Live, Low Stakes, NLH Hand Selection

Most of the poker books I’ve read, as well as many of the poker articles I’ve read online, have some table or scale in terms of the appropriate poker hands to play in NLH. At the surface, it seems pretty simple. Play these hands, in these positions, with this number of players, and you should win more pots than you lose. Sure, I am not going to dispute that. After all, many of these books and articles were written by professional poker players, with a lot more experience and a lot larger poker bankrolls than me.  Again, I’m not disputing what the books say by any means. However, interpreting those NLH poker hand tables and scales, and applying them to your situation are totally different.

At live, low stakes, NLH, you are going to be playing against plenty of inexperienced players. Most players at this level aren’t playing with a plan. They are out for a fun night, going to toss back a few drinks, and socialize. They aren’t paying close attention, and they don’t have much focus. That’s okay, that’s perfectly acceptable to me. Poker is a fun game, and it’s a blast when you are playing with other players you like. I enjoyed my nickel, dime, quarter games, just as much as I do the NLH games I play today. Playing consistent; winning poker, is not all that exciting. I’ve learned that playing successful NLH, especially at low stakes, requires incredible discipline. Okay, it’s pretty damn boring. The books won’t tell you that. It will be hard to put most players on a hand, because many of them play such a wide range of hands.

Get ready, no matter what, you are going to lose to some terrible hands. I’m talking K3, Q4, ugly stuff. Even when you are raising pre-flop, in position. It sucks, no one enjoys it, but it’s going to happen. This is why you need that poker bankroll we recently talked about. Just because your opponents are playing crap, doesn’t mean you do to. Their chip stacks are going to change shape drastically throughout their session. Stick to a disciplined hand selection, and yours will have fewer swings. Over time, you will learn to apply different criteria in making your decision to play a hand. NLH hold em strategy has many layers. Stick to playing strong hands in position, to keep your stacks on the rise. Lose your discipline, and your stacks will start to dwindle.

It’s not uncommon for me to play the whole session with face cards, all pairs, and suited connectors. I will throw in an the occasional one or two gap connector. I don’t fall in love with one pair, because that is hand this is easily beat. You can’t be afraid to fold, and pick a better spot. Remember, most players aren’t playing with a plan. They are not watching you nearly as close as you are watching them. When you make a monster hand, they will never see it coming.

Building Initial Poker Bankroll for playing Live, Low Stakes, NLH

This is it, the absolute beginning. I don’t care what level you may (or may not) be playing at, without an adequate poker bankroll, you are screwed. I’m not joking, you are absolutely screwed. Trust me, I’ve been there. Unfortunately, I’ve been there on numerous occasions because I was stubborn like many of you. If you are just starting out without a poker bankroll and intend to play on a regular basis, do yourself one favor – postpone. I’m not kidding, don’t start. Take a lesson out of Dave Ramsey’s financial makeover plan. Accumulate $1000 as fast as you can. You need to do whatever it takes, sell old stuff, cancel cable, mow lawns, or find a part time job (not Poker wise guy). Our local charity events pay $50 a night for a 4 hour shift. You could do something like that, and learn more poker, and for free too!

$1000 is by no means an adequate poker bankroll for 1/2 NLH, that’s for sure. The idea is that once you see how easy it was to scrape together $1000, it will not take much more to scrape together another $1000 for a total of $2000. In my opinion, and many other sources, $2000 is an adequate starting poker bankroll for 1/2 NLH. You can afford to take bad beats, and overcome the occasional cold streak, without going broke. If you were stubborn like me, and have been grinding away with your one buy-in, you will not believe what having a poker bankroll does to your game. It lifts that huge burden off your shoulders. Face it, if you have been playing with one buy-in, you probably can’t really afford to even lose that. When you have little poker funds, you over analyze every decision, because you can’t afford to reload. Sound familiar? That is no way to play winning poker. There is enough other stuff to worry about.

For all of you NLH tournament specialists, you are not going to build your bankroll playing tournaments either. I’m not talking SNG tournaments; which are a different animal entirely. If you have skills, you will place in tournaments. However, unless you are the next Stu Ungar, you are not likely to win enough to cover your losses. If you do end up placing high in a tournament, or even winning the thing, it will only be a matter of time before you burn through those tournament winnings. No one is saying you can’t take the occasional stab, or play them regularly with an adequate poker bankroll. I’m just saying tournaments are not a smart way of building your poker bankroll. I’m sure there are some success stories out there, but those are definitely the exception.

You have to be disciplined as you are building your poker bankroll. It’s not easy to walk away with a loss, especially if you’ve lost your stack when you put it all in with the best hand. Conversely, don’t get greedy. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen players go from table captain to reloading. Don’t be that guy. If you are running hot, go for it. However, if you are getting close to the end of your session and you take a hit; don’t try to make it up in one orbit. It doesn’t work, and you will only end up losing more. Poker is going to be there tomorrow and most of the players you will be playing against at this level will not be back any time soon. I’ve made the necessary changes, and now my poker bankroll is steadily increasing and I don’t plan on turning back. Try to keep your poker bankroll separate from your life bankroll. It’s not easy, especially if you fall on hard times. You’ve got to do what’s best for you and your family. Just remember, poker will be there tomorrow.  

Introduction

My name is Aaron Coch, and I play live, low stakes NLH. Like you, I too am a poker enthusiast. I am not a Pro. There are a lot of self-proclaimed Pro’s out there, but I am not one of them. I am a part timer, mostly a weekend warrior. I play live No Limit Hold em for low stakes. I live in SE Michigan; have a wife, a mortgage, and a 9-5 Job that I enjoy. To me, poker is more than a hobby, it’s my passion, and it’s also an investment. I am a true student of the game. I play to win, and I hate to lose. My wife doesn’t give me too much crap about playing. I limit my sessions, so I am not out all hours of the night.

I had some reservations about starting this blog, because I don’t like having all of the attention. However, I do look forward to sharing my personal experiences with you, and I hope you return the favor – remember, I am a student of the game!  I hope to keep things fun, but focused. At the end of the day, my hope is for you and I to become better poker players. Don’t think I’m satisfied with small stakes either. I am not complacent. I spend my time getting better, and building a bigger bankroll. I have big poker goals, and I am working hard to achieve them.

I’ve played at plenty of Casino’s, mainly throughout Michigan. I spend most of my time at Greektown Casino in Detroit. Currently, I consider Greektown Casino my poker home. I’m not going to wow you with stories about sitting down with a poker pro, and making a play at the pot. This isn’t the movie Rounders, and I’ve never even been to Vegas! I have big plans of getting there one day, and hopefully making an annual appearance in at least one WSOP event, and raking plenty of pots at the cash tables. I’ve come a long way from when I first started. These are my personal experiences. 

If you are interested, you can follow my live poker updates on Twitter https://twitter.com/AaronCoch