On Line Poker Strategy :

[Kramer]

Theres Been a lot of talk about how difficult it is to win at on line poker ,

so here's one to try :
by Roy Rounder

It's so simple...

And so obvious...

Yet no one seems to get it!

What's this easy-to-use secret for beating Sit and
Go tournaments online?

The answer is this:

PATIENCE.

I know... I know... you were expecting something
more, um... "secretive".

But the truth is, winning at Sit and Go's is
pretty damn easy. I find them easier than "real"
poker games, actually.

And that's why every time I turn on the computer
these days I feel like a kid in a candy store...
ready to clean out the amateurs at the poker room
of my choosing.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

What I want to discuss here is why PATIENCE is so
critical for Sit and Go success.

First, let's get back to some basics. There are
four types of poker playing styles:

1. Tight-Passive
2. Tight-Aggressive
3. Loose-Passive
4. Loose-Aggressive

Your style should be tight-aggressive.

Don't confuse "styles" with "preferences". If you
want to be a good card player, you DON'T get to
DECIDE to be tight-aggressive.

You MUST be tight-aggressive in order to be good.

Period.

Of course there are DEGREES of each playing style,
and that's what accounts for the differences
between one pro and another... the DIFFERENT
DEGREES of tight-aggressive.

OK, now let me ask you:

What does "tight-aggressive" really MEAN?

Here's the answer:

It means that you play TIGHT in terms of hand
selection, but AGGRESSIVE when you enter a pot.

Be careful... "tight" and "aggressive" are not
opposites. "Tight" and "loose" are opposites. And
so are "aggressive" and "passive".

TIGHT refers to hand selection. AGGRESSIVE refers
to betting.

OK... so this is how playing styles relate to Sit
and Go's...

The NATURE of Sit and Go's makes them OVERRUN by
LOOSE-AGGRESSIVE style players.

The reasons are simple:

1. You can play a Sit and Go virtually anytime,
anywhere, and with anyone.

This means there's very low risk in LOSING, since
you can easily just move on to the next game. It's
not like in "offline" poker when once you get
knocked out you're DONE.

2. The money seems less "real".

Let's be honest... We all know the feeling of
making a deposit into an online poker account and
thinking to ourselves how it doesn't quite feel
like REAL MONEY. Am I right?

3. There's no "embarrassment".

Online poker is virtually 100% anonymous. If you
make a stupid move, you're not worried about what
the other players THINK of you. Who cares?

After all, the other "players" are really just
silly little avatars on an animated screen.

OK, so those are three (there are many more) of
the reasons why Sit and Go's (and pretty much all
of online poker) are dominated by the playing
style LOOSE-AGGRESSIVE.

Loose-aggressive is also known as the "manic" playing style. And what's the
FASTEST way to beat
a manic?

Yep, you guessed it...

PATIENCE.

The reason is because MANICS are constantly
playing many hands (loose) and doing so
aggressively.

What happens is that it's difficult to get a READ
on them because you never know whether they're
bluffing or not... unless you call their bets...
which you can't do because you don't have that
great a hand.

Has this ever happened to you?

Have you ever been up against a player who seemed
to be playing VERY aggressively and you just
couldn't figure out if they were bluffing or
holding great cards?

And then when you got FED UP with it and DID make
a call, he had you beat?

My guess is that it HAS happened to you... just as
it's happened for me.

The key thing to know is that THERE ARE certain
steps you can take to defend this. (I even wrote
an entire chapter about this topic in my book.)

But fortunately in Sit and Go's, this isn't really
much of a problem. Because you're usually not up
against just one or two manics. You're up against
an ENTIRE TABLE of them.

That means you shouldn't be CALLING anyone's bets.

Instead, YOU should push the action when you have
a monster hand... and ONLY when you have a monster
hand. And that, of course, requires...

PATIENCE!

It's actually much easier this way. Because with a
table full of manics, you can rely on getting
action with all your great hands.

(I should point out here that I'm generally
referring to Sit and Go's where the entry fee is
less than $50. When the stakes are higher the
quality of play is usually more intelligent.)

