I think it's time for me to start playing some poker again. I have pretty much stopped playing this year, in fact, I haven't played live at all. It's unusual for me to not play, at least a little bit. My friend and I played a sit & go online several weeks ago and that has been the one and only time since the beginning of the year.
I love to play poker but have put it on the back burner in order to focus on other things, such as, my debt free goal and this blog. Even though I am committed to staying focused I realize that some down time can do a person some good. For this reason I am thinking it's time to get back into the action!
I love to play online and for now Full Tilt is the best site to play on for me. I used to make pretty good money online and to be honest, I kind of miss it. Playing online can be a very tricky thing, especially since there is some collusion going on. No one really knows how much or to what extent it exists but I think it's safe to say that it happens quite frequently.
Strangely the collusion doesn't bother me that much. Even though I know it exists I have still been able to produce a profit. I am not sure how or why, mostly I think one just has to play super tight in order to come out ahead.
One of the hardest things about playing online is the ability to resist playing to many tables at once. I like playing many tables simultaneously but it cuts down on the ability to really focus on one game. While simultaneous play is one of the benefits of playing online its also a the main reason people don't win. They try to play to many games at once and lose focus easily. I know because it's happened to me.
Another hard thing is staying focused online due to so many options, such as, surfing the web or checking mail while playing. Its nice to multitask and if your just playing for low limits or just for fun then it's no problem but doing anything serious can falter due to these activities.
My goal in playing online now is to come up with a system of play that exploits my abilities. Since I am good at playing sit & goes my plan is to focus on them. If I play no more then two tables at a time I can stay focused and make money at it.
There is also less collusion in tournaments because people cannot control which table their sitting at. For example, in a cash game, you might be the only "fish" at the table because everyone else at the table knows each other. In a tournament it's harder for them to set this up due to the computer randomizing the seating order.
This is especially true in bigger multi table events where there may be hundreds or even thousands of entrants. There is no way (that I know of) for cheaters to sit together and take your money.
It's easier for them to do so in smaller events such as sit an goes but even then it's still not a garauntee that they will get your money. They may know which cards are out but they cannot stop you from getting the best hand!
This only time to collusion is a problem for me is when they try to bet me out of the hand because they have more information about the cards that are out then I do. While that's not playing fair, I feel I can still beat them by knowing the odds as well as how well my hand would hold up over time. If I know what they are thinking or trying to do but I also know how good my hand is then they can try anything they want to, if my hand is good, then they are going down!
I could go on all day long about online playing and collusion, but all I am trying to say is this, I think developing a solid online strategy is possible. I also believe with the proper tools I could be successful at online play and would like to give it a shot again.
I've stayed away from poker this year for several reasons, one of which is the fact that I just don't have the time. My goal has been to develop better daily habits that will help me succeed in the long run verses just doing what sounds good or fun today.
I believe that once I can get my other projects off the ground and brining in some nice supplemental income that there will plenty of time to play later.
Since I have stayed committed to my goal this year and plan to keep doing so, I think having some down time may do me some good. Although I spend a lot of time in a poker room due to my job I still enjoy the game.
I think for now I'm going to get back to playing online again to work on developing a successful system of play that will help me reach my financial goals.
There are many poker sites out there to play on but Full Tilt is one of my faces, plus they have lot's of action and offer the kind of limits that suit my bankroll.
If you play online at all let me know, leave a comment with your handle info so we can connect on the poker site. It would be fun to have some online poker buddies to chat with again.
This is Magic Mike Coffee saying...Thanks for Reading! Live your Dreams!
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