Online Poker

[sharkbit]

I used to for about 6 years until about 2 years ago on Ultimate Bet, Bodog, and a little at Full Tilt. Mostly small stakes No-limit up to $25 NL. Did a small amount of bonus whoring-moving money from site to site to take advantage of different site's deposit bonuses. Not a ton, but I added a little to my bankroll doing that. There are websites devoted to bonus whoring.

It was only a hobby. A hobby that made me a little bit of money though. When it quit being fun as a hobby, I pulled out all of my money. It just got to be too much like work.

I got out before the you know what really hit the fan when the Justice Department shut down some of them, at least temporarily. I haven't really checked back to see if they are up and running again. Not much desire to really get back into it.

I know for a lot of people it was more than a hobby. Judging by what people posted on some of the poker forums, some people were really good at it and made a decent living. I know I never had an inkling to sit in front of a screen playing multiple tables all day long. If the poker gods started crapping on you, things could get ugly.

Enjoy though! It is fun and as they say, Texas Hold-em takes a minute to learn and a lifetime to master.

[Armistead]

Originally Posted by sharkbit

I used to for about 6 years until about 2 years ago on Ultimate Bet, Bodog, and a little at Full Tilt. Mostly small stakes No-limit up to $25 NL. Did a small amount of bonus whoring-moving money from site to site to take advantage of different site's deposit bonuses. Not a ton, but I added a little to my bankroll doing that. There are websites devoted to bonus whoring.

It was only a hobby. A hobby that made me a little bit of money though. When it quit being fun as a hobby, I pulled out all of my money. It just got to be too much like work.

I got out before the you know what really hit the fan when the Justice Department shut down some of them, at least temporarily. I haven't really checked back to see if they are up and running again. Not much desire to really get back into it.

I know for a lot of people it was more than a hobby. Judging by what people posted on some of the poker forums, some people were really good at it and made a decent living. I know I never had an inkling to sit in front of a screen playing multiple tables all day long. If the poker gods started crapping on you, things could get ugly.

Enjoy though! It is fun and as they say, Texas Hold-em takes a minute to learn and a lifetime to master.

Yea, I played a few of those sites, but like you said, you have to sit at it for hours. I did make a few thousand over a couple years, but quit playing online for money, now just fake chips. I do play twice a week with a few local groups, but we all agreed a to a few hundred max, so know one gets peod losing a paycheck.

[Gargamel]

I used to play a lot. PLayed about 150,000 - 200,000 hands a year for a few years at my peak. Was a part time job for me, around 20 hours a week.

Tough to play anymore after black friday.

Paid for a lot of bills and a couple fully paid trips to the bahamas with the winnings.

[kiwi_2005]

Prefer to play poker IRL, than online, ive read of some players online make up to 300k a year - but poker is all about luck and there is no skill in it at all apart from bluffing or when to hold or chuck your cards in. Still its luck / chance. So how do they win big online

[Armistead]

Originally Posted by kiwi_2005

Prefer to play poker IRL, than online, ive read of some players online make up to 300k a year - but poker is all about luck and there is no skill in it at all apart from bluffing or when to hold or chuck your cards in. Still its luck / chance. So how do they win big online

Poker takes a lot of skill online. The few tourneys I've been in, you'll see many of the same players constantly make it to the top 100 out of 30,000 players. When I play for money, I start tight and play good hands, once I build up, I'll get loose, even willing to lose a few hands so people can see I will push a bluff to the end, then pray for that good hand you can set people up with. The hard thing is you've got to bet to see cards hoping you will hit. The hardest thing for me is figuring odds in my head on the fly, but I'm getting better at it.

Most sites, you move up in class as you win money, so you can't take advantage of new players coming in.

[Gargamel]

Originally Posted by kiwi_2005

Prefer to play poker IRL, than online, ive read of some players online make up to 300k a year - but poker is all about luck and there is no skill in it at all apart from bluffing or when to hold or chuck your cards in. Still its luck / chance. So how do they win big online

Thank you Kiwi, i needed to laugh like that.

