Freerolls Helping Or Hurting?

I play alot of Freerolls,,,,I deposit and get access to freerolls I have done ok in some but my play is not the same as when I play with cash.....I find lots of all ins with s..t cards in the freerolls bustin my good cards and on tilt I go tossin cards on the felt.... Should I be playin Freerools If I want to be a great poker player ?

My answer to this would be yes but only if you need the money to build a bankroll because you cannot deposit or if the freerolls are "value-added" and well worth your time. Some are and some aren't. Maintaining your "game" playing the freerolls IS hard and it's easy to get carried away with the loose play at times.

For the most part freerolls hurt because of the quality of players in them. This would occur in the regular site freerolls. But, there are exceptions and some freerolls, like cardschat, have good players in them!

What does "I have done ok" translate into when you look at win rate per hour? Or per tournament? While depositor freerolls can seem attractive when you look at the prize pool and see some amount like $500 or $1000, you may want to consider how desirable they are to play in terms of your win rate compared to other possibilities such as cash games.

As for affecting your play, all people don't transition equally well across different games. If you don't know what adaptations you should make to your game between tournaments and cash, you might be better off sticking to one or the other, at least until you learn how to adapt.

[quote=onetrick247;1842330]I play alot of Freerolls,,,,I deposit and get access to freerolls.
I would think that the deposit freerolls have some quailty players. You won't get the same donks, as say in Carbon $ 200 freeroll. Where there is from 3000 to 5000 contestants. If you are depositing and still playing freerolls do you have a positive bankroll on the site with the freerolls? Forgive me but i'm assuming the freerolls you play are first depositors freerolls. They are a good bankroll builder because you have a lot less people in it. Keep on playing. Good luck on the felt.

I just typed about this bro, don't get discouraged about freerolls, people play so sloopy and stupid... if you need money play them try and stay legit and honest with your poker ethics, but don't take them for poker in general.... The merge Network is so Awesome but everythime I play the freerolls I get so pissed! LOL But honestly the best network available to US, Free rolls are tough and challenging becuase of the donks!

I love freerolls. I find them to be as competitive as you get toward the end because some people just have that competitive spirit. It's not about the money for them.. it's the pride and ego, etc.. but that's great "free" training ground.

OK. I see a lot of good advice and encouragement from the members. I really wouldn't discredit anything anyone has mentioned. I have never deposited and I have never won big. My top wins have been like 'thirty some bucks' and most of my wins have been the result of freeroll or micro-micro buy in, so single to double digits. And I still don't have a bankroll, just a few bucks, some a few cents here and a buck or two there.
The point I'm trying to get at is, easily 75% of all the tourneys I've played ever, were freerolls. I believe anyone who submits themselves and their game to that array of skill levels (resulting from none to to an occasional pro level player skill wise) and then there is youth and arrogance and alcohol and yes, even ignorance. You'll run into capable quality players who are in the freeroll to vent bad beat frustrations and the likes of long losing streaks or just major damage to their bankroll. Anyway if I had an option, I would take a good long break from playing in them. The more of them you play, the more leaks you will develop from them, even some on a totally subconscious level. If you don't have a mentor or coach or partner or something to slap you and snap you out of it, they'll settle in, believe me.
The best, most skillful play with the best odds of winning will lose way more often in a freeroll like that where lack of skill and experience and intelligence, plus the other things i mentioned, and topped off with the most dreaded element of all, no one has anything to lose if they don't win. I see all the excuses players use and the lack of sportsmanship that is exhibited, most often in the freeroll environment as disrespect for the game. So it's like the bad side of town that you should avoid if possible.
If you can deposit, those freerolls that you earn into by virtue there of are a more safe and respectable part of town and should be fine and not take to much away from your goal to improve your game. And you will find I'm sure most of the players most of the time will have a greater respect for the game that they have to buy into and their play will be predominantly more predictable and far less frustrating as you improve your game.
OK, that said, THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING! My entire career spans 2 1/2 - 3 years, so I'm still like 3/4 donk at least I'm sure.
Good luck

the simple answer is try to make the most money per hr, if that includes freerolls ....roll em up

Thx for the input all I do play the deposit freerolls and I do find the players of a better form....I think Ill stick to them for now Cheers gl

Freerolls are certainly a great bankroll builder, but in general I think most of them don't help prepare for "real" poker tournaments. But if you don't have a bankroll, then by all means you should be playing them. Once you've built a big enough bankroll to fund playing small buy in tournaments, I'd be prepared for an adjustment in your game when you start playing real money tournaments.

You have to accept public freerolls for what they are which is an opportunity for bad players with no bankroll to play poker. It is inevitable that the quality in the early stages will be poor. Even decent players who play in freerolls will open up their hand range and take a chance of doubling. If they do great and if they go out they have saved themselves a few hours. Do not get discouarged by what goes on in freerolls but by the same token if you do happen to pick up some cash do not over estimate it or read into it that you are suddenly a good player. Private freerolls are completely different and in fact the play in most of the CC private freerolls is better than a lot of public buy in tournaments.

I cant get into a free roll because I find that to many players dont take it seriously, its much easier to call or dunk when you have nothing on the line.
If I ever found a million dollar free roll with a max of 2k players this theory might change.

I say use the freerolls to learn more about one's own game without any risk. I learned a long time ago that I was playing waaaaaaay too many hands. I found this out by sitting out in a tourney and I lasted longer than most games that I actually played in.

Don't pay attention to others as much as yourself and hone your own game

I cant win nothing playing like this Im such a donk sometimes ok all the time Button is at seat 7
Seat 1: TheMentalist78 - 5,495
Seat 2: Pani4er - 3,649
Seat 3: FOURcardsWTF - 1,960
Seat 4: Cevapcici - 1,850
Seat 5: IdareUtocall - 5,760
Seat 6: onetrick247 - 3,771
Seat 7: dupap - 4,983
Seat 8: tyger007 - 2,424
Seat 9: moneybags77 - 1,690
Seat 10: VulturuCj - 1,820
Shuffling Deck
Moving Button to seat 8
moneybags77 posts small blind (75)
VulturuCj posts big blind (150)
Dealing Cards
Dealing [A c][T s] to onetrick247
TheMentalist78 folds
Pani4er folds
FOURcardsWTF folds
Cevapcici folds
IdareUtocall calls 150
onetrick247 raises to 675
dupap folds
tyger007 raises to 2,424 (all-in)
moneybags77 folds
VulturuCj folds
IdareUtocall folds
onetrick247 chuckles.
onetrick247 calls 2,424
Pot sizes: 5,223
onetrick247 shows [A c][T s]
tyger007 shows [A d][K h]
Dealing Flop [7 s][7 d][8 s]
Pot sizes: 5,223
Dealing Turn [4 h]
Pot sizes: 5,223
Dealing River [9 c]
Pot sizes: 5,223
tyger007 has One Pair: 7s
tyger007 wins 5,223 with: One Pair: 7s