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No-limit holdem poker games, both live and online, are where many of today’s poker hopefuls are taking their shot at the professional poker life. It’s a game where some players flourish, and others flame out and are forced to rebuild their bankroll at lower levels of play. If you’re a beginning player, you may be facing a decision as to whether you should play live or online poker. Here are some distinctions between live casinos or home games and online no limit Texas Hold 'em poker. Familiarity Most live local casinos attract a mix of serious and casual players. The majority of these players are looking for low or mid stakes games. Those who are going to travel to a live casino to play tend to be a smaller number and few of these games are high stakes (unless you go to Vegas). Thus, you may very often find yourself facing familiar opponents particularly at home games. In contrast, online, where there is a pool of millions to choose from, you can play Texas Holdem while facing brand new opponents all the time. Facing familiar opponents can be an advantage, especially if you feel you have a good understanding of how they play. On the other hand, your live opponents are likely to see you coming as well. If they are strong players this can present a challenge. Game Selection If you travel to a live casino and there’s only one suitable game available you’re stuck with it unless you’re willing to play another game or at other stakes. This can be a problem if it’s a game of all pros. Of course, if you are also recognized as a pro it’s possible everyone will softplay until a fish happens along. This is going to put a serious damper on your win rate. Online poker sites offer a much wider selection of games due to the greater number of players, the ease of starting a game online, and the number of online poker sites available. On the other hand, if you know of one or two live games around town that are almost always good, you may feel a drive down to that local game is wothwhile. Tilting If you start steaming in a live casino, you can get up, get in your car, and drive away. Once you get out of the parking lot, you’re usually safe. On the other hand, going into a downward spiral in an online poker game can have potentially disastrous effects since you have quick, constant access both to more funds and to the game itself. If you’re going to play high stakes poker online, you need to have strict standards for when a losing streak signals the end of the day’s session. Lower Stakes
Online you can play for very low stakes. Since there are no dealers, rent or utilities to pay, the online sites can offer games
at very low limits. This would not be practical or profitable at traditional brick and mortar cardrooms. If you are a new player you can find some sites with stakes as low as a penny or a nickel. It is a world-wide “kitchen table” game and is a great way to make the transition from free play to real money.
No Tipping Required
In a cardroom it is customary to tip the dealer when you win a pot. This tip along with the rake is money you have to pay to
play. Online you are not required to tip the dealer which means you are keeping more of what you win.
No Interaction
Sitting down in a live game and facing nine other players can be very intimidating for a new player. Playing online Poker is
akin to playing a video game since you are sitting in front of your computer facing a monitor instead of a live person. You can
interact with the other players via the chat box or choose to just play your own game without having to talk or socialize.
Nobody can see you and if your hands are shaking because of nerves nobody can see this. Of course, the reverse is true also - you will not get to gain any of the "tells" from your competition.
Fits Your Schedule
Online play fits your schedule because you can play anytime you want 24/7. There is no traveling time involved and there
is little or no waiting to get into a game once you are logged on. Since poker has become so popular it is normal to have to
have wait an hour to get into a game at the cardroom (even if they are offering the stakes you want to play). This is after an hours ride to get there and then when I am done I still have an hours drive back home. Online I can log on and play even if I only have an hour or less to play.
Everybody Acts in Turn
Because of the software used online, nobody can act out of turn. Some sites have buttons or boxes you can check so you
can choose to fold, call or raise as soon as you see your cards, but the action will not take place until it is your turn to act.
Chip Counts
When you play in a live game some players find it difficult keeping track of pot odds and determining if they are getting the
correct odds to call a bet or not. When you play online you always know exactly how much money is in the pot. You can
easily calculate the pot odds for each decision you have to make. If you are unsure you can refer to a chart and even
quickly use your calculator to do the math. This is not something you can do sitting at a live table with other players. Also, the computer tells you exactly how many chips each person has - so you instantly know which big stacks to be careful of and which short stacks may go all-in soon.
Keep Notes
In a live game you may not know another player’s name, but online each player’s screen name is in plain view. It is easy to
keep accurate notes about the other players you meet online. In fact most winning players keep notes about the types of hands played by their opponents, whether the player is passive, aggressive, tight or loose, etc.. Most poker sites have the option for you to enter these notes about each player. If you meet a player a week or even months later the computer will show you that you have previously taken notes on this person - this is very helpful. There is an excellent web site called www.sharkscope.com that tells you how many games the person has played and how much money they have made or lost. It has info on tournaments played (not cash games) - this web site can be very helpful !!
Multitask
Although you should concentrate on the game at hand,when you are playing online you can do other things in between
hands. Some players watch TV, talk on the phone or read. Some players even play in more that one game at a time.
Online play is faster than a live game and because you can use the action buttons you can easily jump from game to game
on your screen. Good luck in whichever form of poker you choose !!
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