Online Poker & Playing more than one table

[samdash]

Hi...I play quite a bit of online poker, and would like an opinion on whether or not its a good idea to play more than one table online. Have any of you other regular online players had any problems with more than one table or noticed its nearly impossible to play an A game at 2 different tables?

[RockLobster]

Some people have pretty strong opinions on this subject. I'm going to go with the classic poker answer: it depends.

Seriously. At .5-1, I think most people here can play 3 tables and play them well (they don't require much thought). You almost always have to show down the best hand to win. You'll quickly have a decent idea of who plays garbage and who doesn't, who chases and who doesn't, etc. That's about all you need, imo.

As you go up a level or two, you need to pay more attention to your opponents. Playing too many tables against thinking players is a mistake (you miss betting / folding patterns, you miss a lot of showdowns that you're not involved in, etc.).

I hope this helps, and good luck.

[eMarkM]

I've gone back and forth on this subject. I play better when I play only one table, but on the whole I make more money when I play two. As Rock stated, at the lowest limits, just play ABC and you'll win, so playing two is no biggie. And it's also soon apparent who the real fish are.

It really helps to have your computer set up to do it though. I have two monitors, one of them 17", so I can spread the screens out and see the action on both games easily. You don't want to have them on top of each other since you may want to raise on one game and then, boom, it switches you to another and find yourself raising 72o. Or folding Aces.

[RockLobster]

It really helps to have your computer set up to do it though. I have two monitors, one of them 17", so I can spread the screens out and see the action on both games easily.

Excellent point. I'm very impressed with the 2-monitor setup (cool!), but you can do a pretty good job with one set at >= 1024. Stack your windows carefully (so the 'action' buttons don't overlap). I can comfortably track 3 PartyPoker games by stacking them (one at the low left, one in the middle-middle, and one in the upper-right). This might sound weird, but I also change the deck colors if I'm playing 2 levels at a time (pink = .5-1, orange = 1-2, etc. /forums/images/icons/smile.gif).

And don't forgot about consideration for other players. It's not wrong to take a few seconds to make a decision, but if you're routinely taking several seconds before you focus on the game that's waiting for you (then take a few more seconds to decide), the other players will get frustrated. If you're only playing 20 - 25% of your hands, then fold a portion of those on the flop, it shouldn't be too difficult to respond quickly.

That's about all I can think of for now...

[eMarkM]

I put the 17" on 1280 and can see two games clearly on that monitor. The other (the laptop's monitor) I put the lobby (for trolling new games) and PokerStat. Either that, or porn. /forums/images/icons/tongue.gif

[Miah]

Good comments so far, I agree with them.

What I like to do is load up a game that requires some thought and concentration then have another game like the .5/1.00 described above so there is less downtime. I give 80% of my attention to my main game and just play straightforward on the other. This has been working out pretty well.

[J.R.]

I put the 17" on 1280

I'm a little slow, what's this all about?

[Miah]

He means he sets his 17" monitor to a screen resolution of 1280 x (1024, probably). I think this is a little high for a 17" as the refresh rate will be something like 65hz, which is a little too low for my liking. I have my 19" set to 1280 x 1024 and the refresh rate is set to 85hz. Much easier on the eyes.

[Bob T.]

If I am familiar with a lot of the players in the games, I go ahead and play two tables. On the other hand, if I don't know them, I will usually play one, and learn a little about them. When I am playing two, I probably play a little more ABC, and don't make as many situational plays. If I think that the game might require that, and some do, then I play one and try and concentrate.

[Jim Easton]

A 21" monitor at 1600 x 1200 gives you 2 tables on top of the screen, with no overlap, and a PokerTracker Game Time page below each table. You can always see everything.

Use a second monitor for email.

[RockLobster]

A 21" monitor at 1600 x 1200 gives you 2 tables on top of the screen, with no overlap, and a PokerTracker Game Time page below each table. You can always see everything.

I'm drooling at the thought of having this setup (I also use Poker Tracker, but have to do a lot of alt-tabbing). If I can put together a few decent wins I'm going to buy a new monitor /forums/images/icons/grin.gif.

[Bob T.]

That sounds like something that I might want to invest in when my son gets this computer.

I'm not familiar with poker tracker, where do you get information on it. What sites do you use it on.

[Miah]

You can get pokertracker from www.pokertracker.com (http://www.pokertracker.com)

You can use it on paradise, party, empire, and stars.

[jasonHoldEm]

Just curious how you set up your 2 monitor system (hardware / software) thanks.

jHE

[bernie]

it's much easier if you can see both tables on one screen at the same time. like UB. multi table was easy.

i tried it on paradise, and just couldnt get the feel of both tables by switching between them and not being able to see both.

that said, both sites have their pros and cons

b

[Bob T.]

thanks.