Is a game loose?

[johnzzz]

When playing micro-limits on the internet is the percentage of people seeing the flop a good guide to a game's looseness? If so, what ranges would indicate a loose game? Are there other ways of judging a game's looseness?

[colgin]

Yes, pre-flop percentage is one measure of a game's looseness. Another would be the average number of hands at the showdown (but the sites will not give you a measure of that and you would need to observe that yourself). Personally, I would consider a game having at least 40%, on average, of players seeing the flop (assuming a full ring game and not short-handed) to be loose. I play mostly on Poker Stars and try to stay away from tables that have a pre-flop percentage of 30% or less (and ideally, 35% or less). Another thing to take into account is whether a game is aggressive (lots of raising) or passive (lots of calling). In addition to observation, you can get a sense of this from the average pot size for a table, which most internet sites will give you. For most beginners, it is preferable to have a table that is loose and passive, although this means that you will see a lot of people draw out on you.

[trillig]

Notice what people showdown with, see any 74o or worse even with a pre-flop raise? That's loose.... 8)

-t