Starting out in Online Poker!

"From TV poker to PC poker"

By Aidan McCormack ( Dublin , Ireland ), March 2005

I first came across poker by watching Channel 4's Late Night Poker Series, and I liked it instantly. I bet with Paddy Power Bookmakers and when they recently launched their own poker website I thought it would be a good idea to sign up. After all, I have several years of armchair experience watching Phil Helmuth, the Devilfish, etc. Besides, how difficult could this game be?

In truth I was very nervous at signing up, and the thoughts of pitting myself against players who quite likely have years of playing experience behind them was very scary. After signing up I started the first few days in the 'play money' NL poker tables and enjoyed it.

However the general play was far too loose and it was typically raise/re-raise stuff all the way to the river. I knew I was learning nothing in these games so I soon graduated to the 50c/$1 heads up, speed and turbo NL games. Even though these stakes are very small the betting and raising wasn't as helter skelter as the play money games. I also like the constant involvement in the heads up games.

I found myself spending close to 3 hours a night playing heads up NL games and I was giving as good as I was getting. The gambling nature in me urged me to play in 'bigger games', so early on in the small money games I decided in a rich vein of form and a state of confidence to sit in on a $10 heads up game.

When the money was paid I found a whole new meaning to the term 'knee trembler'! Even though it was only $10, I was quite nervous sitting down as the chips clunked and the first cards were dealt. Maybe I also showed too much respect early on for raises by mucking my cards, when I sometimes had reasonable hands. Yet I was still alive and kicking after several hands and this gave me renewed confidence.

Somehow I won the game and my silent euphoric moment of victory was abruptly interrupted by my brother wanting to get online to check his email (back to the real world)! I was delighted with that win because it proved to me that I can sit and win with players who more than likely have been playing for years in home games, and possibly casinos, not to mention online poker. Although perhaps they could be newbie's like me or even long time poor poker players.

I was back to my $3 or $5 games with varying success, when I then realised I always seemed to be playing without any sort of game plan. I found myself just playing the cards haphazardly and making moves without thinking things through, and often getting burnt as a result.

So after playing for money for just over a week and being pushed off pots, with my confidence ebbing and flowing, I knew I needed some sort of game plan if I was to improve my poker game. I was getting very annoyed and frustrated at players raising, and then flashing 2-3 in my face after I had mucked a better hand.

Variation..This is the missing element I felt I should implement in my game. I got the feeling players took me for somebody who would only check or bet if I had something and to a large degree they were right. I felt my opponents were reading me and picking up my tells, of which there were and probably still are many.

So I began to change my game more freely. I began to follow open-ended straight draws, sometimes betting my pocket K's pre flop, sometimes slow playing them, and occasionally falsely representing A's or K's, with some success. So now with a bit more variation and technique in my game I felt quite sure that I was harder to read and I felt I was getting more respect at the tables.

So with confidence in myself restored, I decided it was time to test myself in a $25 game. All of a sudden the knee trembling sensation starts again. I try to calm myself down by telling myself 'he can't see you, just play the game aggressively' but before I know it he is pecking at me like a hen and before long I've lost nearly half my stack.

All my best laid game plans were out the window as my opponent kept pouring it on and I knew I hadn't the confidence to try bluffs and take the chances which I was doing in the smaller games. I found myself getting more and more desperate and started over betting my good cards, but my opponent smelt this cheap ploy and folded as he remembered playing chumps like me in the past.

With the blinds now raising and me sinking fast I get a 'clever' idea, lets steel the blinds with this ugly 7-4 with an all in bet and go from there.. 'All in' .'Call'.. he turns over K-J.. flop/turn/river no good and I imagine him sitting with a wry grin as he contemplates giving up his day job. So you could say that my first foray into a larger stakes game didn't go too well.

The good thing about online poker is that each game is like a new beginning. You might have played poor previously, but the guy you play now doesn't know that, and you can just start over and try and play strongly. So I was back to the $5 tables and soon back to the old confidence with wins, good performances and all round better judgement.

I soon came across the freeroll tournaments. I competed in a few but I never applied myself properly getting impatient and playing too loosely, before crashing out as expected. Then with plenty of time on my hands on a day off from work sick (honestly!) I sat down at a freeroll tournament (about 270 players with 2,000 chips) with my game plan being discipline - discipline - discipline.

I told myself just to play when you have the cards because I knew a lot of these players would bet whether they have good cards or not. I won a few pots and stole a few blinds and soon I found myself 2nd chip leader with 14,800 chips.

I now hadn't seen a hand for what seemed like forever and was getting low in chips when I see A-9. I like it and I know I'm betting with this regardless. Someone raises all in pre-flop and it's passed all the way to me. I call all in and he turns A-10 and I was out in 17th place.

It's good to know I outlasted the majority of the field and it's my goal now to reach a freeroll final table in the near future. Overall I was happy the way I played in the freeroll but I was not happy that I still got anxious in the money games.

I don't understand why I can place 200 euros on a sporting event like rugby union or golf without fear, but quiver in a $20 poker game. So without thinking about it too much and visualizing it as just another $10 game I sat down in a $100 heads up game and felt no great fear like the earlier $25 game. I went in with a good attitude.

I was varying my play from the start as I hoped I would and after 10 or so hands I was relaxed and playing it like any other game. The game was soon over and the glorious dialog box said 'Congratulations, your tournament winnings $200'. That was sweet! However despite winning here I am probably down overall since I started.

I've only been playing for 5 weeks now and have learned a good deal but I know I have tons more to learn before there is a significant improvement in my game. I get the impression I will always be wondering if I played a hand correctly or not for as long as I play this game, but maybe this is normal.

Who knows in 12 months time I might be reporting that I ventured into a real casino such as the 'The Merrion' or 'The Fitzwilliam' in Dublin . Although that seems a long way off at the moment. I'm far too comfortable in the anonymity which the Internet affords!