"Why don't I win in cash? If I'm good in tournaments”

GIRFIED

GIRFIED

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"Why don't I win in cash? If I'm good in tournaments”...


Do you know this phrase? Many players go through this problem. The problem is that playing Cash is different from playing Tournaments, and many people think that they are the same, they are confusing dawn with dusk because they are part of the day.

To start we have to take into account that they are two SPECIALTIES different, that is, they have characteristics that make them unique.

In tournaments the pressure of the "blinds", our "stack" and the "effective stack" forces us to play in one way or another, while in Cash we do not have that "pressure" and the hands are independent the one of the others. In Tournaments if we run out of chips our participation ends, in Cash if you run out of chips, you simply have to reload. The pressure, decisions and calculations in one modality and another are different.

Finally we have to take into account the level of complexity; Cash Games are much more strategically complex than Tournaments. It can happen that you are very good in tournaments and very bad in cash, and vice versa. It is more a matter of each one to find the modality that we like the most.
 
rodo 2285

rodo 2285

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Many times from the anxiety of closing the tournament quickly or speculating that due to the amount of chips in the pot they lie, risking me with not so strong cards.
Also because of the players that I cannot decipher their game and that makes me not read their plays well
 
AlexeiShok

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I have not long ago tested a way to not lose money. If you register in a tournament, for example, you have $ 10 and you're register at $ 5. Then you will worry during the game and with a high probability will lose. I asked a friend to register me for the $ 7 tournament when I had $ 10, but so I thought I think was playing for $ 0.25. And I took 8th place there. No need to worry and fear that you will lose then you will win (not always) :) :)
 
blueskies

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Unless you are playing extremely deep stacked and the blinds climb slowly in online tournaments, then cash and tourneys are very different.

The tourneys I play (all freerolls) become a preflop push or fold decision pretty quickly. It's all about understanding the situation preflop and then making the optimal decision there. Once you fold or shove, the rest is up to lady luck.

In cash games, postflop play matters a ton more. Fold equity at micro stakes is also much lower, so hands like AQ and AK OOP are very hard to play when villain(s) behind you are playing ATC. You just gotta punish'em when you have a real hand and you are not getting coolered, which happens extremely frequently online.

For example, I lost two all ins today, one was where we both went in on the flop. I had QQ he had 99. The board was J and two low cards. The turn was a 2-outter 9.

The other one was a flopped set over set. He had a set up 9s and I had 4s.

(9 was not my lucky number today)

It's basically how I lose all the time.

You can't beat online magic.
 
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fundiver199

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Cash Games are much more strategically complex than Tournaments.

In my opinion its the other way around. In tournaments you constantly need to adjust to different stack sizes and payjumps / ICM. In cash games you basically just play your hand, and if you lose a big pot, you just reload and play on. In cash games its also fairly easy to always play the exact same game, whereas in tournaments you are typically playing different stakes, difference sizes, different speeds, with or without bounties etc.

The issue, many tournaments players have with cash games, is the deeper stacks, which create much more turn and river play. If you are used to more or less auto-stacking an overpair, this will not be much of an issue, if stacks are rarely more than 40-50BB. If stacks are 100BB or more, it will however become a huge leak. Personally I think, it is best to start with cash games and only move to tournaments, when you have the fundamentals hammered down. But if you have become a tournament player and want to move to cash games, it might be an idea to only buy in for 40BB in the beginning to make the transition a little easier.
 
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fundiver199

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Another point is, that a lot of people might THINK, they are winning in tournaments, but in reality they have just run hot over a small sample. Variance in tournaments is huge and last much longer, than people tend to think.
 
jirasuonna

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Tournaments are also easier to play cheaply online. The lowest setting for a cash game is usually $0.01/$0.02. This is a $2.00 standard buy-in. On poker sites, you can find tournaments where you can spend a lot of time playing for very little money. I played a freeroll and $0.10 tournament just today. Good players will eventually leave those stakes for something more profitable, only coming back after they lose their bankroll.

I think a lot of weak players gravitate toward the cheap tournaments after being crushed at a cash table. At a cash table, a seriously leak will be spotted and exploited mercilessly. In a tournament, terrible play can end up with either the terrible or you being knocked out, and then the leak is no longer exploitable. Even if you spot a consistent leak, there could be a table change before you get to exploit it.

I am a fish that got crushed at cash games. No limit games in particular found me losing stacks every time I blinked. I moved to SNGs because I could play a lot more and gain experience on a budget.

In addition, I find that tournaments are better for people that are risk adverse. Once you decide to play, the money is gone and you have fight to get any of it back. At a cash game, every decision affects your wallet. I think that a lot of people are playing scared in cash games, and, as a result, are making worse decisions than if they were just playing a game. (Although, this comes back when people starting freaking out about the bubble.)
 
WeAreHot777

WeAreHot777

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If you're winning in a poker tournaments, then play only tournaments.
I know in the cash poker is very hard to win, and I know is another strategy, but you need to work in your game, and time by time you will start to win in cash.
I like to play more in MTT, because it's more chance to win.
 
CDNMAN 42

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Cash vs Tourneys


"Why don't I win in cash? If I'm good in tournaments”...


Do you know this phrase? Many players go through this problem. The problem is that playing Cash is different from playing Tournaments, and many people think that they are the same, they are confusing dawn with dusk because they are part of the day.

To start we have to take into account that they are two SPECIALTIES different, that is, they have characteristics that make them unique.

In tournaments the pressure of the "blinds", our "stack" and the "effective stack" forces us to play in one way or another, while in Cash we do not have that "pressure" and the hands are independent the one of the others. In Tournaments if we run out of chips our participation ends, in Cash if you run out of chips, you simply have to reload. The pressure, decisions and calculations in one modality and another are different.

Finally we have to take into account the level of complexity; Cash Games are much more strategically complex than Tournaments. It can happen that you are very good in tournaments and very bad in cash, and vice versa. It is more a matter of each one to find the modality that we like the most.

No doubt there are huge differences I think mainly because of the use of "CHIPS" vs the use of Real $$$..As well the primary difference I have found is at live cash games when I buy in for $200 I am facing a few players with up to $1000 so if they are aggressive and I am not guess what they can push me around, however in tournaments we are all equal..we start with the same amount of chips...In Cash games every decision is based on losing our money while in Tournaments every decision is based on longevity. :):):)
 
kacca

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C'mon, poker is not only a game with a strategy, well, you need both a vision and the usual risk of bluffing or just calling until the subscriber passes his cards and changes his mind about betting anymore. Well, as usual, you can take an example with manual AA. I lost 40% with this hand for all the time of poker. So what to talk about? This is a program that does not allow you to play as simple as you would like.
 
izmoroc

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I have the same problem(((
But cash is more interesting to play(
So I lose a lot...
Omaha goes better than NLH...
But Omaha tournies go worse)
 
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