Making the Move from 1/2

[ArthurD]

Making the Move from 1/2

I just made the move myself, and have settled into my new home at 2/4 quite well. I'm sure it's not always this easy, but looking back I wanted to offer everyone a bit of advice. Although I'm not an expert at poker, though beating the game as of now, I think that I have some good advice to offer.

I've had the bankroll for 2/4 for a few weeks now, and I've sat down at a 2/4 table once or twice, only to get down a bit, win 1 pot and be up a few dollars, and cash it out. The chip shock was my biggest issue. If you're playing at Party, I really honestly think that 1/2 and 2/4 play almost identically. If you have close to the bankroll for 2/4, I would take a shot at it. If you're a winning 1/2 player then you should have no trouble adjusting. The main points of difference are in aggression. You will see a BIT more aggression postflop, and on average ~5% more preflop raising than before. This just means your preflop leaks need to be plugged, that's all.

Another thing that I find in 2/4 versus 1/2 is that there are MANY more maniacs at the 2/4 level. Call me stupid, but there are MANY more bad players at 2/4 - But in a different way than the 1/2 players are bad. I find it quite easy to find a table with 1-3 players seeing over 75% of the flops. In 1/2 most of the bad players I encountered were those who were chasing with improper odds to complete their draws. Both of these situations prove to be valuable for you as a winning player, although in the former you can value bet the heck out of these maniacs and make a lot of money.

This is why I advise that all you budding 1/2 players begin to think seriously about testing the waters. If it goes well, don't look back (Just as I have done, took some look and my normal game). If you lose your buyin, just go back to 1/2. Sooner or later, you WILL take off if you have the skill.

Another HUGE tip: I attribute most of my success in my move to EXTENSIVE table selection. If you don't have PokerTracker, buy it, best buy you can make. Only 25BB at 1/2, anyways, so you can't make any excuses as it pays for itself VERY quickly. Next, download PlayerView. Get 4 games on your screen, and go take a shower, walk the dog, etc... for 20 minutes or so. Come back, and look over each table carefully, checking out each player's statistics. Pick which table best compliments your abilities, and which you think is most profitable for YOU.

My last small tip: I suggest that you turn off all your graphics and use a plain black background around your table. I use the EXACT same graphics for all the programs, and reskinned it all. It really helps me concentrate. Black background, no dealer, calm but bright blue cards (So you can see whos still in at a glance). The more distractions you remove, the better your play. Another thing that I do, some may think it's strange, but I downloaded 5-10 meditation / yoga songs - I play them continuously as I play, I feel that it really helps me take bad beats in stride, helps me remain calm. This isn't that big of a thing, just thought I'd share the idea, maybe someone will appreciate it.

I will post my Party & Affililiates skin in the next few days so that you can use it, and I'll post my PlayerView setup, as well. Good luck, and I hope you got something out of this post!