Free Online Poker Guide To How To Decide If You Should Specialize In Tournament Poker Or Cash Games
July 3rd, 2010 | 
Author: You can’t be good at everything. In poker be it the win a lot of pennies free poker sites type or big cash it is why people become experts or specialists in their particular games.
It is the same as in the “normal” world where in our professions and hobbies and business we aim to find our niche and focus our efforts on becoming as good as we can so that we get promoted and earn more money.
So how does this relate specifically to the world of poker games?
Simply this, some people are great cash game players, while others are great tournament players. There are some players who are very good at both cash games and poker tournaments but this is very rare.
The majority focus on one or the other because they find they are more successful in that sort of poker.
How do you determine whether cash games or tournaments are your speciality? Well, it’s not always clear. Of course you need to play plenty of both types, and while you do here are some factors to look for to help you decide once and for all.
Should You Focus On Cash Games?
If you’re a patient player who looks to play only in clear +EV situations, then you may prefer cash games. Full-ring games are all about waiting for premium starting hands and extracting the most value from them in the most favourable situation possible. Thus, cash games are good for players who don’t deal with variance very well.
The biggest mistake a beginning cash game player can make is playing too many hands. You don’t want to commit too many chips in marginal situations.
The opposite can seem to be true in the late to middle stages of a tournament.
Should You Focus On Poker Tournaments
It is correct to play tight in the early stages of a tournament, but once the blinds start to escalate you’ll need to loosen up your starting requirements. Once you’re low on chips, you’ll need to look to move all-in to survive. You may also need to put yourself in situations that may –EV in certain occasions. If you’re one of the big stacks, it’s also correct to start playing looser to bully the other players. It’s all about accumulating chips to either survive or thrive in tournaments. It’s not for the faint of heart or those who can’t deal with variance.
The biggest mistake a beginning tournament player can make is not pushing all-in enough when they get low on chips. Because the price of blinds increase as the tournament goes on, your chip stack can easily get whittled away.
Tight players can’t win tournaments.
Poker Game Specialization Conclusion
If tight is right for you, you would be best served to focus on playing cash games. However, if you’re an action junkie, you should consider concentrating on tournaments. That being said, a tight style can work for tournaments with a few adjustments and a loose style in cash games can be profitable under certain circumstances.
Ideally do your testing in free poker sites that way you can learn to play poker for free and find your style while not losing lots of money in the process!
To read more articles like this and learn to play hold em check out NoPayPOKER.com’s blog which is full of play free poker games tutorials and offers a fantastic zero risk free poker sites site where you can put theory into practice.
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