Types of poker, effects of structure, best overlay?

[Stuey]

My main question is "What form of poker do you feel gives the expert player the greatest advantage over the average player ?" But I would like to take the following into consideration. <ul type="square"> Game type ie. NL Holdem, 7 Card Stud ect. Game structure ie. Size of blinds, antes, rake rates, in relation to betting size or buy-in amounts Game conditions ie. MTT, 10 player rings games vs shorthanded Volitility ie Standard Deviation, Risk of ruin Current real world conditions ie Holdem craze currently making this game more beatable? [/list]
Im sure there are several other factors I am missing. Basically Im trying to decide which game to put my full effort into mastering. I have read TOP a few times and realize all forms of poker can be mastered using it's theories properly. But I don't think I understand them fully yet so I want to pick one game and focus on it.

[Paul2432]

One bullet item you might want to add is game availability. A lot of people feel that NL 5-card stud offers an expert the largest advantage. The problem is the advantage is so great, that no one plays it. Mason Malmuth has said many times that for a poker game to survive, there must be enough short term luck that losing players frequently win.

How much money do you want to make from poker? The best game will be different depending on your answer because some of the better games at lower limits are not played much by bad players at higher limits.

Paul

[Iceman]

If you play small stakes online, I'd recommend no-limit holdem ring games or no-limit holdem SNGs.

If you play small stakes B&amp;M, I'd recommend no-limit holdem ring games if you have them available to you. If your local cardrooms don't offer no-limit, then I'd recommend Omaha-8.

While no-limit ring games and no-limit SNGs are very profitable against idiots, they become much less profitable against people who basically know what they're doing. For this reason, if you currently play medium or higher stakes, or you hope to, then you should specialize in ring game limit holdem. While other forms of limit poker allow a greater skill advantage against weak players, this is more than made up for by the fact that limit holdem attracts far more weak players than those other games.

Avoid multitable tournaments because of their huge variance. Also, when you consider the amount of time you have to invest in them, ring games and SNGs are usually much more profitable on a per hour basis than MTTs.

[K C]

This will depend a lot more on the level of competition of a particular game than its structure. In terms of structure, heads up competition would afford the better player the most advantage, with NL or PL being preferable. However, if you're at a place where the heads up players are pretty good but another sort of game is full of fish, this will change things of course.

So what's the best game to look to master given the present conditions of the game? Well in terms of the type of game, hold'em is the obvious choice, since that's where the most fish are, by far. As far as type of hold'em, it would serve you better to become proficient at all types. There are similarities between types which transfer very well, and there are also particular features of each which, when mastered, will allow you to be better at the game overall. Plus, it's nice to have the flexibility to pick the juciest game among them at any given time, without worrying that it's not a variation you aren't proficient enough at.

KC
kingcobrapoker.com

[Stuey]

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How much money do you want to make from poker? The best game will be different depending on your answer because some of the better games at lower limits are not played much by bad players at higher limits.


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I never really took this into consideration, I just want to feel more confident when I sit at a table. I want to know Im a favorite to win and understand the advantages I have. I have heard it said that the low limit 7 card stud games are a crap shoot due to the size of the antes in relation to the bet sizes. I don't understand the cause and effect of these factors but want to learn how to analyse games based on the fixed variables in each. How much money do I want to make ? Really I just want to win at the highest bb/100 right now. Not to make money but to learn poker. Learn why a game is beatable and beat it to death. So for me as a beginner I want low limits so I don't get waxed learning. But I would like to hear the reasons higher limit games are good. Knowing the factors that enable a good player to maximize his winnings is what Im looking to learn.

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A lot of people feel that NL 5-card stud offers an expert the largest advantage.

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Very interesting this is one game I didn't even consider.

[Iceman]

"In terms of structure, heads up competition would afford the better player the most advantage, with NL or PL being preferable."

NL/PL heads-up matches have a very high luck factor and fish almost never play them.

[Stuey]

[ QUOTE ]
While no-limit ring games and no-limit SNGs are very profitable against idiots, they become much less profitable against people who basically know what they're doing. For this reason, if you currently play medium or higher stakes, or you hope to, then you should specialize in ring game limit holdem. While other forms of limit poker allow a greater skill advantage against weak players, this is more than made up for by the fact that limit holdem attracts far more weak players than those other games

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I have been playing low limit holdem but fear I am one of the weak players. /images/graemlins/blush.gif How does the rake affect the low limits is there and ideal limit level where the rake is nagated ?