Note taking as a beginner

Duraphig

Duraphig

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I was wondering if note taking is something I should be doing as a beginning player playing mostly freerolls and low stakes sit n go's and tournaments. I haven't been doing it at the moment since I don't think I will see many of these people in freerolls very often.


Is it better to do it a little now just to get the hang of it? Maybe to find something I am comfortable with in regards to my notes for later on. Maybe skip the freerolls and take notes in sng's if I see some people more than once?
 
gabpoker

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I find it more helpful to take notes on my own plays rather than opponents in large MTT where I may never see them again and if I do I wont have enough history to matter. Sit N Go's might be different if you see the same names all the time.
 
MaxMarauder

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I agree with gabpoker. Right now the important things to keep track of are your good decisions vs your bad ones.Just because you win a hand does not mean you made a good decision. Look deeper than the hand result. How does the decision impact your table presence, will it set you up for good play later in the round, are you becoming too predictable ?
 
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scubed

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I was wondering if note taking is something I should be doing as a beginning player playing mostly freerolls and low stakes sit n go's and tournaments. I haven't been doing it at the moment since I don't think I will see many of these people in freerolls very often.

Is it better to do it a little now just to get the hang of it? Maybe to find something I am comfortable with in regards to my notes for later on. Maybe skip the freerolls and take notes in sng's if I see some people more than once?
Freerolls are so volatile! With the same stack-size I have observed the same opponent going all every hand in on Tournament-Monday while on Tournament-Tuesday playing conservatively. I don't know how valuable notes on freeroll players are unless you definitely observe a pattern you can exploit. Ask yourself if you think the freeroll player would play the same in a tournament that costs entry fee - if not, don't waste your time.

I write notes on my own hands when playing live. I use Evernote on my phone to do this. I only write down the hands where I voluntarily put money in the pot. When I return home, I review the hands to see what I can learn about my play.

When online I take notes when I discover information about player patterns or player hand strength. For example today I saw an out-of-position player min-raise preflop, then pot the flop/turn, and finally check-fold the river. He repeated this pattern on 4 different hands... so I wrote it down so that if I get in this scenario with him I have some information. I write this information in the player notes section provided in the poker client software.

My advice is not to inundate yourself with notes on other players that don't mean much. If you are going to write player notes, concentrate on notes that you can use to your advantage when facing this player in a future hand.

Good luck!
 
Duraphig

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Thank you for the responses. I didn't think about taking notes on my own play. That seems a lot more productive than taking notes on others at this point in time. I really appreciate the feedback. Thanks much.
 
eberetta1

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The note I find myself making most frequently is, player likes to give away money. When they reload several times in a cash game, I'm sorry, I make a note of it.
 
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Keeping notes on type of player playing styles in cash games and SNGs is good habit to work your brain to remember more.
It is especially important if you see the players frequently. Any advantage you have is an edge over your opponent
 
sissto

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I‘m at the same stage. I mostly play freerolls and currently I don‘t take notes, because in my opinion the most people play it for fun.. I will start taking notes when playing for real money!
 
vagrantjunki3

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I was wondering if note taking is something I should be doing as a beginning player playing mostly freerolls and low stakes sit n go's and tournaments. I haven't been doing it at the moment since I don't think I will see many of these people in freerolls very often.


Is it better to do it a little now just to get the hang of it? Maybe to find something I am comfortable with in regards to my notes for later on. Maybe skip the freerolls and take notes in sng's if I see some people more than once?

I would say don't overwhelm yourself taking overly detailed notes that will stop your focus on the game when stopping to read and write them. When I started taking notes I just used a number system to rank the skill level I believed the player to be, it didn't do much for me, besides to help me from getting trapped, most of the time but its just an example of how simple notes can be effective. As you get used to taking notes you'll learn what to record about an opponent and as you play at the same types of games over time you probably won't need the notes for your regular opponents.
 
BentleyBoy

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Notes help. Even in freerolls or sit n gos, even where you don’t think you will come up against that player again. Making notes about your own play is also a good idea, however, consider this. To what extent are your decisions based on the actions (or inactions) of others? In that case, taking notes about other players becomes very important to understand your own decisions. Taking notes can assist you in the current tournament or sit n go, as it’s all too easy to forget how a player plays in certain situations, even in a 30 minute sng. So, getting into the habit of taking notes helps you to concentrate on the other players and also helps you to understand your own decisions. Don’t get bogged down though.... keep it clear and enjoy your game.
 
Peppinotom

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I started just coloring them. Everybody gets green, so I know he has some hud readings on me in case he uses some. In the money red, final table orange, frequently final table yellow.

Do that every time and you will find out, the deeper you get into a tournament, YES you will see this players again and again and again...
You see a yellow one on the first table? Watch his play and learn...
 
Duraphig

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Thank you very much for all of the responses and the advice. I decided to keep it simple at first. Taking a quick note if I see someone playing a certain way, like always going all in with any Ace. Or if they try to trap when they flop something big. Beyond that I am trying to just concentrate on one or two players per table. Trying to see how they play and jotting down a few things.
 
Ragequit

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Similar to what has been said. Get into the habit of noting ranges that people are doing things with. It's pointless to write something like "Re-raises with Queens". A better note would be "3Bets 3.5x from CO w QQ+ vs EP1 Standard Open". Find a notation system that is quick and works for you.
 
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