Moving up in Limits

[Exsubmariner]

Greatings Gentlemen (and I use that word loosely, of course),
I have recently moved up from the .5/1 to the 1/2 tables on Party. I have experienced the normal down swings and subsequent upswings. I am about 6000 of so hands into my database for 1/2. However, I seem to be stuck. I can't seem to get beyond break even. I have noticed that I am beating the players, but not the rake. My stats seem to mirror what I experienced as winning play in .5/1. about 20-22% VP$IP in keeping with SSHE starting hand charts. My questions are a few. Number 1 - Is this commonly experienced when moving up in limits. 2- If it is commonly experienced, what does one need to change/adapt to break the trend? 3- Is this the result of a higher % rake? 4- Is this effect due to the fact that all the 2+2 bonus whores are out in force collecting that silly Christmas offer (but I honestly expected them to be playing at the lowest limits)? 5- Is the sample size just too small?
I have noted the tables are slightly tighter with a little bit higher concentration of players who seem to know what they are doing.... But I still run into the silly and stupid, as exampled last night a player called 65% of all hands for a solid 8 hours and made $150 (he's going on my buddy list)
That brings up another question: How does one use a buddy list with the party poker software? It does not seem to be in the documentation. Is there anyone out there who has suggestions for examples of poor play to be honored on the buddy list?
Thank you all for your responses in advance and for your continued wisdom.

Dive Dive.

[deacsoft]

Just a thought, but it seems that if you don't play 6 max the 1-2 table selection on party sucks. It may have something to do with your current issues.

[lefty rosen]

The 1/2 full games are only good in the evenings EST and PST. Otherwise they are rock gardens that most winning .5/1 players will just bust even. Playing ace anything suited even in late position isn't a winning play at this limit just not enough drawing hand opportunites..........

[jasonHoldEm]

6000 hands is NOTHING. If you were a wining player at .50/1 you're going to be a winning player at 1/2...there simply isn't that much of a difference in the skill level of your opponents. While some say (and I tend to agree) that the 1/2 10-player games run a bit tighter because of the 1/2 6-max games, this really isn't a huge deal, the 1/2 10-player games are still beatable by a rather large amount (it's not like you're suddenly playing against world class players). Stick with it and you'll do fine.

Regarding buddy lists, first of all, do yourself a favor and save your buddy list for the ABSOLUTE WORST players you come across. It's more than just seeing a player make a bad decision and adding him to your list...you need to think about what kind of player you play well against, but also what type of game you are able to earn the most profit from.

For me personally I love playing with maniacs and my buddy list reflects that. Maniacs might seem scary at first, but once you know how to handle them they can be insanely profitable. More than that, the effect a maniac has on a table can be very exploitable as well (many players will end up tightening up a ridiculous amount against the maniac's aggression, so this leads to a situation where you can frequently get it HU with the crazy and beat the crap out of him). You've gotta be willing to fade some variance, but if you have the stomach for it these players/games are definitely worth it.

That being said...if you're not comfortable playing with the crazies I'd recommend looking for players who HABITUALLY coldcall raises with weak hands or draws. You've gotta see a pattern of this before they become buddy list material. These sort of players are going to pay you off every time, but the tradeoff is they're going to suck out on you occasionally (that's poker).

As you learn more about what type of players and what type of games you profit the most from try to add buddies to your list with that in mind and I'm sure you'll be crushing the 1/2 in no time.

GL,
J

[DocMartin]

I just finished 20K hands of 1/2 after making the move from .5/1 after 20K hands so here is my limited insight for you on "the move".

I stick pretty close to the charts as well but get a little crazy sometimes so my VPIP at .5/1 was 23% and at 1/2 its 22.5%. As far as that goes.. I think tightening up a bit would be advised, less speculative hands (suited connectors, low pairs, Axs), VERY limited cold-calling, and paying more attention to position.

I think a drop in win rates when moving up is a pretty common experience. The doubling of bets is a little daunting, the players tend to be more aggressive, and fewer are contending pots. My win rate went from 6bb/100 to 3bb/100 after starting out significantly in the red for 2K hands at each level.

I dont think the rake is a huge factor, most of the bonus whores are at these levels which may hurt a little, but the games are still quite beatable.

I havent really utilized the buddy list to its full extent so I cant help you there.

There are some good posts on moving up in the micro limit forum so I would suggest looking there as well.

[Sarge85]

Exsubmarier...

You'd do well to read and re-read Jason's post.

Good stuff Jason

And spot on.

Sarge/images/graemlins/diamond.gif