Cash Game vs. Tournaments

I was just wondering what people tend to do better in, cash games or tournaments. I've been playin small tournaments for over a year now and cash games for about 2 months. Oddly, I seem to do better in cash games.

I've never really ventured too much into cash games. For a while I played limit on party poker cause I didn't like their SNg's, but generally I play SNG's all the time now that I'm at UB. I like them because if you lose, you lose a minimal amount, and if you can make it to the top three you automatically win something. So far I think I've only played in two SNG's where I didn't make top three. I'm good at them somehow. Don't ask me. As long as I'm making consistent money on them I'm going to keep at them. I think I might move up to $10 SNG's soon. I'd recommend SNG's to anyone who only wants to risk a minimal amount to win much more.

Jon

I like tourneys better because if you lose your out. Cash games you can keep coming back for more and more.

I like both and i think you have to play the two.

For many reasons.

I much prefer tournaments than cash games. I feel that in cash games, the pressure is greater to do well. In a tournament, you can still lose your shirt, but it doesn't bother you as much making suttle calls when you don't have the greatest hand in the world. Maybe it's poor thinking as far as a great poker player is concerned, but then again, I'm still learning. That's my take

AvsFan03576

cash games are easier to make money in
(unless you suck)

CASH GAMES

It jus depends on what type of player you are. A friend and I have been plaing for 3 yrs and hes the tourney player and im the cash game player. Vise Vera we do horrible. It took us awhile to figure this out but we make some decent money now.

Yes cash games are much easier to make $ because the blinds never change and you can wait for a hand

Actually cash games are much different than tournaments and yes there is alot more easy money to make in cash games. Tournaments you can pretty much play a tight aggressive style and you should be ok. Cash games you HAVE to adjust to the players at the table. If everybody has their butt cheeks clinched together you need to loosen up if it is a generally loose game then you can just wait for a hand but IMHO you should have a fluid style when it comes to cash games which means you need to be able to adjust especially in NL games.

both are different style of play. somewhat similar, but you're trying to reach different goals.

in tournaments your goal is to survive. and the way to do it so to knock out players and to build up your chip stack. the positive thing about tournament play is for a small buy in you can win a big reward. (depending on how many players)...you dont even have to take first to get a nice pay-off. the negative is its sometimes long and if you get hurt (chip-wise) early on you could find it hard to come back up in the end.

when it comes to cash games, its different. the money you can make doesnt come in one large pay-off, rather in pots that you take if you win. on certain nights you can make 10x what you bought and on other nights you could end up losing money. unlike a tournament, you dont have to wait till the end before you decided to cash out. also, you can buy in as many times as you want if you get broke. the down fall of cash games are: coming up isnt guarenteed and you could end up playing with more money then you intended.

another thing is: depending on your style of play..one style of the game may do far better for you the other. if you like to play a tight style i suggest playing in cash games. you can easily sit back and wait before you decided to play a hand. the worst that would happen is you'll lose a few bucks in the blinds whenever the button went around. if you're a tight player tournaments might not be the game for you. sitting back and waiting could cost you because of the blinds raising and aggressive players kicking you out of hands. if you like to play aggressive, tournament style might suit you better because your aggresive style means you are capable of surviving longer because you can steal blinds and take down pots. in cash games, this might work...but you could end up over-valuing a hand against a tight player and end up losing money. If you are able to shift gears and play tight > aggressive, then i dont see why you shouldnt be able to play both.

also, its a matter of opinion on which you prefer to play. i like cash games more because of my tight style of play and the fact that i have the option standing up and leaving when i feel is the right time.

i find tourneys much more amusing and profitable.

At first I thought Tourneys were easiest. But now I seem to be getting better at the NL rings. It is a learning curve though. Patience and aggresiveness are keys to both!

So far my experience has been that the two compliment each other. The cash games seem to improve my tournament play. I'm still early into my poker journey but for me playing both seems to make me a better player.

some people are just better in cash game situation, the tourney is good cause you can be more aggresive cause if you lose your not losing your whole bankroll just the entry fee, i like both personnaly

Well it looks like people like to be more aggressive in tourneys than cash games. I always looked at it just the opposite. Although I know there are some very successful tournament players who are overly aggressive early on. Anyways maybe I should loosen up my tournament play a little. Although now that I play our tournaments here regularly I haven't done badly. Oh well see ya'll at the tables wednesday.

being overly aggresive is not the way to go i think, in any situation, but it does work for some players, i might not have the balls but i like to play tight, as tight as an 18 yo virgin

I nearly always play in a little cash game while I'm playing a tourney. It seems to prevent me from getting too impatient either way. Folding 10 hands in a row can be frustrating, and then you get tempted to play something you know you shouldn't

c4rdsh4rk2004 said:

being overly aggresive is not the way to go i think, in any situation, but it does work for some players, i might not have the balls but i like to play tight, as tight as an 18 yo virgin

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18 year old virgins! Where do you live? Around here all the cherries that are worth poppin are popped by the time they are 13! I need to move where you are! Oh and on the poker front see ya'll at the tables tomorrow

i find that low limit cash games is a waste of time, because people will call with anything and if u just play the "premium" hands you will still lose to people

both are amamzing, i like to play both of them, tournaments are great for trying to do ur best against alot of people and cash games are a good game to play with friends and shit.

At first I tried the cash game with fixed limit but now I do only tournament at pacific poker .. I love playing their tournament over there.

Some do better at one type then the other. try to find the one you enjoy the most playing then just learn as much as you can about it to become a winning player. Even in cash games , there's a big difference in playing 6max tables then playing 9max..and also tourneys the turbos are diff then deep stack tourneys..you can also go 10-15 tourneys without cashing if your playing multitable tourneys like 360 players or more. If you like cash games stick with them you can do really well when you start moving up into the .50-1.00 and 1.00-2.00 tables online..cash games you can up and leave when you want .Tourneys are at least an hour even at the 9 player sit&goes to cash. Just remember having the right Bankroll for any type is critical for longterm success.. Good luck ..

its interesting you say people go 10-15 tournaments without cashing, i generally play cash but people who finish at the top of a decent tournament get paid off very well.

Heres a stat of a top MTT player . Yes it goes in spurts at MTT's

Yeah, there is a lot more variance in playing MTTs.
So your bankrollmanagement has to be accordingly / more carefully.