Are you also studying the uNL and SSNL forums?

CobraGoat · #1 10-04-2007, 11:34 AM

If you are not, you are stunting your growth as a MTTer and even more so as a winning poker player.

A year ago I ws primarily a sng and mtt player and I only read the STT and MTT forums. I had ok results cuz i played nitty pushbot poker. However I had no semblance of hand reading ability nor basic understanding of how to maximize the value of each hand I played and constantly found myself in situations in MTTs where I had no clue what to do. Also, I had miserable results whenever I would play live cash games (at the time I would never have considered playing online cash games, cuz they were all bad beats, lol). For whatever reason, I decided to learn to play uNL cash games and became and avid reader and poster on uNL and sometimes SSNL. I cannot tell you how much it has improved my game all around and blown my MTT results up. Obviously this took time reading, learning and assimilating concepts I had no clue of prior to. BUt it has been soooo worth it. DISCLAIMER: I am far from a good poker player. I am profitable at $30 and down MTTs and do ok at 100NL. I started at 10NL a year ago and now play 100NL. I have a LONG way to go but at least don't feel I am spinning my wheels getting there.

I just see so many posts in this forum where people are in "tough" spots and they just arent. People are so results oriented and often give and get advice that IMO is just not good poker.

Anyway, my point is, IMO a sound MTT game is based upon sound cash game fundamentals. Once you have the cash game fundamentals down I believe it is situational savvy that separates good MTTErs from great MTTers.

Hopefully, this didn't come off too smarmy.

registrar · #2 10-04-2007, 11:58 AM

What's uNL?

Deadpool_AZ · #3 10-04-2007, 11:59 AM

uNL?

Kimbell175113 · #4 10-04-2007, 12:01 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro-

Deadpool_AZ · #5 10-04-2007, 12:02 PM

ah. micro. ty

runout_mick · #6 10-04-2007, 12:07 PM

Good OP.

ettorek · #7 10-04-2007, 12:09 PM

I agree with you: cash game improve your hand reading skill, SNG help you to learn to be aware to when starting open/shove.
But I also think that there is a point where you must understand which is your game: the risk behind is not to excel in anyone.

Sherman · #8 10-04-2007, 01:01 PM

There have been a few other posts saying this lately. I know I have made mention of this in many AIM conversations. I agree with the OP.

CobraGoat · #9 10-04-2007, 01:25 PM

[ QUOTE ]
I agree with you: cash game improve your hand reading skill, SNG help you to learn to be aware to when starting open/shove.
But I also think that there is a point where you must understand which is your game: the risk behind is not to excel in anyone.

[/ QUOTE ]

agreed but i honestly believe that with study and concerted effort to employ the lessons learned from uNL (the fact that people didn't know what uNL was is indicative of their not having kept up with that forum and SSNL [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] ) and SSNL just about anyone can learn to beat cash games online up to at least 100NL.

I think MTTs and cash games will always be interesting, SNGs... after having played like 4k of them, i would think everyone hits their point when they get sooo stale.

In any case, what your pleasure is, is not my concern. I am posting this in the SSMTT forum because presumably everyone in this forum reads and posts to get better...at MTTs. Learning cash game fundamentals and in the process learning to beat the microstakes has helped me immeasurably in MTTs. I encourage anyone else, if you haven't already, trying to become a better MTTer to simultaneously work on your cash game. You will see real results.

levAA · #10 10-04-2007, 01:31 PM

good topic

i think you can have good results in MTTs without having any idea what a cash game is. you can play as a rock until blinds catch up and than start stealing, restealing... and win tournaments.

but you will do much better specially in the early stages where you have stacks up to 100BB, where you can make money using the skills which are most important for cash games - so you will have a bigger stack most times when the blinds catch up.

i'm just at the beginning reading the cash-game forums and reading cash-game books, but it improves my play in the early stages, and i get better at hand analysis.