But seriously, Poker is a game of skill, with an element of luck.

Recent US court rulings even say so.

Check out the lobby group I'm a part of, the poker players alliance. http://theppa.org/ They are pushing for poker players rights in the US. Have some nice t-shirts too.

[Platapus]

Originally Posted by sharkbit

Texas Hold-em takes a minute to learn

I would challenge that statement. I have tried but just can't get the hang of that game.

[sharkbit]

Originally Posted by Platapus

I would challenge that statement. I have tried but just can't get the hang of that game.

Piece-O-Pie.

Two cards dealt face down to each player, a betting round.
Three cards dealt face up on the table( the Flop), a betting round.
Another card dealt face up(the Turn card), a betting round.
Last card dealt face up(the River card), a betting round.

The showdown- best poker hand wins.

See- Easy speasy! Less than a minute to learn!

Now we come back to the second part of the saying...."...A lifetime to master."
Knowing what hands to start with, playing the blinds, how to read the board, knowing the odds of drawing to a hand, and figuring out what your opponent(s) have based on position, betting patterns, how good you think your opponent(s) is/are, etc., etc., etc.

That is where it gets challenging and where the skill comes in. And what makes the game so blasted fun.

Playing tournaments, both single table and multi-table, takes a different mindset and strategy, as Armistead stated above, than just playing "ring" games-joining a table and just playing poker against other players at the table with your bankroll.

[Armistead]

I played all night for real money, got up to 2K, left the table with about $400.....blah... back to fake chips for awhile.

Online, no visual tells, it's all about probing with bets and raises....

[sharkbit]

Originally Posted by Armistead

I played all night for real money, got up to 2K, left the table with about $400.....blah... back to fake chips for awhile.

Online, no visual tells, it's all about probing with bets and raises....

What limit were you playing at?

The highest limit my bankroll let me play at was $25NL. That's a big step up from $10NL which was most common for me.

One thing I was pretty proud of was never playing at too high a stakes in relationship to my bankroll. I played only a few thousand hands at $25NL after I was properly bankrolled for that limit. Once I got over the nerves, I did all right but I slumped a little and I went back to $10NL where Iwas much more comfortable.

[Jimbuna]

Only bet what you can afford to lose

[Gargamel]

This entire thread makes me

[Armistead]

Originally Posted by sharkbit

What limit were you playing at?

The highest limit my bankroll let me play at was $25NL. That's a big step up from $10NL which was most common for me.

One thing I was pretty proud of was never playing at too high a stakes in relationship to my bankroll. I played only a few thousand hands at $25NL after I was properly bankrolled for that limit. Once I got over the nerves, I did all right but I slumped a little and I went back to $10NL where Iwas much more comfortable.

100PL, player to player transfer at Full Tilt. I also play the micro tables a lot, you can buy in for about 50 cent. The only time I go into VIP rooms is when I'm betting with winnings I've earned, not my own, can't afford it.

Course, sure most that play know good people are using a number of tools such as Poker Edge that automatically tracks stats of each player as you play. I've seen as many as 12 people waiting to get in a room to play with money wasting noobs. I tracked one guy last night, had lost 70% of his hands and was down almost 3K.....I wish these tools could be banned, but they're allowed, so you have to use them and realize anyone can study every move you've made.

[Gargamel]

There's no reason to ban those tools.

They are nothing more than you can do by hand. The ones that share data over a network should, and are, banned. But the normal tracking software, you could compile all that data by hand and create your own book on each player.

But to be a serious Player without those tools is unthinkable. When I was at my prime, in full swing for a session I was playing 12-16 tables at a time. There's no way I could track the action on every table alone. Having a HUD of each players tendencies, based in statistical analysis of their past play is essential to being a winning player online.