An important
poker lesson to learn is how to choose your poker table
Here’s a wise
poker lesson. Online poker cash tables are populated with a mix of
players. You may have to choose between ten or more poker tables at the
level you want to play.
Church of Texas Holdem Psalm #6:
"Should the other man’s grass turn out to be greener, thy may
climb his
fence."
In other words, don’t feel
‘married’ to
your poker table if it turns out to be the wrong kind of game for you.
Why I said this poker lesson is one you
can only learn from experience is: you need to know "who" the players
at your poker table are. Or rather, you want at least a basic
understanding of their styles of play.
Let’s illustrate this with an
example. You
sit at two five-seat cash poker tables. One of those tables suits you
perfectly. You are able to play the right amount of hands;
there’s a
fine balance, two solid but not shark-aggressive players, one loose
chaser and one clueless wonder.
On the other poker table, you’re
learning
one of the hardest poker lessons. Three solid and tricky players
constantly pushing their small edges, making it expensive to see
through hands you want to play.
Your small pairs are costing you plenty to
see the flop and you’re missing your sets. Your flush draws
get
prohibitive on the turn. Time to look for another seat
elsewhere.
You can now appreciate the difference
–
and it’s a huge one – between a good poker table
and a bad one. In the
bad old days before Internet poker, professional players talked about
watching a poker table before you sat down, so you could get an idea of
how the players are behaving.
But Internet poker players are usually not
so patient. I don’t advise that you spend ages watching a
table. The
turnover is just too fast at most poker tables. There is a poker lesson
I would like to impart though: don’t be afraid of
following a
dream player around the site.
Most sites offer a ‘find
player’ applet.
When you come across a star player, who can’t resist leaving
money
scattered before him like rose petals before a bride, make friends with
him, hound him, whatever. Of course you should never insult players
like this. Be friendly and add them to your list of
‘stars’.
That said, the balance of power at a great
poker table can adjust very fast. Don’t leave your poker
table to
follow a star if the mix is still just right for your style of play.
You might be chasing the loose money and run into trouble elsewhere,
while the original table would have been an easy killing for you in a
long, slow grind.
Most of all, relax. Internet poker is
online 24/7. Just don’t forget to check back into the Church
of Texas
Holdem at least once a week...
May I suggest you sign up to PokerPrayer,
the Church of Texas Holdem eZine? This will keep
you informed
of new installments in this series, and allow us to offer you loads of
free benefits.
Here endeth the lesson.