How much do you read for cents

hey all,

I'm trying to build a bankroll but the problem is that i have very limited money i can afford for poker. Everyone (or at least smart people) say that you should only play with money you can afford to lose, so that's what i do. All my full-time work income goes to living expenses and family. I'm really trying to build slowly following all rules now but playing .01/.02 seems to hinder more than help.

I've been playing ABC poker at this limit, and to be honest, i pay absolutely no attention to other players whatsoever. I feel that playing such small stakes people don't care about losing, where as i am taking it seriously.

Should i be paying attention and trying to make reads at such small limits?

All advise is appreciated and welcomed .

i've found it almost impossible to build a BR at .01/.02. people just call down anything. i am pretty much in the same boat as you are. money is tight in my house so every so often when i can afford it i'll put 25 bucks on pokerstars and play sit and go's. with solid, patient play you can build up your bankroll just playing the 1.20 games. the rake is a bit much for this tourney but it's worth playing if you have enough in your roll.

with a small BR, natural varience can be a killer in cash games. so i try to stay away from them unless i can afford to buy in with the full amount according to the 5% BRM rule.

Thanks for advice, what type of ITM rate would i need to have to consider being successful?

Or should i focus on a winning rate rather than a cashing rate?

Thanks

any positive percentage is good but instead of focusing on ITM rates, focus on not being results oriented. focus on make the right decisions on every act. doing this will make you a better player and put you in the money in the long run.

I agree with what chief said. If you want to build a BR, play SNG's. The most common way to compare your results in SNG's is the ROI, or your return on investment. I play the $5 ones on Full Tilt and have a ROI% of over 20% over 600+ games. If you want to consider the ITM %, pretty much anything 30% and up is probably about the break even point, with really good players hitting close to 50%.

Of course the different levels will have different percentages that would be considered "good", as the competition does slowly get better as you increase the buy in amounts.

^^^^well said.

you can check your ROI on sharkscope for free, five times a day. however don't use sharkscope as the end all be all of your poker tracking. it only measures sit and go's. for a full view of your play i would suggest getting pokertracker.

You can't deposit a whole lot, that's understandable, it would help a lot if you could, but I think "almost impossible" is a bit of an overstatement. It's grueling, but surely possible with a bit of skill, luck and time, you'll inch yourself into greater territory. Sng's are probably a good bet, unless of course you're running cold, then you'll of course, definitely have an almost impossible time trying to create a quality sized bankroll. You don't want to play the $1's at Tilt due to the 25% rake compared to Stars' 20%. It's only 5%, but it all adds up.

yes you are right it is a bit of an over statement. the real problem is seeing bad play at these micro tables being rewarded. it tends to tell a person that it is ok to play like this. if you are going to play these tables, stick to your game plan. you obviously have to mix things up a bit, but don't let the bad play of others you see getting rewarded sway you into playing hands that you normally wouldn't.

ok 20% ROI or more than 30% ITM, thanks guys.

FYI look up my name "custo80" on pokerstars on sharkscope. I think its shocking.

please bear in mind i didnt know or practice bankroll management until a few months ago, around the 2500 game mark.

Thanks

Exactly Gameplan is needed when playing poker. You probably don't want to be calling all-ins preflop against loose/tilting players without a pair at least. Slow play works most of the time, but you have to play your opponent. I preferred playing the 6-seater shorthanded tables, so I didn't have to worry about a whole table of calling stations. They'll chase the draw. Call with nothing sometimes in micros, even in the .02/.05's. It's suprising how bad people are and how hard it is sometimes to take their money. You've got to be careful and not get your hopes up too much.

Just one more question, i've budget for 50 buyins for my SnG's. Only play on pokerstars so all i can afford is the $1.20 at the moment.

at such a low level is it better to play 1 at a time or 4 at a time, which is what i usually do

Alot of guys play multi tables and are quite successful at it. If you can read the players and watch the betting patterns over multiple tables go for it. Me i play just one at a time. Every time i have tried to play more i have met with disaster. Also don't forget the free rolls. I have had a number of very successful games in free rolls.

Depends on how you're doing with it. If you can play 4 and do credit too them all, do so. If you find your results are better playing one at a time, then play them singly. The important thing, give every session your bet effort. Whether you're playing for 1000 bucks a hand, or rabbit pellets, pay attention, try and gain experience and learn from your mistakes. The more you play, the more you'll learn, and the BR will ultimately benefit.

i find that at pokerstars you can build your play money up..you can sell 1 mil for 10 bucks...there is your starting bankroll. also at ps you can play 2/4cent limit holdem with 30 cent bankroll

People calling you down with anything is a GOOD thing. Yes, it can be frustrating when they win and there is more variance in these crazy games, but the better players win in the long run.
It is easy to build up a decent BR playing micros, just play abc style poker.



^ My graph of NL2 after 10,000 hands.

And is this a problem? Make the bad players think playing bad is good.

Agreed.

Why? Mixing up is not mandatory when playing people who don't know how to play. They're not getting reads on you at those tables.


This. Just play your game and you should easily make money there. Very tight and then value bet the sh** out of all your hands.

MAKE THEM PAY ON ALL OF THEIR DRAWS BY GIVING THEM BAD POT ODDS

THEY CHASE DRAWS LIKE ITS RELIGION AND OFTEN HAVE FAITH THAT THE FLUSH DRAW WILL ALWAYS HIT

stop SHOUTING......... please