Dont know what to do next

I've just started playing poker in the last 2 months. I started to play online about 2 weeks ago and started to play the 5/.50 sng's at PS. I did ok in them and i tried to play 10 a day to get alot of practice going. I dont do too well in ring games so i've basically started to stick to these. I've gotten into the money about 75% over my last 50 tournaments according to my stats, the thing is at least 1/4 of these are 3rd place finishes and I know that needs to improve. The question i have is should I be moving up? I tried a day at the 10/1 tables and played 12 tournaments there but only finished in the money 4 times, this was about 4 days ago and since have done better back at the 5/.50

now the thing is i hear everyone talk about how the 5/.50 is bad poker and i'm just scared that i'm doing well down there because i too am a bad poker player and just getting lucky. should i just step up and see how i do, or refine my game till i'm comfortable that i'm not just getting lucky?

The $5 + $.50 SnGs at Poker Stars are fine. You have a lot of people in there who will chase a lot of stuff, but if you know how to play with bad players, (and if you've been playing a lot of these, you do) than the next step is to adjust your game and go up a level.

People here like Ripptyde, Fnord, michael1123 wouldn't be able to do as well in a $5 SnG, but they can do awesome in a $20 - $100 SnG because they can play their game accordingly.

If you are wanting to move up in level, and you have been very successful in the $5. I'd suggest just going.

Spend most of your time in the $10 SnG and spend the money that you have made adjusting. Once you can make this profitable, move up again. etc, etc.

To aide in your quest to move up, read, study TV poker and get insight from this forum. If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask.

thanks for the reply humph. I will try a week at the 10's and see how i can do. I think i just needed a little push.

Welcome to FTR, melinda!



Hmmm... I suppose I should change my sig image now.

I have found that on PokerStars, I have done well in the $5 SNGs. However, I have found that the $10 SNGs and $20 SNGs don't have players that are any better than the $5 SNGs. I just prepare myself that once in a while I will suffer the bad beat, and have to live with it. Getting in the money in 75% is very good, and should lead to a nice profit. I would suggest reading some strategy on playing short-handed, I know there is some on here if you browse the forums, in order to try and get more firsts and seconds. However, if only a 1/4 of your money finishes are thirds, that's not bad. I've noticed that sometimes in the $5 SNGs, it's not hard to cruise into third place, and then be severly short-stacked with large blinds.

Originally Posted by Xianti

Hmmm... I suppose I should change my sig image now.

Wow your sig looks like his avatar

I dont think the quality of the players are that much better in the SnG's up to about the $50 level. The main thing you need to concider is your bankroll. If you can afford it, i think you should be able to do fine in the higher buy-in SnG's.

well my bankroll if you wanna call it that, i know alot of you guys play with alot more than i will ever see, is 225. would that be enough to get me by till i get the hang of higher stakes? I started with 50, won like 25 on my first few hands with great cards in the .10/.25 games and then moved to tournaments went up some go back to the ring games lose alot then back to tournaments, once i got to like 250 was the highest and i dipped to like 195 the other night on those stupid ring games.


and for the sig, doesnt bother me at all. My boyfriend does 3dmax for a living and you should see some of the stuff i've seen him desgning lol, its waaaay worse than that.

$225 is plenty for $10 buy in tournaments. As long as your successful at a level, having 10 or so buyins for that level is a solid bankroll. If you believe the $10 level is more difficult, you may be psyching yourself out and trying to adjust your style of play for it when you don't need to, as personally I haven't noticed much of a difference between the two levels on most sites.

And if your finishing in the money at any level 75% of the time, you certainly are a very good player for that level. Because there is a luck factor in Holdem, bad players win occasionally, but good players win regularly.

Anyway, welcome to FTR.

Hello and welcome, And if that is a personal picture of you, wow. Your boyfriend is a lucky man. Please excuse my forwardness, I'll shut up about that now.

Anyways, you can probably still do just as well at the $10 dollar table as you do at the $5. The competition is the same. I only play $50 dollars for a bankroll and haven't redeposited in quite a while. Being married and with a baby on the way dosen't leave much extra cash.

Now I think what you've misunderstood about $5 dollar tables, is that Party Poker (Not sure if there are others) is $5/$1 where as most other places are $5/$.50. Paying the $1 is a 20% fee as opposed to 10%. So why pay extra when you can just go up to the $10 dollar table and pay a 10% fee also. And have a chance to win MORE money.

If you're in the money as much as you say you are. Think about how much more you'd have in the bank right now. Against the same competition no less.

Once again, welcome to the gang. :P

yeah i just want to say damn melinda is hot!

I'll second that.

Melinda, you are the queen of my heart.

you guys need more women in here but you did give me a good idea for an avatar

I second Melinda's Request

Originally Posted by melinda27

you guys need more women in here but you did give me a good idea for an avatar

Haha, so true. And nice ... avatar.

I second Melinda's avatar.

Originally Posted by melinda27

I've gotten into the money about 75% over my last 50 tournaments according to my stats, the thing is at least 1/4 of these are 3rd place finishes and I know that needs to improve.

Sounds pretty darn solid to me.

Originally Posted by melinda27

well my bankroll if you wanna call it that, i know alot of you guys play with alot more than i will ever see, is 225.

Umm... I got like $350 in PS and usually around $800 in Party at any given time.

Originally Posted by melinda27

I started with 50, won like 25 on my first few hands with great cards in the .10/.25 games

No-Limit? NL Ring at Poker Stars is fairly tough. The idiot players are mostly on short stacks.

Originally Posted by melinda27

you guys need more women in here but you did give me a good idea for an avatar

Life is good. Who need Shanna. We've got Melinda.

Gentlemen:

Please don't scare our first known female forum poster away.

{This post has been removed}

i am a vulture alright, cmon rippy girls like to be complemented, you know that, if she didnt want us to see how hot she was, she wouldnt have put her pic as her avatar. damn i cant wait to go back to the dorms at university this fall.

ohh and back to the original question, if you made the money 4/12 times that is actually not that bad, my recommendation is to do alot of research, read alot of the older threads on here, they have some great info, read audi's/strangebirds sng thread, and play the 10/1's you say you have around 200$ that should be enough for the 10/1's play them super tight, and perhaps even play some cheap heads up matches.

i found playing alot of heads up matches, helped me improve from alot of 3rd place/2nd place finishes to firsts.

remember we all start our bankroll low, but soon you'll turn that 200$ into 2000$