first time playin at poker table

[bigcountry]

i have just turned 21 and will soon be playing at and small limit poker table on a casino boat where i live. What kind of mentallity should i go into that game with. my background is only playing home NL tournaments, and online poker. any feedback would be helpful

[k_squared]

be ready to differentiate between good playing and winning. Playing live you get in less hands per hour which means that it takes longer to overcome a series of bad beats. In general, for a winning player the more hands you play the more likely you come out a winner (given good table selection and not on tilt...), but at the boat you can't get that many hands in, so it is much more likely to have to leave down.

-K_squared

[AaronBrown]

Playing with strangers in person is very different from what you've done before. It's a lot of fun, but it's pretty tense for most people the first time.

My advice, which you probably won't be able to follow, is to stay relaxed and alert. First-timers tend to tense up, more afraid of embarassing themselves than losing money. If you pay attention to the dealer (a good tip is nice for the extra help a first-timer needs) and don't try to act like Vegas Charlie, you shouldn't bring dishonor on your family. The mental effort you free from worrying can be used to pay attention to your opponents, and make money.

Another thing is that even experienced players make mistakes. You might bet out of turn, sit there looking off into space until the dealer (if you're lucky) reminds you the bet is to you, accidentally expose your hole cards (it will be when you have pocket Aces, it always is), muck the cards of the guy next to you, or spill your drink over the biggest pot of the night.

I'm not saying these things are commmon (the worst ones aren't, anyway) but nobody dies if it happens (anymore, anyway). If you imagine yourself doing all these things beforehand, you won't feel like an idiot when you didn't notice your straight or put in the wrong bet.

Have fun. Good luck.

[pennywise]

Only play the top 15 hands and bluff twice and you'll win

[bigcountry]

and what are the top 15 hands?

[smartalecc5]

*Gasp*

You haven't seen Phil Mellmuths Million Dollar Secrets poker videos?

[vexvelour]

playing on a boat cracks me up. you're sitting at a poker table and you can feel yourself swaying from one buttcheek to the other.

anyway, to the issue at hand. prepare to sit there for a while. it goes ultra slow (for me, and i have a very similar background as you) and i get uber-bored after maybe 3 hours. i'll get up, walk around the boat, get something to eat, check out the BJ tables...then go back when i feel refreshed.

prepare to stare across the table at old men with no facial expressions whatsoever. [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]

[CudaGra]

Great advice!

[A_C_Slater]

One goes to the poker table as one goes going to war. One goes to war wide awake, full of fear, respect, and absolute assurance. Going to the table or to war under any other conditions is a mistake and whoever makes it may not live to regret it.