Online Poker -can I win?

I posted this on the systems and online forum, but I'm posting here as well to try and get the very best advice --


Let me start by thanking all the responses to my previous four questions through this forum.....you have saved me money and time through clear and educated responses.....Now let me ask the following as my mind grows in all this --


Can I win by playing online poker using an online program system?

Can you direct me to the very best online programs that might maximise my winning chances

OR

Is the way to win at Poker Online by becoming a great Texas Hold Em player without system assistance and if this is the case, can you direct me to an online program that teaches you how to become an expert player...and thereby a winner.....

Keen for your help and advice

Note, my aim here is to win money and also not lose money, if that makes sense

Cheers to a great site and forum

Steve

Quote: steverobertson

Can I win by playing online poker using an online program system?

Is the way to win at Poker Online by becoming a great Texas Hold Em player without system assistance and if this is the case, can you direct me to an online program that teaches you how to become an expert player...and thereby a winner.....

First of all, it is my understanding that using an online program system is a violation on all online poker sites. Not only can your account get banned, but the poker site can take all of your money that you have placed on that site. I would strong encourage you not to use an online program.

Online poker is definately beatable by normal means. I used to play quite a bit of online poker a few years ago, and while I was playing relatively small stakes, made about $40,000 over 3 years. I have to admit that the average player is getting a lot better at online poker, mainly because a lot of the weak "fish" have lost enough money and have quit the game. Still, there are players who make money.

Here is some advice for you:

1. Bankroll management is extremely important. If you are hoping to make money on online poker (pro or semi-pro) you should have at least 40 buy ins for ring games, 100 buy ins for SNGs and 200 buy ins for tournament. If you hope to never go broke (ever) you might want to double this. Now you do not have to have all of your buy ins on the site, but you should be able to access these buy ins when you need it.

2. Study hard. I have over 30 poker books and have read and reread them over and over to get relatively good. It's funny, people go to college for years to gain the knowledge to get a job, and yet poker players think they can go pro without any studying. I can suggest books if you want. If you want to focus on tournaments, read tournament books. It may be easier for you to focus on one aspect of the game and then branch out.

3. Pick a couple of good sites to play at. The two biggest (and in my opinion the best) are Poker Stars and Full Tilt Poker. The only problem with these sites is that you tend to find a lot of semi-pro grinders who play 12 to 24 table at a time and play ultra tight. Yes, there are strategies to beat these grinders, but they are rocks. Still Poker Stars and Full Tilt have great customer support if you have a problem.

4. Smaller sites have more fish but can have more problems. In a different thread, the Wizard talks about Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker who had a scandal about 2 years ago. While they are still good sites, and probably have weaker players then Poker Stars and Full Tilt, you need to be careful regarding site integrity and customer service.

5. Join a couple of poker forums. There are a couple of good ones out there. 2+2 has a good forum as well as PocketFives for tournaments. You can post poker specific questions and often get good answers from players.

Hope that helps. Yes, online poker is beatable, but you need to put in the time and effort to get good enough.

Yes you can win online poker, but my recommendation would be to not to go for any system. Don't take the help of any system to win or even play online or regular land based poker game. If you want to make yourself a good poker player, don't go for using any poker system.

Can you win? Definitely.
Will you win? Maybe. But probably not.
Will it take more effort to learn to win than just about anything you've ever done in your life? Yes.
And lastly...if you win, will you be able to cash out your winnings? Er....probably.

I've said this before, but online poker is infested with sharks. The higher the stakes the more there are. It isn't very fun and it is very expensive, at least for me. As I wrote in a blog entry, I deleted my poker software about a month ago after an especially bad session.

The first thing you should do is not to think about "winning systems" at all. They don't work and are counterproductive.

Winners think creatively and figure out the best ways to play against different kinds of players. Having one "system" isn't good poker for various reasons, but for example it'll be easy for the opponents to figure you out in case you play according to a certain system, and you can't use the same system to play against different kinds of individuals because the optimal way to play against someone who raises 40% of hands pre-flop and someone who raises 5% of hands pre-flop just isn't the same. No system takes all these details into account and therefore you have to trust in your own abilities.

The best advice I can give you right now is:

• Start from the low stakes and constantly look for ways to extract money out of your opponents.
• Follow the game all the time and "read" your opponents because that's the only way you're going to figure out their tendencies.
• Don't be satisfied with the way you played even if you won, instead, look for ways to play the hand even better. Sometimes you win at poker even if you should have lost (according to probabilities) and the players who win a lot of those pots in the beginning get into trouble later on when it's time to be on the receiving end of bad luck.
• Always play your A-game and don't go playing unless you feel like you can focus 100% on the game.
• Never go over your bankroll. The amount of buy-ins a player should reserve for himself depends on the way he plays and the game and game format in question (for example, a different kind of bankroll is required for 9-handed Omaha games and heads-up Texas Hold'em games).

Poker programs like Poker Tracker and Hold'em Manager are very useful because they give you a chance to review your own game. They don't tell you how to play, and therefore aren't "winning systems", but instead they show you how you've played. For example, if you can see (over thousands of hands) that you're losing money from the dealer position, you're probably doing something wrong from that particular position in general. Most likely being overly aggressive against the wrong kind of opponents but could be a number of reasons. Those programs show you various statistics but they cost money which is a slight turn-off. Poker Tracker and Hold'em Manager are easily worth the money for a serious poker player though.

I'm going to have my poker strategy guide published online in January in which I've explained various details about playing winning poker. I'll make sure to let you know when it's out in case you're interested.

Good luck! (I hope you won't need it :) )