Adjustment time

[Mike Gallo]

Hi everyone. I just started playing online again a month or so ago. I use to play exclusively brick and mortar. One thing led to another and I started playing on Party Poker. I play mostly tournaments however lately I have ventured into the "ring" games.

I have to confess, I prefer to play in a casino. Not for any other reason than you never know who sits behind that other computer. I can tell a great deal about a player from observing how they handle their chips,how they say raise,do they pay attention, those intangible elements. That creates a problem for me with my overlay, reading hands. I consider my overlay my ability to read other players hands an to read my opponents thought process.

I have a difficult time reading players hands online. Since the only information I have is watching how they play. I have seen a player cap preflop with KJ suited, others have capped preflop with A10 suited etc. Online thats common in a casino its rare. Too different worlds.

I think the small limit encourages players to have the play any two cards philosophy.

I think the micro limits provides the perfect arena for a new player to attempt playing poker.

At the micro limits a player needs to play solid textbook Malmuthian poker to succeed and beat the game. No need to make fancy plays.

The main problem I have is I see monsters online because of how badly other players overplay their hands. Usually in a casino when a player plays back at me, I sit on the short side of the fence. Online I usually have the better hand but don't fire the extra bullet.

I need to work on that, other than that I enjoy playing online. Its a good place for me to work on my game at a cheap price.

Does anyone who plays brick and mortar 4-8 through 6-12 and play the micro limit games see any differences?

[Robk]

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At the micro limits a player needs to play solid textbook Malmuthian poker to succeed and beat the game. No need to make fancy plays.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is still true if you replace "micro" with "mid".

[Dylan Wade]

I agree. I'm mostly a B&M player myself, though I started playing the game online. What I found is...I am able to quickly recall a lot more about a player when I have a face or t-shirt to associate them with. Sure, there's "player notes" online, but I don't look at them before every hand. Unless a player is a blatant maniac I rarely remember how a certain seated player plays online. However, at B&M, I can usually remember how most people played all their hands.

I've recently started playing on PokerStars, and I find that the player-icons are quite helpful for me in this regaurd.

Though, I do find the players at B&M to be just as terrible as the ones online, if not more so. I don't think too many people who play online are first time players (perhaps they are), but most of the time I play at 1-2$ B&M someone comes along who asks, "What are the cards in the middle for again?".

I'm starting to like online, though. First of all, the rake is MUCH better. At low limits in most B&M casinos, (at least here in CA) they rake a lot thanks to the stupid jackpot that I'll never win. Also I like the idea of playing multiple tables.

[XlgJoe]

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I've recently started playing on PokerStars, and I find that the player-icons are quite helpful for me in this regaurd.

[/ QUOTE ]

A lot of people don't like pokerstars because they say it looks cartoonish. But I agree with you that it is easier to remember players by their icon. Maybe its just me but I forget peoples names 10 seconds after being introduced but yet I can remember what they looked like years later.

[JTrout]

Hey MJ,
I've been playing 3-6 online for 4 months almost every day. The first few weeks, I saw all kinds of monsters. I was convinced that pocket pairs made a set more often. Then got beat more often. I was convinced that there were more quads, and straight flushes, etc. online.
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I think these thoughts were a product of a few things working together: first, the inability to see your opponents, and having a computer deal the cards. This makes it easy to be skeptical.
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Second, seeing so many more hands online. I play 2 or 3 games at once, and each game is getting app. 60 hands per hour. In four months of online poker, I've probably played twice as many hands of hold'em than in 3 years of playing B&M. So naturally I see more big hands. And bad suck outs, etc.
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Third, I think there is a different attitude (or psychology) in the online player compared to the B&M player. The fact that you're sitting alone in your own home, and that all you have to do to call (or raise) is push a button instead of picking up chips and putting them in the middle, leads to a different attitude, and sometimes different decisions.
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The skills that you have at B&M in reading people are unfortunately unable to help you as much online. However, you may find that you develop other skill as a consequence of playing in differennt games.
One thing I would suggest, if you do continue playing online, is PokerTracker. With this great tool, I am able to quickly find out info on each of my opponents. I can see if they are winners/losers, loose/tight, aggressive/passive, like to check-raise, etc. This helps me greatly in my decision-making during the actual game.
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Anyway, I hope this rambling helps a little, and good luck at the tables. And stay out of my games! /images/graemlins/grin.gif