Issues with online --

[schroedinger]

1. I am just uncomfortable about the prospect of leaving thousands of dollars on deposit with any of the online sites, although I have been paid many thousands by two different online sites, and around a thousand by a third. Once I get it out of the sites, I have it at NetTeller and I don't know if that is much better. I tried to find NetTeller, but the best I can do is track the registered name to Smythwyck Financial in Toronto. A search of Canadian online phone directory, yields nothing for Smythwyck in Toronto. Of course, if I take all the money out, then a losing session or two and it takes six days or so to get money back in. Then I come on here and read that some online operator shut down the room didn't pay the players.

2. Poker in general, online poker in particular, generates an anxiety response in my wife -- who is certain that all the games everywhere are rigged. I can't play in the face of her anxiety (and have learned not to try). She has learned to be supportive (which is really nice), but she has Worm's (from Rounders) mentality about the game -- someone, somewhere is always cutting that extra edge and if it's not me then I am the sucker. No communicating with her on this point. Proof is only in the earnings.

3. When I am an active online player, I tend to use every free 5 minutes as an opportunity to play a few. Then of course, I get hooked into the game, and am distracted, often deeply distracted, by what was supposed to just be something to pass 5 minutes. When I structured myself to avoid this issue, I just felt strait-jacketed and did not have as much success.

4. The online experience is VERY FAST. I have gone up or down over a thousand in really smallish games in less than an hour several times.

I banked several thousand dollars by raking half my winnings into long term savings/retirement funds, then withdrew the rest when I got very nervous about NetTeller. Obviously, I am a serious player and something of a internet geek as well. If I could get comfortable with the integrity of the funding systems, I would come back.

Sorta late and I am rambling.

My real goal is to develop a strong tournament, as opposed to ring game, style where I can build up a tournament bankroll to take my own shot at being the next Chris Moneymaker. [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] Online seems to offer better (lower) rakes than B&M tournaments for the most part.

So convince me that my online poker funds are secure folks.

[MS Sunshine]

"So convince me that my online poker funds are secure folks. "

I can't, if you stay with the bigger sites this is a very small worry.

"My real goal is to develop a strong tournament, as opposed to ring game, style where I can build up a tournament bankroll to take my own shot at being the next Chris Moneymaker. Online seems to offer better (lower) rakes than B&M tournaments for the most part."

My tournament play a year ago at PS and Party stunk the place up. Now after alot of hard work I'm happy to say, I'm up to a poor tournament player [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

There is no where, if you work at it, than online where you can improve, at a good price, to someone that can hold their own in live tournaments of similar buyins. Nine of the PS players made the top 100 at the WSOP. That's a pretty good showing for net players, most with little live experience.

If you like playing poker then enjoy your pasttime without sweating money left at a major site.

MS Sunshine

[Hung]

My real goal is to develop a strong tournament, as opposed to ring game, style where I can build up a tournament bankroll to take my own shot at being the next Chris Moneymaker. Online seems to offer better (lower) rakes than B&M tournaments for the most part

There something that my friends will never understand here in Belgium. They don't want to try online. Because they're scared. You've to use your credit card and it's gambling. bad combination. The money transfers bothers me too. It's becoming too expensive to cash out. It cost $25 to send the cheque by Fedex, it cost $35 to transfer it to my bankaccout. And the dollar is cheaper then the euro. So if I withdraw $1000, I'll get less then 900 euro. That was off topic.

Online is so great because you play a lot of hands. Sometimes I play 3 tables. I know it's wrong. But I will keep doing this. So I'll play 200-300 hands/hour. Yesterday we played our usual homegame. 8 players NL dealerschoice. We played 25 hands/hour. At the end of the night I got the remark that I play too tight. Because I played only 20 hands or so. In live games everything goes so slow. So if you get bad cards for an hour, people will think you're tight. We played 3 hours, about 75 hands. So 20 is not so bad. I did limp once with 67 and got the nutstraight on the flop. I won my all-in and then they said: I can't believe you called with 67. I don't understand these guys.
I do believe online poker makes you a better player. Look at moneymaker. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]