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According to a survey publishded by PokerTableRatings (PTR), the smallest amount of winning players can be found at NLHE 6 max tables, so it had been said this is where we can find the most fish. The PTR website later changed its opinion once challenged.

PokerTableRatings sent out some interesting statistics to its registered members on 15th April.  The PTR site is well-known for having a huge hand history database and created a survey to determine which type of tables the winning players are usually located at. The survey took place between the 4th and 10th April and included NL50, NL100 and NL200 players’ statistics who had played more than 1000 hands in 2010. Here were the results:

PTR stated in its monthly newsletter, that 6 max is not only the most popular, but also the easiest of all types, because this is where the most fish can be found.
The survey came with great controversy and created an uproar among poker players. Users started to question if the smaller winning rate really means that it is easier to win. It also came as a surprise that the winning rate of players is averaged above 40% in all of the three cases.

Are you the player, who always continuation bet a flop, after a preflop raise? Or are you the one, who just bet, if you hit the flop? Neither is good. If you do not hit hit the board you have to carefully analyse the flop texture and villain’s tendencies before you decide about your flop play.

The more villain folds to continuation bet, the more times you have to bet. And also the more uncoordinated the flop, the more times you have to bet.

But there is a flop when you almost always have to bet, and this is a king high uncoordinated flop. It does not matter if you do not connect to any piece of the flop. Just bet it.

Villains will fold the majority of the time. But if you got called follow carefully.

$0.50/$1  No Limit Holdem
5 Players

UTG  (Hero) $104
CO  $25
BTN  $102
SB  $185
BB $100

Pre-Flop: ($1.50, 5 players) Hero is UTG with

Hero raises to $3, 1 fold, BTN calls $3, 2 folds

Flop: ($7.50, 2 players)
:
Hero bets $6, BTN calls $6

Turn: ($19.50, 2 players)

Hero bets $14, BTN calls $14

River: ($47.50, 2 players)

Hero?

This hand was played by one of my friends. Let’s see how the hand was played out by him until the river. Preflop it is a clear bet. The flop and turn bets are for protection and also for thin value. But how do you feel about this river card?

Being a poker guru, I have good experience in swimming with the fish, eating the fish and sometimes even being bitten by the sharks. In this blog post, I would like to share with you how I avoid being lunch and how I maximize my time online. 

It  probably wouldn’t come as  a surprise if I told you that it is in your best interest to always choose your table carefully. Find one with a pool of fish and, in general, do not hunt the regulars, but try to find the easy-to-beat opponents. In this post I will show you the trademarks of a fish, so you can easily identify them and find them without being bitten.

Part II of my two-part beginner guide will be covering the basic game techniques. Read the first part, too.

Only play premium hands:

In the beginning phase, when we are not really clear with the dynamics of the game, our best decision is to focus on playing very tight. We should only consider playing upon receiving premium hands, this way we can avoid several tough situations. Although later on, once our experience has grown, it is a necessity to widen the range of hands we play in order to maximize profit.

Part I of my two-part guide will provide orientation for beginner poker players. In the first part I will be sharing with you basic practice methods and my second part will cover issues concerning game techniques. With this guide I hope to provide an insight taste of not only the game, but also good management skills to come out on top. In order to reach long-term success, other serious commitments also need to be made.

Let’s start with the practical information. First of all, it is in good  practice to read as many articles concerning poker as possible to enlighten yourself with different situations and techniques.The best places to start acquiring these new insights would have to be strategy sections within poker forums where players can often find the best way to handle their hands by reading reviews and hand analyses of other players.

Do you want to improve your poker? Are you a cash game player? So I really recomend you Ryan Fee’s NL 6 Max Strategy Guide. It is totally free.

The ebook covers small and mid stakes online 6 max ring games. The focus of this ebook will be the progression of a hand through preflop, flop, turn, and river. And it is really detailed. Covers issues like continuation betting, donk betting, floating, double and triple barreling and check-raising.

It is a commonly known wisdom, that if you do not connect a king or ace high flop, and your continuation bet was called, you can expect a call on further streets too. So second and third barrels are like burning money.

I can confirm that this theorem is correct. In my experience typical villains do not like to call ace or king high flops without a top pair, but if they have it, they have a hard time to fold it.

It is really true hard to make an average player to fold a so high top pair. So do not bluff the turn and river.

$0.50/$1  No Limit Holdem

UTG  $97
CO  (Hero) $101
BTN  $130
SB  Wavefuncti0n $95
BB  debe90 $100

Pre-Flop: ($1.50, 5 players) Hero is CO with

1 fold, Hero raises to $3, BTN calls $3, 2 folds

Flop: ($7.50, 2 players)

Hero bets $6, BTN calls $6

Turn: ($19.50, 2 players)

Hero bets $14, BTN calls $14

River: ($47.50, 2 players)

Hero ?

In my opinion the play until the river is really standard. You open with a preflop raise and have to value bet the turn and the river. Bet sizing should be 2/3-3/4 pot on both streets. The hand is really easy to play until the river. But what should you do on this scary river? That is what will make the difference to your outcome.

It is a common occurence when palying a game of poker that the cards we hold aren’t the greatest. Being hopeful, we wait for certain cards to come to make our hand complete (in the case of flush draws or straight draws, for example). This is known in the poker world as a drawing hand and can be very profitable is we play our cards right. It has been said that it is enough to know the number of our outs with outs being the cards in which we would win the hand. In order to get the odds in your favor, this number needs to be compared to the total remaining cards within the deck. Following this, it is essential to compare the size of the bet with the size of the total pot. If  we compare these two odds, they form what is known as pot odds calculation.