What type of notes do you take - if any?

[Poker Jon]

Hey All,

Just a quick ask really.

I make notes on all players I play against. Sometimes, they are detailed notes about a specific play they make and sometimes it is just the level and type of player they are.

Just wondered if anyone has a short way of making notes against players - a specific code perhaps??

Do you make notes on every player, or do you make notes according to specific plays?

Just a general query really.

Cheers

Jon

[McMelchior]

I make notes on all players I'm seated with (on PStars). And when I actually remember to check them before I make my move later on, they often prove very usefull ...

My notes are headed by a general classification of the player: Tight/loose, Aggressive/Passive, Doesn't understand the game/Crazy/Fool/Skilled/Watch out! etc.

I alway try to include specific accounts of hands played (when they are being played in ways that I immediately wouldn't expect). Here I use a number of abbreviations.

Here's an example:
NLHEt: pf EP op/rse 5xBB w/KQs, call LP's all-in (for 1/3 stack), L3

Meaning (should this not be easily understandable):
I played a No-Limit Hold'em Tournament with this player, and saw him/her preflop from early position open with a raise to 5 times the Big Blind holding KQs, and the call a LP players all-in re-raise for one third of his own stack - at level 3 in the tournament.

I have a number of additional abbreviations, and when I play ring games I note the level etc.

I have found that as my game progresses these highly detailed notes are more valuable than the somewhat generic classifications. They give me the opportunity to re-evaluate the players moves from the perspective of my (hopefully) higher skill level.

Still, one of my biggest problems is that I frequently - caught in the excitement of the play - not only forget to check the notes while in a hand, but completely forget to think! /images/graemlins/grin.gif

Best,

McMelchior (Johan)

[BabyJesus]

Read "Psychology of Poker". The author has a good system to rate players. He assigns two numbers relating to the players loose/tight and passive aggressive traits. Good book, better for live games tho.

[isolanni]

My note taking started with counting how many hands each opponent plays.If they were in alot of hands, I'd label them F=fish, in every hand = FF for massive fish, T=tight, S=selective.
I record what hands they raise with by " rz=KQ* " for exmpl. I label them as A=aggressive,P=passive, C=calling station, TT=tells the truth, B=bluffs, BFLP=bluffs at flop, O=opposite , ie,bets with no hand (or on draw) and checks and slowplays when he has a hand.
I also record whole hands if the play was interesting or illustrative of the players' style.
Sometimes I just note the day ,game and stakes,so that later I can see the players range.
I try to record just facts, not my opinion.
Ive been playing for a few months and make notes on everyone I play. Now when I sit down to a game, I already have some information.

[eastbay]

If memory serves there was a long thread about this with an excellent post by a "mssunshine" or something close to that. Try a search.

eastbay