Evaluating whether a ring game is good or not?

I am a tournament player but I want to get into ring games. I have been on a roller coaster ride with my bankroll and have gone bust like 4 times. I am a pretty good tournament player but I am wet behind the ears in the ring games. What do you guys look for to determine what a good game is?

Such as, the money is loose money. I know bankroll management is part of the problem but finding a good table to play is part of it too. I have played at all limits and have been successful at them and then lose it in a spurt of games. Maybe it’s just bankroll management but if anyone has suggestions as to what constitutes a god table at whatever limit, then please tell.

Stay away from anything that says CC donkament !!

Lately i've tried basically firing up a whole lot of the 5 player and 4 player tables that don't look nitty. Then i often end up culling alot of them after one round when i don't like my position at the table or if i have stats on basically every1 at the table and none are fishy.

Basically i look for a loose fishy player on my direct right ideally tho having one 2 spots to the right is okish. Then i like having weakish TAGs or nits on my left so i can steal lots. I used to just fire up the high players/pot and high $$ pot tables and stick with them, but the last 2 weeks or so i've started to table hop quite a bit until i find tables i like and really concentrate on table selection. One problem with this is that you hardly log any hands at the start of a session, and since i don't play long sessions i'll have to find a way around this.

But yea if i have a good LAG on my left who is going to be 3 betting me all day long or i have loose fish on my left and i am going to lose my mind having to play tight and wishing like hell i could switch seats or i have a position on a solid reg (kind of a waste) i just tend to leave the table now and find another one. It isn't like these situations can't be profitable, but there is alot easier and less frustrating money to be made.

P-Dub, A lot depends on your style and risk tolerance.

If you're LAG then you'll probably do well finding some weak/tight players and just pounding on them. That same approach won't work at a table of loose/passive players.

Online I'm super-tight/aggressive and play pretty straight forward so I look for loose/passive (high VPIP/smaller pots) tables. I want people calling my bets and raises.

Risk tolerance is a factor as well. Having a couple maniacs at your table can be a profitable situation but you're going to have to get in there and battle. Weak/tight players will just get crushed in a loose/aggro game.

In general, if you think 2-3 players are playing poorly then you are prolly in a good game. If you can't spot the fish...

I'm starting to feel long winded so that's probably enough outta me...

Feitr I liked your thoughts on seat selection. Most begining players (myself included) spend too much time thinking about how to play their cards and not enough time thinking about games/seats. Thanks.

If you are playing Texas Holdem the see-the-flop percent is usually the best indicator. The higher the better. Less than 35% is too tight. Over 45% is what I look for. In Omaha you would like to see over 50%

narizblanco said:

If you are playing Texas Holdem the see-the-flop percent is usually the best indicator. The higher the better. Less than 35% is too tight. Over 45% is what I look for. In Omaha you would like to see over 50%

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I agree, but finding these numbers gets harder and harder as you move up stakes. In Omaha the drop off is quite steep.

By the way, VP$IP is actually slightly better, as it takes into account the blinds.

Double-A said:

P-Dub, A lot depends on your style and risk tolerance.

If you're LAG then you'll probably do well finding some weak/tight players and just pounding on them. That same approach won't work at a table of loose/passive players.

Online I'm super-tight/aggressive and play pretty straight forward so I look for loose/passive (high VPIP/smaller pots) tables. I want people calling my bets and raises.

Risk tolerance is a factor as well. Having a couple maniacs at your table can be a profitable situation but you're going to have to get in there and battle. Weak/tight players will just get crushed in a loose/aggro game.

In general, if you think 2-3 players are playing poorly then you are prolly in a good game. If you can't spot the fish...

I'm starting to feel long winded so that's probably enough outta me...

Feitr I liked your thoughts on seat selection. Most beginning players (myself included) spend too much time thinking about how to play their cards and not enough time thinking about games/seats. Thanks.

Click to expand...

Double that tight- super aggressive is most likely the style that would fit me in a ring game...i can play loose aggressive but that fits my strategy in tournaments... i don't think my tolerance for risk is high enough to be loose in ring games.

The hand % is great advice too i never look at that...thanks guys!

Unless you have 20x buy ins, I would stay away from ring games. Too many donks with bottomless wallets. Good players will make more money in MTT's over the long haul.

I look for tables that 45-50% of the players see the flop, but if the average pot size is too big relative to the blinds I either find another table or I just watch for awhile to see why the pots are so large. Too much raising is dangerous to your bank roll. If I sit down at a table with lots of raising I make sure I buy in with more then my normal amount e.g. a .25-.50 limit table with an average pot size of $6 and 40% seeing the flop tells me there at least two or three aggressive players raising and re-raising, so if I played I would buy in with $20 rather then my normal $10.

Get the game you are interested in on screen and watch for a couple rounds. If you can tolarate the game join in. I will avoid games where one or more players are taking the full time to act. the more hands per-hour you see the better opportunity to make money.