Best Place to Start

[DJAbacus]

Hi everyone, My name is Darren and I'm from the UK.

The site looks great but a little overwhelming at the moment with all that info!!

I have always been interested in playing poker (mainly no limit texas holdem) and have been playing 'Live Holdem' App for Android with some success. It is actually quite good...players value their gold (receive 5000 a day) and you can buy into 200 gold up to 5,000,000 gold tables.

I am reading The mammoth book of poker by Paul Mendleson and now feel I have moved from complete beginner to an advanced beginner, having a basic tight/aggressive style, with the old bluff on suited or paired flops, learning to put players 'on a hand' etc.

I want to see what the options are to play online with real cash. I am talking limiting myself to a £20 amonth and playing on a very small buy in tables to start with.

Can anyone recommend a good site as there are so many?

I am not sure of the 'lingo' but I would probably start on 6max 'sit and go' tables where most of the players are buying in with £5 or less.

I would really appreciate any guidance on this!!

[Penneywize]

The stickies in this forum are a great place to start. I'll give you a quick rundown of what I'd do in your shoes, however:

1) Buy a copy of No Limit Holdem Theory and Practice by Sklansky and Miller, and read it cover to, well, the 'concepts' portion of the book kinda sucks but probably still worth reading, so, yeah, cover. This book really is the standard in terms of basic/intermediate poker thought in the game today, and you'd be doing yourself a huge disservice if you didn't read it immediately.

2) Lose the idea of spending 20 pounds a month and just buy in once for 50 USD and follow proper bankroll management, starting at 0.01/0.02 aka 2NL. It's where all the ballas got their start. If you do everything right, you really shouldn't ever have to deposit again. If you want to play a higher stake i.e. so you're not playing for pennies, then deposit 250 USD and play 10NL (0.05/0.10). If you're not willing to deposit that much, start at 2NL.

3) Make sure to spend at least 50% of your total time devoted to poker studying and not just playing. As you alluded to, there's a ridiculous amount of information available on this site and elsewhere on the web. You won't run out of useful material for a long time.

That should get you started on the right path. If you're not sure which site to choose, one of either Full Tilt (my preference) or Stars are the premier choices. Good luck. And read the stickies before you do anything else.

EDIT:
OH YEAH and if you do decide to go for full tilt - MAKE SURE YOU GET RAKEBACK, because if you don't request it when you sign up, you may never get it. I'm not sure exactly how this is done for new accounts, hopefully someone else will post in this thread explaining how to do it.

[DJAbacus]

Thanks Penneywize.... that was a really helpful post.

1) I will purchase No Limit Holdem Theory and Practice by Sklansky and Miller asap. I will find reading about the theory really interesting. I think the The mammoth book of poker by Paul Mendleson is an excellent book for the total beginner.

2) A one off 50 USD buy-in sounds fine to me. How much do you buy in at a 2NL table? Is there a limit? Just want to get an initial idea of what I will be betting (losing initially) per session.

3) Good advice. Will start getting stuck into the beginners digest asap.

Thanks, As far as joining a poker site (which is my main concern really),Full tilt seems as good as any but i am a bit worried about being disadvantaged if I don't use any poker hand analysis while I play. Are there any good free programs that are compatible with the Full tilt software for example?

Appreciate any advice. Just really need some basics about joining a site so I can get my head straight on a few things before playing my first few hands..

[Icanhastreebet]

Pokerstars is probably a better choice now that they have increased their rakeback @ the micro cash games, this this will begin in 2011(Spoon will probably confirm this in his stars v ftp thread). Definately just deposit 50USD to start out, don't worry about hand tracking software just yet.

Like penneywize said, lots of your poker time should be spent studying starting out. Also join our IRC chat channel. http://www.flopturnriver.com/pokerfo...-a-153854.html

Also you have the option to play silly euro sites which I'd recommend once you get your bankroll off the ground on Stars. If you can succesfully grind to 25nl or 50nl on stars(500-1k br) you can start depositing on soft euro sites and clearing bonuses. Once again spoon has a better idea of this but you don't need to worry about it for a while yet.

[StarGrinder]

Go play on the Sportsbook network, those sites are softer than a baby's ass. The 50-100nl tables are filled with idiots as opposed to reg infested Stars. Yet I still find my way back there for some reason. Stupid software preferences.

[spoonitnow]

Sit and go's are a type of tournament, not cash game.

[DJAbacus]

Thanks for replying to my post Ican, Star and Spoon....much appreciated!!!

[ANGRYEAGLE]

I am not sure how I did it, but I got rakeback for Full Tilt after I had an account for 6 or 7 months. I will look to see where it's coming from.

[ANGRYEAGLE]

Rakebackpros. That's where I get my Rakeback for FullTilt. I would listen to these other guys about where to play because they know way more than i do. I am just a newbie. By the way this site is the BEST for helping you to become a winner.

[spoonitnow]

Check your PMs.

[DJAbacus]

don't worry about hand tracking software just yet

Ican...thanks for the PokerStars suggestion....I have set up an account but not deposited yet.....but could you tell me why did you suggested this?

Reading through the posts it seems lots of players are posting information that can only be obtained from having a hand tracking software. It seems this information is invaluable to others when replying.

Surely if I don't have the software that not only analyses others but more importantly my own play, as a new player doesn't this put me at a huge disadvantage?

[StarGrinder]

^ I disagree. You should have tracking software on your own hands, as long as you don't read too much into a smallish sample like so many n00bs seem to do. Now a HUD, well that's a different story.

[Openside]

Surely if I don't have the software that not only analyses others but more importantly my own play, as a new player doesn't this put me at a huge disadvantage?

