By
Plattsburgh
When I first started playing poker about two years ago, I had no idea I would be sitting here today writing an article for one of the best poker websites out there. I would like to take some time to share with you my experiences in making the transition from online play into live poker.
To make a long story short, I went broke a few times in my first year playing online. I was living in Burlington, Vermont and eventually could not make rent, so I went down the coast to New Jersey to visit my parents, who were vacationing there with my younger brother and sister. I was going to tell them that poker had gone south and that I was going to move back home and get a job for the rest of the summer.
Before I did this, however, I had 70 bucks left to my name. I had just turned 21 a week before that and had always wanted to play live poker in a casino. I made my way over to the Taj Mahal one night, and I sat down with 70 bucks in front of me in a 1-2 NL cash game. This is obviously a horrible thing to do in terms of bankroll management, but since my intention was to have fun before having to confide in my parents that I was completely broke and could not make rent, I chalked it up as just for fun--I did not care if I won or lost; I just wanted to try live poker for the first time.
When I sat down at the table for the first time in a casino, I was shell shocked. My fingers were trembling, my face probably turned red, and just about everyone at the table looked intimidating (except this little old lady, but she was a shark; she stacked this one dude like 3 times). After a few orbits, I felt more comfortable at the table. I was starting to splash around a little bit, but for the most part, I was playing very tight. By "playing tight," I mean I was waiting for aces, kings, queens, Aks, etc. I would limp with some small pairs to try and hit sets, but I wouldn't play for a raise. After seven hours, I had $879 sitting in front of me. At this time, that was a TON of money to me, especially having had 70 bucks to my name earlier in the day.
I talk with many people online, and a lot of them are not 21 yet. Nowadays, there are circuit events for these people, such as the one held at Turning Stone multiple times a year. I met several people there, including Empire2000, Gobboboy, AK87, Krissyb24, Mig.com, and Pooruser. The main idea between making the transition between online poker and live poker, in my experience, is getting comfortable with it. We have all probably put in many hours online before that became comfortable, and this is no different. I suggest playing something very small that you can afford to lose until you grasp live play.
Below are some of the major differences I've found between online and live play:
1) The thing that causes the most problems for people transitioning to live play is the size of the pot and stack sizes. Online, we are grateful to have the exact pot, stack sizes, and blinds clearly posted. So before you decide to re-raise, call, or fold, make sure you know your opponent's stack size.
2) The second problem is having to physically hide your tells. When you are at home, you could be yelling "FOLD, FOLD, FOLD!!!" In other words, you do not have to worry about others seeing or hearing you. If you watch any poker show on tv, you will see the best players needling other players, trying to get a sense of how strong or weak their opponent is. This just isn't a part of online poker.
3) One of the last major differences between online and live is the speed. I know people online who play 1-2 tables at a time, but the vast majority of us play more tables at a time online then we can physically play live. Just ask Pearljammer, who I've seen playing up to as many as 16 tournaments at one time. What I am trying to say is that you can only play in one game at a time live, so make sure to think through every decision before you make it. I cannot stress this enough. If you lose your stack in a multi table tournament during the first level, it's usually no big deal, and you continue in the other 8 tournaments you are in. In a live tourney, if you lose, you have to usually go tilt off more money at cash games, instead of multi-tabling tournaments online.
For those of you who play just online now, there is a whole different world awaiting you in the live poker. I have met a vast number of people playing live in places such as Atlantic City, Turning Stone, and Las Vegas. These friendships are better then some of the friendships I have developed throughout high school and college--another great benefit of playing live.
I hope these tips help when you sit down live at your first table ever. Be sure to relish in the moment; I know I did.