How much difference between Live and Internet play?

[steamboatin]

I like to play live and I have stopped playing online because I was constantly losing. I would get up and then go bust. It seems to me there is significant differences between Internet play and live action. I would like your thoughts because I am considering returning to Internet play but want to make sure my head is in the right place.

I have no intention of becoming a Pro or even semi-pro. I am a recreational player but I don't enjoy giving my money away.

[namknils]

Well, I see you're from So. Indiana so you'll probably be playing at Caesars? I have been there once, I didn't have time to play poker but I beleive that they had $2/4 games going, which is a nice low level to start at. A problem you might run into is keeping your dicipline to playing only the good starting hands. If you get up a little online but then blow it all like you say, you could be getting your confidence too high and then start playing more hands because you think you'll win. In a live setting the hands are going to be much slower, so you have to stay focused and be sure to play tight. As far as the players go, they usually are not very good, just like the .5/1 online, I would expect to see a lot of people in on the flop with a variety of bad hands.

[cardcounter0]

Some differences between live and on-line play:

In live play, other players will blow cigarette smoke in your face.
You have to wait for a table, instead of having a multitude to choose from.
Players won't be jumping in and out of the game, live players pretty much stay at one table for hours.
You have to pay attention when it is your turn, there isn't any beep alerting you that it is time for action.
You have to get the proper amount of chips together to make a bet, you can't just click a little box.
Unlike on-line play, if one of the other players hasn't had a shower or bath for a week or two, you will know it.
If you deliver a bad beat to some one, you will actually hear about it, there won't just be some words typed into a little box.
When you win a pot, it won't instantly be added to your total, you have to stack and count the chips.
Players will sometimes act out of turn in live play.
Sometimes a player will show his cards in live play.
You might think you called a bet in live play, only to find out there has been a raise.
Your blinds won't automatically be posted for you in live play.

And the Number #1 Difference between live and on-line play:

Unless you have a very understanding wife, in live play, a waitress with a low cut outfit showing off her large hoo-haws will bring you drinks.

[No Nuts]

From what I have seen, players in general are better online than they are in B&M casinos. This is not to say that there aren't bad players online, because there certainly are. However, at a 3-6 table online, you might see 3-4 players seeing the flop on average, where in a B&M casino you're more likely to see 5-6 players on average seeing the flop.

Online it's much easier to be patient and wait for good hands because the next hand is only a minute away, even less if you're playing at more than one table. It's much harder to stay patient when playing live, but that makes for better games. People don't come to a casino to sit there and fold for hours - they came to play! After a while, JTo starts to look good from early position - that's what your opponents will be doing in live games, not so much online.

I play mostly online, but I do enjoy having the opportunity to play live. I've been able to play so many more hands online and see so many different situations, that playing live is 10x easier now.

[CCass]

Generally better play on-line, but better game selection to make up for the better play.

Online, when I play Limit HE, I usually play $2/$4 and some $3/$6. When I last played live (about a month ago), I played a lot of $6/$12 and some $10/$20 and didn't feel out of place.

[steamboatin]

4-8 is the lowest limit at Ceasars at this time.

[mak_662]

the one major difference for me between live and online play is people tend to bluff tons more online, thus bluffs tend not to work as well. Also, people seem to call more often when online and are more likely to try and catch the river (maybe their anonymity allows them to make moves online that they would never make in person because of embarrassment of bad play/they are easily read in person/etc., i'm not really sure why). In live games, I may bluff a little more with a lesser hand or try and steal in certain situations, however, online i'll play much tighter and much more agressive when I have a winning hand. My advice would be to really tighten up your game once you've gotten up online and then only play premiums that hit on the flop.