[Harv72b]

[grunch]

If you are serious about making money while playing online poker, then at some point you should learn to multi-table. But you don't need to do it now, and especially if you're still working on ironing out significant holes in your game (many new 2/4 players are), you probably shouldn't do it now. Or if you do, stick to just two tables at a time until you are confident that you can crush your chosen limit while 2-tabling.

For most players, multi-tabling will (eventually) increase their earn rate in hourly terms. At first it probably won't--I well remember the first time I tried to 2-table, and how utterly lost I felt with "all that action". Now I find myself getting bored while playing 4 tables at a time, and doing things like keeping up instant messages or half-watching tv while I play. That probably means I need to add another table or two, but I'm not quite ready to hook up a second monitor just yet. [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Right now, this very instant, if you starting two-tabling 1/2 then you would probably have a higher per hour expectancy than you have at 2/4. You're more familiar with your typical opponents at 1/2, you're used to the way those games are typically played, and you are comfortable and confident at those tables. However, you would not be improving your own game as much, if at all...you would instead be focusing on getting used to the additional action you get by 2-tabling, and you'd have little if any motivation to improve your overall poker skills--if you're beating up 1/2 for 2.5 BB/100 hands, is it going to be more worth your while to iron out a couple of minor (for that limit) leaks in order to push your earn rate up 3 BB/100, or to add on more tables to increase your hourly rate?

Understand, the more tables you play, the lower your WR/100 hands will go, and the slower your progression as a poker player will become. The happy medium lies in finding the point which gives you the maximum possible of both--still improving your overall game, but also earning as much money as you can in order to fuel your bankroll (and wallet).

Multi-tabling, at least in the small/micro stakes, does not require a bigger bankroll than 1-tabling does. 300 BBs should suffice, with 500 being a safer number (especially if you cannot afford to reload the account out of your pocket).

My advice? Stick to 1-tabling at least until you have improved to the point where you feel confident in the 3/6 game. You should also think about branching out to short-handed games (these are typically much easier to beat than full ring games at the same limit, once you get used to the increased aggression & having to play more hands). When/if you do decide to try 2-tabling, drop down a limit from whatever you're currently playing at first, as you will struggle for a bit to keep up.

[/grunch]