$$$$$ - Where Should I Start Online?

I'm really tired of fools calling not 1, not 2, but 3 raises only to catch a K on the river and crack my QQ. He had Kc3c btw and I was playing tight (as if that matters to a calling station).

I understand that there will be loose players at every level, but what's the best level to begin with when it comes to Limit Hold 'Em and No Limit MTT if you want to truly learn the game and avoid those who only want action regardless of the cards they're holding?

maria

Welcome to poker. This problem exists at all levels. If you're looking to start playing for real money to avoid being sucked out on, that's the wrong reason!

My advice would be this: Play poker until you've cashed in two freerolls. Then, that proves to yourself that you can beat the worst players. Supplement your freeroll winnings with a deposit, and start playing microstakes.

Also, realize that you *want* your opponent to call your raises with a slim chance of winning! That's what makes you money in the long term. As you move up in stakes, this happens less frequently, and it becomes much more difficult to win money. If you can't beat games where your opponents are constantly giving you a large edge, how do you expect to beat games where your opponents are good?

Chin up soldier, and battle on. And just check the bad beats section if you think you're the only player that's getting sucked out on.

I know exactly where you are coming from OP.
In fact, just after reading your post, I was in a situation where my UTG raise with KK gets called by Q8s and they win with trip 8s. These beats are a bit hard to swallow sometimes, especially in situations where you have them dominated but they're going to happen and thats something you're going to have to get used to. Especially in the smaller stakes where play is usually a lot looser/weaker.

The thing to keep in mind, though, is no matter how bad the beat my be, how lucky you think your opponent is, or how unlucky you may feel to get sucked out on...as long as you're playing smart and better than your opponent, you're going to win in the long run. Like C9 said, this is where you make your money.

Taking your QQ vs Kc3c hand for example. Preflop, you're about a 70/30 favorite to win. After a dry flop (where opponent cant win unless they hit a K) you're at 80/20 favorite to win. And after a blank turn, your opponent can only hit a river K to win, they're at only a 7% to win. Which means you win this more than 90% of the time. If you run this situation 100 times, you'll lose roughly 7x-10x but win 90x, so this is a very favorable situation for you and exactly the situation you want to be in vs weaker players.

Just keep at it, play smart, and keep improving.

As for where you should start, if you can deposit, play within your bankroll means. There are a lot of threads on BR management and this is one of the ways to deal with variance and bad runs.

Good luck.

This is poker lol! Sadly you will always get these sorts of chasers. My tip is to show weakness, e.g.
If the flop brings two clubs and you bet big and they call then the turn brings another club put in the chat box something like "lol bet he woz chasin"
Then catch them out when they try to bet. Raise them and take there money!

On to what you said about where to start, try and play a private game like one of the Cardchat freerolls because they are sooooo unlikely to have donks.

RK