Table Selection Poker Strategy

There was once a time in online poker where table selection didn’t even matter, the competition was so incredibly weak that any decent player would reap enormous profits wherever they went. These days are long gone in the online poker world. The games are certainly still profitable, but the biggest winners will implement strategic table selection when they play.

What is Table Selection?

Table selection is the art of finding a table that will allow for the greatest amount of profitably. In almost all cases of table selection a player will simply be looking for the softest game. It is after all much easier to make money when you are at a table full of fish than if you are playing with a group of sharks. Table selection is an art though because it can be a challenge to determine exactly which tables are soft and which tables will be tough to beat. You will have a head start in table selecting if you have a good bit of experience at your current game. Knowing the names of the regular players at your limits will make table selecting easier because you will be familiar with their playing styles. It is not necessarily all that important that you know playing styles, however, as a regular player is usually a winner regardless of playing style. Once you have put in some time at your regular game you will start to recognize who to stay away from.

Table Selection When Playing Poker Online

Most amateur poker players will just jump into whichever game has an open seat, the astute player will carefully select which table is best. The problem you will run into is what to do when all of the good tables are filled. One key concept to remember when table selecting is that patience is a virtue. If there is an easy game running it is a virtual guarantee that other players like yourself will be dying to get into it as well. So what do you do to combat this battle over the fish? The best option is to join as many waiting lists as possible for tables that you want to play at.

The thing to remember about online poker is that players come and go from tables very frequently. Some players have this misconception that they will be waiting forever to get a seat in a game if they join a waiting list. Perhaps this would be true if we were talking about live poker, but online poker does not operate this way. Join a waiting list and you will be invited to join the table in what is usually just a few minutes. The other option is to start your own table. Most weak players will want to get in on the action right away because they do not care who they are playing against. You can help to cater to a fish’s needs by opening up a few new tables. They will see that the table has open seats and you will get to battle them one on one for a bit until the table fills up. This is a great strategy because there will be few times where you will get to have a fish all to yourself. If you are uncomfortable with the idea of playing heads up for a bit you can start a new table and sit out until a few other players sit down.