Poker career (cash game or tournament)?

S

semil

Rising Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Mar 6, 2017
Total posts
5
Chips
0
What should you take into consideration before getting into specific game?
As a starter where i need to focus?
 
Iryna Stryzheuskaya

Iryna Stryzheuskaya

Legend
Platinum Level
Joined
Feb 13, 2016
Total posts
2,802
Awards
10
BY
Chips
151
You try both. And then make a choice what you like best.
 
Andrew Popov

Andrew Popov

Legend
Bronze Level
Joined
Jul 21, 2015
Total posts
2,845
Awards
4
Chips
132
Try everything and see where your result is better.
But tournament poker is more athletic and has perspectives in the future career. If you want to someday win the wsop you have to play tournaments.
 
Andrei Korolev

Andrei Korolev

Legend
Silver Level
Joined
Sep 16, 2015
Total posts
3,014
Chips
0
It is possible to combine and compare what suits you.
 
N

nittany182

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Mar 13, 2017
Total posts
89
Chips
0
I have also noticed certain casinos have tighter players and looser players. I like tighter players because AA or AK seem to hold up better compared to those who call just about anything to see a flop. I hate losing AA to someone who plays 28off.

I would say get your feet wet in all aspects of the game (NLHE cash, NLHE tourney, PLO, etc) as well as some of the places you would like to play, and see where you come out ahead.
 
Z

ZaXXoR

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Mar 2, 2016
Total posts
44
Chips
0
What should you take into consideration before getting into specific game?
As a starter where i need to focus?

Depends on our goals, bankroll, ability and our ability to reload.

We should always focus on improving our game, I'd look into HUDs and try out a trial from pt4 or hm2:icon_sant
 
Omahahahaha

Omahahahaha

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
Jan 28, 2012
Total posts
554
Awards
1
Chips
15
Bankroll, is the game good, am I capable of playing good, am I tired, am I experienced in this format of poker, am I sober
 
J

John Bor

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
Mar 6, 2017
Total posts
383
Chips
0
I think it is better to start with tournaments, gain experience and then move on to the cash game
 
PokerNuts01

PokerNuts01

Legend
Silver Level
Joined
Jun 2, 2014
Total posts
2,275
Awards
4
Chips
0
Start with freeroll tournaments, gain experience and then you decide.
 
BelgoSuisse

BelgoSuisse

Legend
Silver Level
Joined
Nov 26, 2007
Total posts
9,218
Chips
0
am I sober

Some of the tables where I made the most money were tables where I was drinking heavily.

Of course I was playing 1/2 and 1/3 NL in Vegas as my first live poker experience after several years of online up to 200NL, so it was literally shooting fish in a barrel.
 
Omahahahaha

Omahahahaha

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
Jan 28, 2012
Total posts
554
Awards
1
Chips
15
Some of the tables where I made the most money were tables where I was drinking heavily.

I strongly advise against the consumption of any psychoactive substance while gambling, including but not limited to alcohol, aside from caffeine.
 
Martin Carreira

Martin Carreira

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
Apr 2, 2015
Total posts
500
Awards
1
Chips
32
I like the tournaments more. You can develop better strategies and you can achieve a better reading of the players according to my experience in both and it is my opinion haha
 
K

karl coakley

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
Sep 6, 2016
Total posts
853
Chips
0
Playing tournaments are usually the tougher way to go. Big cashes are far between. You could very easily go 5 or 10 tournaments without cashing at all. Cash games are more steady.
 
Q

qq4bet

Rising Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Jan 14, 2017
Total posts
10
Chips
0
If poker was my career I would choose to play tournaments. I dont like cash games and so my choice of MTT
 
E

Ealve

Rising Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Feb 3, 2017
Total posts
12
Chips
0
It depends on your goals. What do you want to achieve in a future career? If you are thinking about WSOP there's no way you will do it without tournaments.
 
T

Two6JJ

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
Feb 27, 2016
Total posts
746
Chips
0
Try them both and pick which one you enjoy. Cash games have the advantage in scheduling but you will face tougher competition. Tournaments are fun and you can hit big but you may find yourself tied to the computer for hours heading to final table.
 
6

619Leafs

Legend
Bronze Level
Joined
Jan 30, 2017
Total posts
1,790
Awards
1
Chips
4
First of all experiment with both games and see what strategies can you gather from your experiences.

My opinion, I go for tournaments over cash games simply because of two reasons.

1. You know how much the buy in is and you set perameters based on your bankroll.

2. More so usually its controlled and less overwhelm than cash games.
 
M

McDrix

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Oct 26, 2013
Total posts
93
Chips
0
You have to experiment to get the feel from both cash and Turneys. You could start with freerolls and then move to STTs with low buyin and finally get into the MTTs. For cash games try never to mix them in the same session as you could get distracted. You have to develop a bankroll management (BRM) strategy and based on it choose the tables and Turneys you will play.
 
