Getting Started in Online Poker at
Weak Sites
written by BeatTheFish.com
...Fishy says, "Where did these guys
learn how to play poker? The Travel Channel?"
The following article was submitted by our resident "jslavi01" over
from the Poker Forum.
I first met him several months ago when he followed a promotion I
was running for
Bodog.
I've seen his game progress over time and would like to share with
you some solid advice he's submitted for our readers:
...
jslavi01: "If your style is any variation of tight
aggressive, the flop percentage at the tables you play would
optimally be about 45-50%. That leaves enough limpers for you to
raise up your strong hands in late position, and enough pot equity
to raise your suited connectors in middle to late position and turn
(hopefully) them into a monster. Don't forget good cards play
themselves.
If your starting hand requirements are looser, your profitability
may be a little higher at a table where 30-40% see the flop. By
opening your starting hand requirements, you probably want to buy in
for the max so that you're able to withstand the variance that comes
with this style of play. At this type of table an unraised pot in
late position is ripe for stealing. But be ready to let a lot of
hands go if you're played back at. In the case that you do have an
optimal hand, you should make a decent profit relative to your
losses.
At Pacific,
I would regularly buy in short. Maybe half a max buy-in at a lower
level NL table ($5 at a $10 table). I look for maybe 1-2 people with
$10-12 and the rest hanging around the $5-7 range. Most of the
players are very weak at these levels, and if you have poker
tracker, it's easy to keep an eye out for the sharks so you don't
get your precious stack eaten. The optimal play at this level is to
push every edge you have against the other players. Be aggressive
with the hands you might normally get sucked out on (i.e. when you
hit 2p, trips w/ flush draw/str8 draw).
For those just starting off, be prepared to experience fluctuations
of 5-10 max buy-ins ($50-100 at a 10NL table) to fishies donking off
chips and sucking out on you (especially at the weaker sites like
Bodog and
Pacific)
after you push your Kings to their A-9 off suit. The bonuses you get
at beatthefish.com are fantastic for building a sufficient bankroll.
You do have to have a sufficient bankroll. Do not underestimate
this. (In the long run, the money will be there, but you have to be
able to withstand the ups and downs of poker. Especially at the
beginning levels.)
One thing I notice at these levels is people don't raise enough.
Good players raise. Bad players go all-in. If you have Kings and an
Ace falls on the board, DON'T GO ALL IN!! Throw out an aggressive
bet instead. People always love to push a middle pocket pair with an
over on the board and three people in the pot (e.g 88 into a J23
board.) Instead of going all-in, raise (or at least throw out a
bet)! The information you gain from your opponents and the way they
respond is invaluable.
Also, if you're just starting out, focus on one table at a time and
hone your skills. Don't worry about making a ton of money...yet.
That's what your bankroll is there for. (How do you make a big
fortune? Start with a small one). With the skills you develop
focusing on one table, rather than a bunch, you're gaining the
knowledge and expertise (and most importantly the patience) to
multitable profitably. If you're a good player, the money will
always be there."
...
Very solid advice here. As you
mentioned, a high flop percentage will indicate many limpers preflop.
With many weak players hoping to get lucky on the flop with trash
cards, it is imperative that you raise your premium cards 5-6 times
the big blind (or more depending on the number of callers) to both
thin the field and build a larger pot.
Also, you're correct in that winning
players don't slowplay vulnerable hands in loose games. If you are
facing 2 or more opponents, you should make it a habit to bet out
and/or raise with 2 pair, a set, or a non-nut straight or flush.
Hesitating to bet big until you've allowed your drawing opponents to
suck out on you is an avoidable crime.
Another point you hit on is bankroll
variation. While loose sites like Bodog or Doyle's Room will most
likely increase your ring game hourly win rate, the wild play will
also increase the variation in your stack. You may have an advantage
at a specific table and you feel like you're playing well but run
into a bad beat that cripples your stack. If you can avoid going on
tilt, there is no reason to leave a game that you have an advantage
in. It's important to have enough of a bankroll to reload when need
be. General recommendations are usually to have at least 4 or 5
maximum buy-ins for the level you're going to play.
Finally, that's another good point
about going all-in blindly. Most of the time a rash all-in bet will
either force your opponent to fold a small pot to you or call if he
has you beaten. However, one scenario where I will do this is when I
have something like pocket Aces, there are 3 undercards on the
board, and the pot is at least half of my remaining stack. Then, I'm
simply putting my Aces out there on the line - I'm both protecting
against draws and making my opponents pay to suck out. I would have
a tough time laying that hand down against undercards most of the
time and if I know that, sometimes I'll just stick it all in.
Overall, very good advice for new
players and I hope to see more of these in the future.
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Poker Strategy
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