Hmm.. well I've been playing the $100 tables for over 2 weeks now and am still basically at a standstill.

I've moved from the $50 Party tables up to $100 Tables at UB and PS (where I have bonuses to clear and the jump in rake really helps clear them faster). At least that is the theory. In practice the bonuses are the only things keepingme in profit.

The only decent win rates I've had in the last 2 weeks was when I dropped back down to Party $25's to clear a bonus and made about $300 in cash wins + bonuses.

From what i can see the play is still pretty bad at thse levels - I'd say UB is hyperaggressive (one guy check re-raised me when his AK missed the flop which is definitely not a move you see often at lower stakes). PS seems passive and a bit trappy.

I've had one $250 bad beat ($250 in pot guy catches 8 outer on river (I put him all-in on turn) -but otherwise I don't think I've been unlucky.

The only time I felt in control was when I got down to 4 handed and me and one other guy just kept busting short-stack buy in after short-stack buy in - maybe 5 in a row.. that was funny..we mostly stayed away from each other as we had $250 stacks by that time.

I seem to get up quite quickly then can't help making moves that go wrong - sometimes very badly..

My roll is about $4200 so I don't think that's my problem. It's more having to unlearn the ease of bossing a $50 table...

I think my options are:

1. keep plugging away - I'll get in the zone eventually - maybe try low $ average (more passive) tables
2. try the party $100 tables in case they are easier than UB/PS
3. drop back down to $50 tables (maybe trying short-handed)
4. take a break/go play some MTT's/SnGs (played my first Party 'steps' yesterday and won it - so now ready lvl 2).

Any thoughts?

The $100 tables at Party will be 100%, no doubt in my mind guaranteed easier than the $100 tables at Stars and UB.

The play at Stars and UB is the best anywhere online. It can still be beaten obviously, but nevertheless, its the best around.

To move up stakes....and move to a better site is a recipe for disaster. Play the $100s at Party and get used to them 1st before going anywhere else.

Thing is I find the UB $50 tables more profitable in BB/100 than Party ones - so many maniacs wanting to bluff..but I tend to play Party as the bonuses are much better so my real $/hr is still better there.

I think youre right though - I'm in the 'Party' groove, so the $100 tables there should be my next move..

Maybe holding my own on the harder sites after moving up a level ain't so bad after all - but I was looking forward to all the nice bonuses you can get once you are comfortable with $100 ring..

The $400NL at Stars is about 3 times as hard as the $1000NL at Party.
The $200NL at Stars is also very tough. I was winning there, but when I switched to Gaming Club, my win rate tripled.

The $400NL at Stars is about 3 times as hard as the $1000NL at Party.
The $200NL at Stars is also very tough. I was winning there, but when I switched to Gaming Club, my win rate tripled.<<<

Since I just started playing the 200 at PS this definitely caught my eye.
What kind of a win rate did you book at PS 200 Ice? I've got a case of brand-name-loyalty to Stars since I have played there forever with much success. New to the ring games, I have 6000 hands at the $100 and am at 12 BB/100 (sustainable?). I also have 2000 hands at the 200 on Stars and I am at 8BB/100 and am wondering if this is the beginning of a trend. Maybe I'll give PS a break and try Gaming Club instead. Safe to assume GC works fine with PT?

thanks for your help...2000 more hands and I'll post a full progress report.

thanks

YD

You said your win rate is 12BB/100 hands at $100NL. Is this a true 12BB's or is it what I know like to refer to as 12PTBBs? In other words, does pokertracker say 12 or does it say 6?

Your actual win rate for NL play is always double what PT shows.

If the win rate is 12PTBBs, then its probably not sustainable long term. You can get close to that long term, but its very very tough to get anything higher than 10PTBBs long term once you get to $100NL.

Obviously your win rate will taper off as you move up also.

Every site seems to have skill level increases at different levels. For example: At Stars the $100NL is pretty easy to beat, but the $200NL has a significant jump in skill level. I think the $400NL at Stars may actually be easier to beat (slightly).

At Gaming Club, the $200NL is incredibly bad, but the $400NL gets significantly tougher (still very juicy though). Also, since most players at Gaming Club are Europeans and they are in a different time zone, the best times to play are at different times than the American sites.

If you want to try Gaming Club, which I highly reccomend, please click the banner at the top of the page and help out BTP a bit. The software at GC is not as nice as some other sites but the money will be well worth the inconvenience.

PT works fine there most of the time, but every once in a while, they have glitches in the hand history feature. Its been working fine for a while now.

maybe it's just int he brief time since i've moved to the 400nl... but i find the players are actually worse than the 200nl. or at least, ther'es more bad players.

more good players too, people who i've learned to just avoid without AK/ PP's, but dear lord i've never seen so many over aggressive fish. it's fantastic

excession. bottom line, play where you feel the most comfortable.

you can't play with scared money, at all. if you're beating the game, not afraid to lose a buy in, and comfortable with every aspect of your game, then you're in the right place. there's nothing wrong with throwing a buy in at a higher level - who knows, you might find you love it. don't be afraid to try new limits, but even more importantly don't be afraid to stay where you are. there's no race to get anywhere first. play your game and the rest will come

Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2005 2:10 pm Post subject:

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You said your win rate is 12BB/100 hands at $100NL. Is this a true 12BB's or is it what I know like to refer to as 12PTBBs? In other words, does pokertracker say 12 or does it say 6? <<<

It actually says 11.99 for the $100 (5,227 hands) and 7.76 for the $200 (1989 hands). I guess I'm running good in the short term. Gonna check out GC once I get to 10,000 total on stars and will report back.

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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2005 2:12 pm Post subject:

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maybe it's just int he brief time since i've moved to the 400nl... but i find the players are actually worse than the 200nl. or at least, ther'es more bad players. <<<

Just so you know you are not along in your thinking, I often watch the $2-4 game on Stars and yes, it seems to be looser then the $1-2! In the NL games in the casinos around here as you step up in limits the games get looser. Maybe online is the same. My theory is that you find more tight-grinders who cant afford a bigger buy-in at the lower limits and more action players at the higher limits with bankrolls they can afford to lose.

YD