OK, so what I'm about to tell you might take some
of the "fun" out of Sit and Go's. But it will
increase your profits dramatically...

Here's what your Sit and Go "experience" should
look like when the field is from 8 or 10 players
down to 4 or 5 players.

**************************************************

If your hole cards are...

A-A, K-K - Go all in pre-flop if you're in early
position. If in late position and there was a
raise, go all-in. If people were just trying to
limp in, make a raise... and then bet very
aggressively after the flop.

Q-Q, A-K - If you're in an early position, bet
big (but not all-in). If you're in a late
position, use your read on the other players to
determine whether or not you think you have the
best hand. If so, bet huge or go all-in.

All other pocket pairs - Limp-in. If you spike
trips, go all-in. If not, fold.

Suited connectors - Limp-in if the blinds are
reasonably low. Fold suited connectors under 7-6.

Ace-X suited - Limp-in if possible. Only bet if
you hit the flush.

All other hands - Fold.

**************************************************

What you've just seen will be completely different
than most "starting hand strategies" out there.

And that chart is NOT for all types of no limit
Texas Holdem. We're ONLY talking about games that
match these three criteria:

1. Online poker Sit and Go tournaments
2. Low stakes (under $50 entry)
3. While there are more than 4 or 5 players at the
table (in an 8-man or 10-man Sit and Go)

DO NOT use that starting hand advice for any other
poker games... because that's NOT how you should
play your starting hands in general.

So why would Sit and Go's be so much different
than "normal" poker play?

Like I said before, the reason is because Sit and
Go's are heavily dominated by loose-aggressive
players... and THIS is how you beat those guys.

Why exactly does this strategy work?

It works because you're only playing monsters.

Now... if the players at Sit and Go's were SMART,
they'd OBSERVE that you're only playing monster
hands... and they'd FOLD as soon as you went
all-in.

I mean... it only makes logical sense, right?

Indeed, this is how it works in live games. But
not online. Because for online poker there's
another important factor working to your
advantage...

NO ONE'S PAYING ATTENTION!

The truth is, many players are either drunk,
hungover, stupid, or playing multiple tables at
once. Or all of the above!

They're not paying attention to your betting
patterns. They're just playing the CARDS, not the
PLAYERS.

I call my strategy for patiently waiting for
monster hands and then going all-in:

"Tight-Aggressive Squared"

The reason is because my strategy is like the
playing style tight-aggressive... but on STEROIDS.

Why go all-in so much?

It's like I said... you WILL get action. Maybe not
every single time, but enough times to make it
well worth your while.

For Sit and Go's, all you need to do is double-up
ONCE before the field gets to 4 or 5 players.

THEN you can start playing aggressively. What will
happen is that the 4 or 5 players LEFT IN THE GAME
will usually be the smarter ones. And some of them
WILL notice by now that you're playing tight.

SO THEN what you do is steal blinds. It's easy.

Everyone tightens up when there are four or five
players in a hand because they want to make the
money... and they want to be VERY CAREFUL to make
it into the top three.

That is when you steal some blinds and add to your
chip stack.

Then, after that point you'll be in third place
and will be in the money.

[Dagger]

Sit and Go'

I don't know much about online poker..can I ask what Sit and Go's game means?

[dhunter]

Originally Posted by Dagger

I don't know much about online poker..can I ask what Sit and Go's game means?

Sit and Gos are "mini-tourneys" (single table, usually 10 people) You get knocked out, it's over. You have to play until you're out of chips. Not like a cash game where you can leave at any time. Top 3 get paid.

[Klazerman]

Good info Kramer.
thanks once again.
klaze

[BigFratDaddy]

i dunno man, sit and gos are such a grind its ridiculous. ive tried this before and i think overall cash games are better. swings are worse but in the end i find myself making more money in the long run.

[Seanie Mac]

party poker just gave me 50 bucks for free, who wants to go heads up lol. i am breaking my 41 day party poker hiatus

[Kramer]

Originally Posted by Seanie Mac

party poker just gave me 50 bucks for free, who wants to go heads up lol. i am breaking my 41 day party poker hiatus

Maybe one of their employees
sam "gambler to a bookie"