dont know what to do

[slicer65]

Playing .5/1 limit tables at party poker. I have been a break even to slightly poriftable player over the past 3 years. I went 2.5 years without making a deposit to party poker. I have been reading winning big with expert play for small stakes hold'em. Being trying to implement their strategies and Im getting my ass kicked. For the past three months I rarely have a winning session. And I am working on my 3rd $100 deposit in three months. Any general suggestions would be greatly appreciated. It has gotten so bad I dont know what to do.

[knockonwood]

c'mon man. Stop depositing bucks and take a good look at your game. 0.5-1 at party isn't hard to beat. Have you got PT? Thats a good start. Look at your stats, see if they match up to the norm for winning players at 0.5-1. Post some hands, get somefeedback. Are there any concepts in SSH that you don't understand fully? Have you got sixthsense turned on to get the most juicy tables at party? (can get it at PT). Sounds like you wish you could run good without putting in the work.

[jrz1972]

You've come to the right place. Read threads, post repsonses, and and ask questions about things that don't seem clear to you.

[Smurph64]

Whenever we atart looking at our game because we are losing its hard not to be affected by the results.

My suggestion is to purchase a simulator and play against bots at limit for awhile to get used to the game and your game.

Set up games where you have rocks, a few newbies and a maniac situated at various places around the table.

I started my poker training using Poker Academy before I played against real opponents and it helped a lot in my play consistency if nothing else.

I still use it when I have problems with hands, and when I am trying something new at the tables.

Its also good to smash the tables once in awhile or get out tilt tendancies when it doesn't cost you real dollars.

And when you start crushing the bots you know its a much easier task beating real players.

[OziBattler]

what knockon said + I suggest you dump party and go and play the nano tables at stars. You can learn the game there and learn it cheap, you have lobby stats to help you rather than blindly sitting at any table at party.

if you must play party then I suggest you use the wookie method of table selection...sit at an empty table and the fish will come to you. Most tags dont dare sit at short tables and would rather lurk the lobby or rely on hunting down the fish from their database. the tags will eventually pile on in at the table at which point you leave when your stats tell you all the fish have busted or run away crying.

[jrz1972]

[ QUOTE ]
if you must play party then I suggest you use the wookie method of table selection...sit at an empty table and the fish will come to you.

[/ QUOTE ]

Meh, this isn't for everybody. If OP isn't comfortable with HU and shorthanded play, and if he's already second-guessing his game, I don't know that I would recommend this.

[knockonwood]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
if you must play party then I suggest you use the wookie method of table selection...sit at an empty table and the fish will come to you.

[/ QUOTE ]

Meh, this isn't for everybody. If OP isn't comfortable with HU and shorthanded play, and if he's already second-guessing his game, I don't know that I would recommend this.

[/ QUOTE ]

especially true for a player who's down in playing confidence and doesn't understand SH concepts. FWIW, great line for other people though.

[Seven247]

Not to bash Smurph64 but that idea is horrible. First take the money he wants you to spend on software outside of poker tracker and deposit it at stars, or another nano site to your liking. Read, post hands, and stay within some set of bankroll limits.

[slicer65]

I understand wanting to be heads up with large pocket pairs and in multiway pots with drawing hands. I am tight by nature. I have been playing the recommended hands almost religiously except when say IM on the button and no has limped I have a marginal hand say, q9s or pocket 3's. But I get told that IM not aggressive enough after the flop. So I try to be aggressive from position and I seem to get my ass handed to me. SHould I only be betting on a draw hand, say ajo, as a value bet in position?

I am also struggling with handling aggressive players. I know Im folding to often against them. But it seems like every time I play back into them with say middle pair, they finally made a hand and kill me.

And I appreciate all of the comments so far.

[TexInAtl]

Slicer,

It sounds to me like you've been able to squeek out a modest winrate over the last few years because at the time you were trying to make the best play for each hand at the time. Now you feel like you have this book (SSH) that says you HAVE to play these hands this particular way, and you're trying to follow those rules "religiously". That is simply not the case.

Poker is a game that is purely situational. This is why the #1 response to any question posted on these boards is, "It depends". The value that comes from these boards is the gold mine of experience that will allow you to either post about or read about a particular situation and gain the knowledge as to WHY a particular play in that situation is the "correct" play.

Although SSH is a fantastic book that has allowed so many players to take their game to the next level, there is no way that one book, or even a bunch of books, can give you the experience and knowledge needed to recognize a situations that come about while at the table. SSH talks about concepts and helps you undersand those concepts, but tables variables often times lead to a deviation from those concepts the way that they are described on paper.

Don't misunderstand what I'm trying to say. I love SSH. I've read it, and I've loaned it to a friend to read. When I get it back from him, I'm going to read it again. What makes me, and I'm sure so many others here, a winning player is being able to understand what the correct play is given all the variables for a given situation at the time.

As so many others here would do, I recommend getting Poker Tracker. After your sessions, review the hands that you've played, and try to understand WHY each hand played out the way it did. If there's a hand that you have questions about, post it here and ask those questions. Read the hands that other people have posted and make recommendations as to what you think the best play should be. At the same time, keep an open mind that what you think should be the best play might not be, and try to understand WHY. I would also recommend playing on the nano tables at Stars or Paradise while you're going through this process because gaining experience takes time (and sometimes $s).

Hope this helps,

Tex