FeRRi0

FeRRi0

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Nov 18, 2016
Total posts
28
Chips
0
Ofc you need to try both! For start turneys better i think. Less risk and more possibility to try different strategies, and ofc sweet chance got your top3 prize pool :)
 
R

rushdaman

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
May 13, 2015
Total posts
184
Chips
0
It depends on what type of player you are. I agree with most of the previous commenters when they say to try both out. I have seen players rake in alot of dough from tournaments, then lose alot consecutively at cash games so with that being said find out which one your better at and exploit it. If you are good at both different games then thats great.
 
L

LFC_yllnwa

Legend
Bronze Level
Joined
Jan 31, 2017
Total posts
1,500
Awards
8
Chips
16
Freerolls only last thousands of participants starts the game.. only roulette who are lucky in all-in... If the Bank up to 5$ first learn all the basics of the game, and try to cache the game for 0.01 0.80 per table. It will be a good exercise. If you competently and patiently to play, chances to increase the Bank. Then you can play tournaments with an entry fee up to$1!

I'm at the cash game!)))
 
L

lotuspod

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Feb 24, 2017
Total posts
85
Chips
0
I agree, tournaments to start because of freerolls. You get lots of tourney practice at them, along with grinding up a starting BR. Besides, micro cash game rake can be insanely high on some sites. I guess if you have a good rakeback deal or loyalty program it might not be too bad though...

After that you have to choose between micro sngs or mtts to start. Sngs are much lower variance, but usually a bit less soft overall(which is a good thing since you can practice against fairly good players for cheap). Mtts can be huge variance depending on the number of entries and the particular format. I'd probably suggest grinding the smallest sngs until you can become profitable in them, because if you can beat sngs then you can surely beat mtts of the same stakes. Then start taking shots at mtts, while still grinding sngs to help keep the big mtt swings to a minimum. The practice at the sngs against the small-stakes regs there will really really really help your mtt game so much, especially late-game and at the FT where it really counts ;)

In short, use freerolls and then micro sngs to grind up mtt/satellite entries and you will eventually hit a big score. Once you do, try not to move up stakes too quickly or take big shots though. Positive tilt can be just as devastating to your roll as normal tilt can.

Lastly, never view it as a career tbh. More like a profitable hobby or a part-time/seasonal job that you enjoy. Even when you do make enough to live on and such, you'll need something to invest your profits into anyway. And having another profitable hobby, a small business, or some kind of work is really improtant for the added stability and mainly just to avoid getting too burned out on the poker grind. Tons of successful poker regs have something like this.
 
Last edited:
RED137

RED137

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Feb 14, 2017
Total posts
99
Chips
0
I agree, tournaments to start because of freerolls. You get lots of tourney practice at them, along with grinding up a starting BR. Besides, micro cash game rake can be insanely high on some sites. I guess if you have a good rakeback deal or loyalty program it might not be too bad though...

After that you have to choose between micro sngs or mtts to start. Sngs are much lower variance, but usually a bit less soft overall(which is a good thing since you can practice against fairly good players for cheap). Mtts can be huge variance depending on the number of entries and the particular format. I'd probably suggest grinding the smallest sngs until you can become profitable in them, because if you can beat sngs then you can surely beat mtts of the same stakes. Then start taking shots at mtts, while still grinding sngs to help keep the big mtt swings to a minimum. The practice at the sngs against the small-stakes regs there will really really really help your mtt game so much, especially late-game and at the FT where it really counts ;)

In short, use freerolls and then micro sngs to grind up mtt/satellite entries and you will eventually hit a big score. Once you do, try not to move up stakes too quickly or take big shots though. Positive tilt can be just as devastating to your roll as normal tilt can.

Lastly, never view it as a career tbh. More like a profitable hobby or a part-time/seasonal job that you enjoy. Even when you do make enough to live on and such, you'll need something to invest your profits into anyway. And having another profitable hobby, a small business, or some kind of work is really improtant for the added stability and mainly just to avoid getting too burned out on the poker grind. Tons of successful poker regs have something like this.
This is great information. Thank you.
 
S

Spungey2007

Rising Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Apr 4, 2017
Total posts
11
Chips
0
I enjoy tournaments ahead of all other ways to play. Cash games for me seems to be a way to broke street, but whatever floats your boat. I can't seem to get ahold of how cash games are worth it unless you go on a run and win a large amount of money in a short period of time. I have been practicing tourney play for awhile now and that seems to be my favorite because it's not all about the amount you have in your hand. Frustration can lead to you losing a lot of cash in the period of 30 minutes. Bad beats cause that for me, and being in a tourney I am only losing the amount i entered with. I never rebuy
 
Real Money Poker - Real Money Casinos Top 10 Games
Top