I have quit online poker and specialized in live play (semi-long)

[bema03]

Kurt,

I would say stick with it. If by a "few" B&M sessions, you mean three, then that means you lost 16-17 BBs each session, which isn't too bad. That's especially true if you're playing low-limit, where the rake can be tough to overcome and which is considered no fold'em hold'em.

[mason55]

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So, those of you who are bemoaning the illegalization of on-line poker, I say get out of the house and enjoy some ‘real live’ poker. The 3/6 and 4/8 games down the street at the local B&M is just as soft as the .50/$1 game at Party Poker.

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You realize how many people don't have a B&M "down the street"?

[jfk]

I have exactly the opposite experience, thoughts and reactions compared to the rest of you.

For years I only played live. I figured that the relatively loose games were profitable enough to avoid the generally tougher play found online. That online rake is still relatively high was a barrier as well.

Since a certain rake free site opened in April, I figured I couldn't possibly justify passing up that sort of cost structure and have played nearly 100% of hands online since.

People:
While there are certainly some decent, pleasant people who play in cardrooms, I have little tolerance for the population of gamblers, drunks, loudmouths, people who smell bad, angle shooters or smarmy young punks. I have no problem taking their money, but get no upside from the human interaction. I've made a grand total of zero friends in cardrooms and have no plans to move that number higher.

Turning into a Hermit:

Online I play when I want, what I want and against whom I choose (within reason). When playing live, there was travel time, the wait for a seat and generally slow play. Middle limit hold 'em is gradually getting snuffed by no limit and game choices can get somewhat thin. When finding a good game, I found it hard to leave. If ahead I wanted to milk it. If behind, the competitor in me had a very hard time ever leaving when down. I can think of several 20+ hour sessions driven by my psychological need not to loose money to bad players. Online, I don't card. I'll play twenty minutes or all day. Up, down or flat, its all the same, just on long, neverending game, always available and never a wait. I have a great deal more free time now that I've cut the cardroom out of my life.

Tilt:

I'm pretty good about tilt. I don't give in to it easily and don't show it live very much. However, I frequently seethed live at the outrageous suckouts, especially when loosing. At times it affected my play. I can still remember nearly all of the biggest, most absurd examples, even years later. For reasons which are not clear, I could care less when it happens online. There's another hand coming, in fact, I might be playing a couple other hands at the time, and I don't really care.

Pace:

My tolerance for all the silliness that slows up live play has shrunk. The deck changes, theatrics, inattention, etc. make live play tough to take. That I'm only seeing 30-35 hands an hour makes live play a true grind. There's no IWTSTH online, just hand after hand after hand, each one of which is a potential earner.

Cost:

One local cardroom has gone to a $5 rake for LHE. Tips are typically $2 or more. Even low level NL games are dragged for time charges of $6 a half hour. I'm playing poker for purposes of income. Rakes and cost structures like this turn live play into something similar to a casino game and make the lower limits extrodinarily hard to beat for any decent sort of earn. Rake and tips are the toughest opponent in any cardroom. Freeing myself of this parasitic relationship is very liberating.

Spousal and familial relations:

Playing from the comfort of my own home means a lot less hours playing and a great deal more hands played. I used to put the kids to bed at 9pm and then slink off to a cardroom, often playing until about the time when they'd be getting up. That took a real toll. The flexibilty of online play means more hours with my family and absolutely no time out of the house. The wife is much happier and the kids get a better rested daddy.

Versatility:

On any given day, I may be playing online LHE from limits anywhere from 3/6 to 30/60. I may play some NL. I'll probabably mix in some O8B. I've played dozens of tournies in the past few months, including some nice wins. I've even dabbled in stud. I've played tens of thousands of hands of cards in the past couple of months and have a large portion of them locked up in Poker Tracker. It would've taken me years to get the same experience. I can now meticulously review my play and figure out where things are going well and badly. I have hard facts and figures to study not just fuzzy memories.

Miscellany:

About the only thing I miss are the advantage from good tell reading ability. I put a lot of time and effort into watching for tells and learning what they mean. That goes to waste now. I also miss some of the food at certain spots, but that's about it.

I don't miss the cardroom and am surprised more players don't feel the same way.

[lefty rosen]

If you play NL you need to play nano limit games to get a feel for what 1/2 or 2/5 will play like. Most online games I never call AQ cold or reraise AQ suited unless I know the player is a total moron. Live you have assume the player is or you will be throwing away alot of premium hands for fear of domination. Also players have no conception of pot odds and the like so forcing a flush drawer all in the flop won't get folds. If you play limit anything below mid stakes you will need to play the micro full games or looser low limit sites without much traffic as these days most 2/4 or 3/6 games play as tough as 20/40 or higher. Waiting lists also can take forever and food costs are much higher too. The only benefit of live play is that you can make much more money easily at a stake that is nearly impossible for an okay player to beat online.... [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[AKQJ10]

[ QUOTE ]
The world don't move
to the beat of just one drum.
What might be right for you,
may not be right for some.

[/ QUOTE ]

[jfk]

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...forgot to mention, I don't have to worry about Todd Bridges trying to rob me in the parking lot, Dana Plato trolling for a "date" or watch Gary Coleman try to roust her.

[DesertCat]

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You realize how many people don't have a B&M "down the street"?

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I have a 40 table poker room 4 blocks away from my home. Doesn't everyone?

[Off Duty]

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The 3/6 and 4/8 games down the street at the local B&M is just as soft as the .50/$1 game at Party Poker.

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Softer.

[Howard Beale]

[ QUOTE ]
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The 3/6 and 4/8 games down the street at the local B&M is just as soft as the .50/$1 game at Party Poker.

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Softer.

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MUCH softer. The online players who have never played b&m probably wouldn't believe it w/o seeing it.

[Photoc]

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Said it before and will say it again:

Live poker always has been, and always will be, vastly superior to online poker. Period.

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Have to go with LVM on this one 100%. The only time I play online is when I'm drinking at home, or before I go to work. And after 15-30 minutes, I'm bored to death.