200NL private game players vs. 200NL casino players

Saying all 1/2NL players are fish is totally wrong.
I've been playing a private 1/2NL cash game with people who are very good. The table is very hard to beat.

But this weekend, I played some 1/2NL at a casino.
Wow, it was a very different game.

All the fish behavior stuff I've read on these boards finally came true!

People chasing straights with 1 out while hero was betting 50% into the pot.

People calling pot sized with bottom pair....

I tripled my buy in. A good session.

Now, I know what people mean by 1/2 players.
But, private 1/2NL cash games are a different beast.
These guys have been playing for 10 years some of them.
And have read all the books.

I would agree that there are games out there where the people playing in them are all relatively good, regardless of the stakes.

On the other hand, I would imagine some of their skill comes from the fact that they know each other very well and play based off the tendencies of the table. This can potentially give the misleading impression that they are good at poker when they are in fact good at that particular game.

Additionally, when people say that 1/2 games are easy they are not saying all the players are bad. What is being said is that the tables are pretty easy (meaning several of the players make poor choices). There are probably quite a few decent players at even the casino 1/2 games. Though, if they were really good they wouldn't be playing 1/2.

Lastly, reading poker books doesn't make you good at poker.

EDIT- also, 1 winning session doesn't make someone a good poker player anymore than 1 losing session will make them bad. I wouldn't expect to keep up that winrate if you continue playing at the casino.

I guess it's tough to tell, one hand a casino player will play very tight and the next he will play extremely loose. I think you need to be aware of how long people have been playing at the table. At a home game everyone usually starts together so they all know how long people have been playing.