to do that in a live game because they will see right through me. i feel its going to change my style of play and i wont be as effective, any way to deal with that?

[mackthefork]

Don't run around the room screaming FOLD FOLD FOLD, unless you have the nuts./images/graemlins/grin.gif

Regards Mack

[AceKQJT]

Playing a live tourney for the first time can certainly be intimidating. Here are a few tips that may help you out:

1. Don't look at your hole cards until it is your turn to act. No one can make a read on you if you don't know what you have. This will prevent you from reaching for your chips before it's your turn to act, and also prevent you from holding your cards in a manner that says "I'm gonna fold".

2. When the flop comes down, don't look at it. Watch your opponents reaction to the flop...you will have time to look at the board when it is your turn to act. Same advantages as #1.

3. Make sure you state your intentions before you throw chips into the pot. For instance, if you intend to raise 3x say "Raise!", then count out your chips and put them on the table.

Other than that, just play your normal game...you can put a little more emphasis on player reads in a live game, so use all the information you can get to your advantage.

--Casey

[lolita16]

In your first live poker play you are going to have some tells. There is simply no way around them that I am aware of. For most people their "poker face" is something that has to be developed over time. You will likely still react at least to some extent when you pick up a huge hand. A couple of tactics that I still use today will help you minimize your tells, and perhaps pick up some tells from other.

When the first two cards are dealt place your hand over your own cards but do not look at them until it is your turn to act. Watch the faces of your opponents as they look at their cards. A look at the cards, then immediately looking at their chips usually indicates a strong hand. Beware of the player who has looked at their cards already and is then doing the lah, lah, lah, looking at the sky and all around "I have pocket aces" tell.

When the first round betting is complete and the flop comes down, do not look at the flop. Look at your opponents faces when they look at the flop. A long stare at the board usually means the flop did not help them. A quick glance at the flop then back to their chips means they flopped a good hand. I frequently check in the blinds simply because I haven't seen the cards yet as I am still studying the other players reaction. This presents a nice opportunity for a check raise when the action comes back to me.

Otherwise just play your best game and try to bet or raise the same way every time, whether you are bluffing or betting the nuts. Play your best game and don't worry too much about your own tells. As long as you feel some emotional reaction to the cards, you will have some tells. It is only when you become emotionally disconnected from the cards that you can truly prevent any tells.

Regards-