taking notes

Assumption is that you have some kind of tracking software.

Beyond the stuff that your PT3/HEM keep track of, what things do you find are the most critical to look for when you sit down at a table? What tendencies to you try to see and note down on your opponents if you've never played with them before? If they seem like they're somewhat regular at the limit?

Basically: What are your favorite/most useful things to note about other players?

It's a habit I'm not in that seems to be very useful, but most often I find myself trying to just record some specific play I saw. My notes never seem to be relevant as far as tendencies go.

Do many of you make notes retroactively? Like during a session review you pick something up and add it to the PT3 profile notes?

Taking notes on players is very important, especially if you play a lot on the same site at the same times.
You WILL see a lot of the same players if you are consistent in your games, limits etc.

As for specific notes, it's really up to you.
I tend to mark the LAG players, the ones who seem to always be trying to fish that flush or straight, the players who just love that A-rag and play it hard.

Use the notes on the site as well as any tracking software you have.

In the long run this will help you cash more often

I take mass amount of notes & will respond to this thread later (when I have some time... sorry.. it just caught my eye, wanted to read it & wanted to make sure I get back to it later).

I have a list of stuff I look for & take notes on while playing (sng & mtt mostly).

i use them a lot! especially on full tilt poker i dot the loose crazy players green and the slow(check raise type) players purple! sometimes it helps you decide if you want to call late in the hand vs a certain player! seems to work for me! gl everyone at the tables!

Cool eager to hear what you have to say. Though I play mostly cash, any insight is sure to be helpful.

Funny enough, I think it was one of your posts that gave me the idea for this thread...something about you frantically doing stuff at the end of tourneys.

I wrote a post yesterday that had a little section about taking notes so here's that:

3. Know your opponents/Take notes. When I take notes during play for SNGs, I usually put things like players playing styles in different stages of the tournament, specific hands, calling ranges, etc. For example, I may make a note that says "Early stages - LP. AJs - player limped in middle position, called my 4x BB raise, showed down A6h." Some people change gears once a few players have been eliminated. I like to make notes on this. Another good note is to keep track if you notice a player raising from the cut off or button in, what seems, every orbit in the later blind stages. I'm the kind of person who remembers things much better when I write them down so keeping notes is a great way for me to gain an advantage. There are times when you really aren't sure how a player is playing even after having them at your table and that's okay. You can still make notes on specific hands.

I almost always take notes when I play HU sng's, but I guess it applies to any kind of poker.
Basically anything that will win you money you want to write down. Things about bet sizing, tightness, postflop tightness, tendency to cbet, agressiveness. I guess a lot of those things can be aproximated by a HUD, but since I don't multitable I haven't gotten the need to use them.
Things I don't write down is details or things that most definitely won't help you. Things like "slowplayed quads", "checked middle pair on the river" or "raised AK on the button". These are things that won't help you if you read them in your notes.
Anyway, experiment with it, it's definitely a good tool.

An extra is that it allows me to make more accurate decisions in big pots. For example, if I wrote "very passive" and haven't altered it, I'll think twice about calling an all in with a probably dominated hand like top pair of tens jack kicker.

Some things I note (cash games):

1. What does he limp/call and limp/raise w from which positions?
2. What's the flop texture if he c/r's or raises the flop? If it goes to showdown, what did he c/r or raise the flop w?
3. Does he value bet thinly (rare) or not at all?
4. How does he play draws (fast or slow)?
5. How does he play flopped sets? If slow, what was the flop texture?
6. Does he over-value TPTK/overpair hands?
7. Any weird play.

I color code players who I don't want on my left.

Aside from what slyc wrote I take note of whether or not they're chatty. And if they are are they nice and friendly or critical and aggro. Aggro chatty players can be put on tilt sometimes by chatting back. Kinda underhanded but useful.

Check out this threadon taking notes... Player notes

Its rather old so don't bother posting in it, If you have any comments or questions about it post them in this current thread.

I thought about trying to note on-line and have at times in extreem cases where some one is real good or real bad but I never see those people come up, maybe once. Live games I dont have the time write stuff down or bother with it, I depend on memory if I play with people often but when I think about how I change my style or if I'm in a good or bad mood and I play a certain way it could be a far cry from a normal day or how the cards are hitting too makes a difference in how I am playing so I'm not sure how someones notes on me could accurately describe my play. what migh tbe worth while is taking note on how I play and figuring out what I do right and wrong.

I use just about this type of system. I have all full tilt "ironmen" marked with a red color. I have people I just like very much marked in green. The players I see at the final tales or are in the money alot are marked in purple. The "all-iner's" as well as very loose players are marked in yellow. There are people I just can not stand to be at the table with and those are marked in red.

Just find you a system and stay with it.

Sorry... still busy (working again today.... .yah.. I work occassionally.. sigh..). Still going to respond on here (post will prob fill the page...I write EXTENSIVE notes, lol).

Notes will only help you improve your read on the opponent with the HUD to give you an idea of how new players you haven't noted yet tend to play. I note the impatient player that sits in and immediately posts. The LAG the trash ace players and the donkey's. Bless them for they keep my roll growing.

In my experience at small stakes the player pools have been so large that I rarely get chance to exploit a read I have noted. That, and when you do sit down with a player you have notes on, he's either changed his game or you don't understand the note . On balance, its still worth it as a good read can save you several buy-ins.

I play rush mostly atm, and often take notes of players who steal frequently. and those who generally don't. Then I know who to 3bet with ATC lol. Works pretty much all the time and even given the large player pool you will still run into this situation enough to make it worth while. Also because it's rush they don't generally remember you and play back.

I actually find I run into ALOT of the same players (ie. on Fulltilt 45-plyr. SNG's there are a bunch of regs. who are very good players making a decent amount in them... AND.. they're are a bunch of reg-spewtards in them as well (along with some randoms obv). It's great to know the difference prior to playing a hand with them.
I also find alot of players will play similiarly over time. If they have a tendancy to be passive... they'll stay passive. If they bet their draws aggressively on the flop in position.... they will most often continue to do so. If they bet scare cards hu in pos., they will often continue to do so, etc. etc. etc.
I find taking notes is also great for improving one's hand reading skills.

sidenote.... still planning on posting on this thread.... "I have ALOT of notes on 'taking notes', lol"

I recently reformatted my pc and I lost over 2 years worth of notes on players. I am curious about these huds. Are there any circumstances where you have to re-install the hud and do you lose your notes or data if you reformat and re-install a hud? I may have just found my third reason to get a hud and I am setting up online banking in a month or so which would allow me to purchase one online. I appreciate any information you long term hud users can give me on this.