With the World Series of Poker quickly approaching, there’s a lot of discussion among online poker players about how to make adjustments in order to play effectively in the live arena. When I first played live for significant money, I truly had no clue about the differences between live and online poker. I did however have a good head on my shoulders and clearly thought through what my approach would be from top to bottom. I went and grabbed every book I could find on live poker, and I spent a lot of time thinking about how to address the situations I would encounter in live poker that differed from online.

Fortunately for me, things worked out well and I won $300,000 finishing 2nd in the PokerStarsMoneymaker Million Freeroll. Those of you who are Canadian may have seen it televised on TSN. Sitting here today, I realize that at the time I was fairly bad at live poker, but my competition was worse too, and I had the benefit of playing primarily other online players who lacked experience in the live arena. It’s been about four years since that tourney and my live game has come a long way. I’ve had a couple of deep runs in WSOP events, but haven't quite made a final table. I’ve blown up my share of stacks and have also won my share of smaller live tournaments, and have learned a few lessons along the way that will hopefully make a difference for others. Let me first start with a couple of observations for those online players that are new to live play and finish with a lesson all online players should find helpful in successfully tackling the adventure that is the live poker tournament arena.

To start, simply sit still. If you’re not moving you can’t give much away. Leave your hands in one place and be conscious of where you’re looking. Secondly, when you talk, use banter at the table to develop the image you want and gain info about your opponents. Table talk can certainly be developed into something that can very much work to your advantage. However, be careful not to give away too much. If you’re not sure if you’ll give away too much then don’t talk at all. As far as the actual play of hands goes, there are a number of ways that live poker plays a bit differently than online.

One of the major differences between live and online poker is you’ll see much larger pre-flop raises than you will online. The typical opening range live is four times (4x) the big blind pre-flop in early levels, which sometimes drops to around three times the big blind in the later levels. Obviously in online poker the standard currently is more along the lines of 3x early and 2.2x-2.5x late. You don’t necessarily have to change your raise sizing to the table standard but if you’re playing a fairly tight style early, as most of us do, then raising 4x may get you the desired number of callers for your hand strength and also build a bigger pot initially with your stronger hands (which are primarily the hands you’re playing).

In later levels, you may have to raise a bit larger in order to get players to fold when you’re attempting to steal. As with everything in poker, keep in mind that adapting to your table is key. At the WSOP, you can find yourself at a table of 50-something live players where a 4x raise is the only thing that keeps you from getting 3 or 4 callers every hand, or you could end up at a table of online pros where the more typical online bet sizing standards apply.

Another large difference you’ll encounter is live players have a tendency to defend their big blind at all costs. In online poker a 2.2x raise after antes have kicked-in quite frequently will get you a fold from the big blind. In live poker, a 4x raise might still not get you a fold from the big blind. This presents an interesting challenge and also an opportunity. It makes it tougher to pick up the blinds and antes on a steal. That’s obviously a negative for those of us who prefer to chip up without a showdown. However, you can open any hand that will typically have good equity versus the BB’s wide calling range and have the opportunity to play them in position in complete control of the hand.

The most important lesson I’ve learned in live poker versus online poker is that in live poker, balance is the key to success. I am by nature a hyper lagtard. I love to play lots of hands. I love to make a move on the guy who is making a move and I love to catch him trying to catch me making a move on him. Online, you obviously have to adapt to your table but you often can play a wide open hyper-aggressive game and find success. Live that really isn’t the case. For those of us used to playing 15 tables at a time online, action is our first love. We want to be in pots. We want the rush. We want adrenaline! We need to feed our ADD! In live poker, trying to feed the need for speed simply gets you a quick ticket out the door. You have to come to terms with that and channel your need for constant activity into a willingness to study every tiny detail about what each opponent is doing.

That’s the way to make your online strength a live strength rather than a live weakness. If you don’t remain focused, you will find yourself raising every third hand at 100/200 blinds pre-antes or raising 50% of hands in the middle to late stages of the tournament and not realizing your opponents are so annoyed with you that they will re-raise or call you with literally anything. I have found that the key to success in live poker is to be in tune with how the table views me and to find balance in how often I’m raising, so that my image never gets totally out of control unless I consciously choose for it to. If you find balance and manage your image, then online success can certainly translate into success in live tournaments.

Here’s to a fruitful WSOP for all PocketFivers!

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Jerry Watterson is an instructor at PokerPwnage who specializes in Multi-Table Tournament (MTT) play.