Probably one of the most important lessons you will learn is to observe an opponent, make notes on their tendencies and react accordingly. I cant stress enough that software, initially, will hinder this learning curve.
Start out at 2NL TAG, play 4 tables max, watch your opponents and take notes.

[Robb]

Welcome to FTR. GL at the tables.

You seem like you're reasonably knowledgeable already. Most of the jargon we use on FTR can be found here:

http://www.flopturnriver.com/pokerfo...ng-162741.html

or here:

Poker Dictionary | Poker Glossary | Database of Poker Terms

I disagree that the HUD will work against you, but I'm a math teacher. I believe that HUD stats are invaluable ways to learn patterns in the game, even at the nano-stakes.

If it were me, and I was thinking of $50 per month (approximately) for a few months, I would deposit the $50 or $75 and start grinding 2nl, and then the next month buy HEM - cheapest version you can get.

When it comes to sites, you're not in the US so you have tons of juicy sites to choose from. Once you get a few hundred, you can "bonus whore" on some of them which, once you're at 25nl can be a nicely profitable way to earn some cash while learning the game. I would NOT suggest a new non-US player start out at Full Tilt or Stars, since all the US regs play there. Those sites are tougher than many of the very good sites US can't access.

If I were you, I would get a general rakeback provider. You can do something like rake the rake (google it, or just google rakeback providers - make sure to pm some regs and ask about REPUTABLE rakeback providers). Also, several training sites have rakeback plans where you get access to training videos by accumulating "rakeback" for them. You can get one of each. Your options as a non-US player are really wide open and excellent.

Find a site you like, a game you can beat, and start grinding. Just remember that it takes a while to grind up each stake - probably 2-3 months minimum to move up each level. In a year, most folks can be at 25nl if they study enough.

Again, GLGL.

When you're playing, get back in FTR and start posting mass HH's. That will help you more than any book, video, or article.

[Openside]

I believe that HUD stats are invaluable ways to learn patterns in the game, even at the nano-stakes.

I agree with you 100%. It's just my opinion but i think it better to be able to figure something out in your head before reaching for a calculator. Learning is more the process of how you find the answer, than the answer itself. Use of a HUD without first grasping some fundamental concepts, such as reading an opponent and taking notes can lead to an over-dependence.
From personal experience i turned my HUD off for a while until i got better at reads/note taking. I was becoming too results orientated and missing obvious tells.

EDIT: i forget the post but it was after reading that somebody from FTR had done the same thing that i decided to try it. It helped alot.

[DJAbacus]

Thanks guys......I totally get the idea of learning to read your opponents and develop an instinct before just looking at the stats on a HUD/tracker software etc. Yes, play for a while a maybe buy HEM after a month or so...

I am a Maths teacher (41) too so like trying to get my head around all the stats...pot odds, AggFreq%, AF, EV etc....and I want a firm grip of it all before I play any cash games...I'm going to go on the play money table on various sites...I know there are so many loose players throwing chips but I have noticed that players play more like 'proper poker' on the bigger tables. I think you can learn many things especially staying disciplined before having to commit any money.

I will deposit $50 or so soon enough as I reckon I might be good enough to build a decent bankroll and have loads of fun in the process.

So I think I know where I am going now and will be visiting this site loads....I am even understanding some of the jargon/discussions and will post as I like being active in discussions on forums...speeds up the learning process....better a dumbass in the forums than a dumbass on the tables...right?

Anyway cheers guys for the initial help to all especially 'spoon', so important to have proper dedicated mods (I have been myself on certain gaming sites).

I'm loving learning it all so far....Man I even know the difference between a 'set' and 'trips'...do you???

[Dex]

If you aren't ready to put money online, I started out playing freerolls on sites like Ladbrokes, 32 Red and Battlefield Poker (dead). These are infrequent and tournaments take a while to play through, so I also played play money SNGs on Bodog, which once you got the first couple of idiot allins out of the way played reasonably straight forward which is useful if you're trying to learn rather than spaz around or just get as many chips as possible. Don't know if Bodog still do these as it was a while ago, I'm sure someone else can confirm.

In terms of real money, I've never played full ring but you may find it easier to start there than 6max, although I definitely encourage learning 6max at some point, even if you decide it won't be the game for you.

By the way, I saw your response to my Ah5h thread. Why did you delete it? Everything you post on here, whether it's starting a thread or replying to someone else's, is an opportunity to be critiqued and improve.

[DJAbacus]

By the way, I saw your response to my Ah5h thread. Why did you delete it? Everything you post on here, whether it's starting a thread or replying to someone else's, is an opportunity to be critiqued and improve.

I just felt that rather than wade in and post an inexperienced opinion based on what??? instinct, I would make a judgement then read others responses to see how my opinion measures up.....

[Dex]

I just felt that rather than wade in and post an inexperienced opinion based on what??? instinct, I would make a judgement then read others responses to see how my opinion measures up.....

That's fair. For what it's worth I wouldn't expect the hands you mentioned to be in their bb checking range vs a fish and a seemingly straight-forward player like myself who has been getting the better of him. Most of my range for limping the sb isn't calling a raise oop, fish or no fish.

Feel free to post though!

[Robb]

That's fair. For what it's worth I wouldn't expect the hands you mentioned to be in their bb checking range vs a fish and a seemingly straight-forward player like myself who has been getting the better of him. Most of my range for limping the sb isn't calling a raise oop, fish or no fish.

Feel free to post though!

You see this strategy employed a good bit here: "I'm a noobie, so take with large grain of salt, but here's the range I would guess for villain, so I think Hero should..."

Folks will help out if they have time, or just ignore it and try to the OP. Certainly, no one minds you chiming in. We all do it, more or less, when we check the specific forums for games we're not as familiar with and are just learning.