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Online Poker: Beginner's Guide: Part 2
10 Apr 06
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After picking a poker room you feel comfortable playing in, the next big decision is setting aside a “bankroll” and picking a table to play at.
There are many games in online poker, including limit, no limit (NL), and pot limit (PL) and there are many blind structures among these games. There are also various table sizes: 5, 6, 9 or 10 player tables.
Most online poker rooms offer free and play money tables for the new players to practice their skills. Beginners can get their feet wet with blinds as low as $0.05/$0.10.
As a beginner, you want to limit your bankroll to something you can afford and select the blind level accordingly. For example, if you set your bankroll to $50, you might not want to play over 0.5/1 and a full limit table is probably the best choice for new players. There is a good chance you will win a few hands and see your bankroll grow quickly, but it’s just as likely that you see your bankroll dip to an uncomfortable level if you choose a blind level that’s too high.
Also remember that the ups and downs of your bankroll will likely be more significant at the short-handed table (5 max or 6 max). These tables offer more excitement, but there is more “gambling” involved and players will need a bigger bankroll to handle the ups and downs. Stay with a full nine or 10 player table if you don’t have much experience. It may be fascinating to watch No Limit poker tournaments on TV, but the danger of losing the whole stack with one hand maybe too much for beginners.
One of the big advantages of an online poker room is that you can jump from table to table anytime you like. Sometimes you may feel that you are simply over-matched at one particular table or you had a few big hands and nobody is willing to pay you off, then it’s probably a good time to move on. Many online poker rooms have enough traffic to allow players to do this.
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