Starting Limit holdem. My first move? (Crosspost)

[JustinWilliams]

Hey all, Ive recently been real interested in limit holdem, mostly 1/2 and 2/4. I have always been a No limit holdem player and have been playing for a year and a half.

I want too start grinding 2/4 and move up to eventually 10/20 or 20/40.

My first move?
Who could coach me?
Someone i could pm hands too that will get a reply?
Good books or strategy websites for me too read?

I want too get good at this and make it my numer one game so
any helps apreciated.

[BigBadBabar]

get and read small stakes hold em for a really good start

[Bob T.]

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Good books or strategy websites for me too read?


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Um... the 2+2 books. TOP. HPFAP. SSHE.

And um... this forum, where we discuss hands everyday.

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Who could coach me?
Someone i could pm hands too that will get a reply?


[/ QUOTE ]

You could get a whole bunch of coaching for free, by posting hands here.

[JustinWilliams]

yep i plan too keep using 2p2 as much as i am now but with alot more questions and hands.

were should i start with a 2k bankroll? and not much limit knowledge

[BigBadBabar]

do you have pokertracker i take it? that and hud are pretty key. if you are brand new to limit i would start fairly low as the games can be pretty nitty some of the time. pick a site with rakeback/bonus as you pay a lot more rake in limit than in no limit. pick like .5/1 and start with that. do you play 6m or fullring?

[Harv72b]

$2k is a good bankroll for 3/6, but if you're totally new to the game then you're much better off starting with 2/4 until you feel comfortable with limit. The general rule is 300 BBs (note that in limit "BB" refers to big bets, not blinds), but most full-timers prefer 500. I'm guessing you're just playing recreationally at present, so 300 should be more than enough.

You don't really need to PM hands to anyone--just post 'em here once you start hitting the limit tables. There are several handy-dandy converters available online, assuming that you're playing online, which will take your HHs out of PokerTracker & make them nice & easy to read. This forum doesn't get as much traffic as many of the others, but you will get some good advice here.

In addition to the standard 2+2 books mentioned above, I got a lot out of Hilger's "Internet Texas Hold'em" book when I first picked up the game. SSH is the better book for your bankroll, long-term, but Hilger's book is a lot easier to digest for a beginner & should still enable you to beat online small stakes games (or crush B&M ones).

As a fairly experienced NL player, I'm sure you have the basics of hand selection & position play down, but just keep a few things in mind:

1) Preflop raises in LHE carry a lot less weight than in NL. That means you'll need to get used to raising (or even reraising) with a lot of hands that you'd normally fold or limp with in the same position, playing NL.

2) It is very rarely correct to coldcall a raise in LHE. If your hand is strong enough to play in a raised pot, you should be reraising more often than not. Notable exceptions being when you have some borderline suited hand and you're in the big blind and/or several other players have already coldcalled.

3) Keep in mind that in most situations, you cannot price decent draws out of the pot. That means you're going to get rivered more often than you're used to--it's just the nature of the beast. The flip side is that you will also have the odds to chase your flush & straight draws, and that you'll win bigger pots when others miss.

That's just a few of the basics. Like I said, post some hands on here if you're confused about a decision point (some incredibly cool dude wrote a "how to" dealie on posting hands that's pinned at the top), and keep an open mind to any criticisms you get. If it's a question we've all seen 10,000 times before (there are lots), you might get some really short and/or smartass replies, but just take it in stride & try to learn from them. And most of all, if you don't understand why everyone is telling you to do something, ask until you do. That includes discussions going on in other peoples' threads.

Good luck. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[JustinWilliams]

Babar: Im planning too play 6m at the moment and cut it down too 3 tabling. Is it usually better too start at fullring or 6m will be fine?

Harv: thanks for that great post, i think i might start at 1/2 or 2/4. my bankroll is currently 2.2k. Im getting rakeback on FTP. I will post hands in this forum as much as i can or if i keep missplaying something.

Yep i understand the basics off limit since i have been playing NL sucessfully for a while now. I hope its alot different though, a new challenge [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Do you recommend stoxtraders book? i heard that is about mostly 6m wich is what ill prob jump straight into.

How long do you think it will take too make a steady profit at 2/4 and 3/6? im going too order the books i was reffered too and re-read some of my other books where i skipped the limit sections.

ty i hope i do well and learn quick

[Harv72b]

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Do you recommend stoxtraders book? i heard that is about mostly 6m wich is what ill prob jump straight into.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't have it yet, but a lot of people whose opinions I respect have said it's very good. Based on that I'd recommend it sight unseen.

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How long do you think it will take too make a steady profit at 2/4 and 3/6?

[/ QUOTE ]

On Full Tilt? Maybe never. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Slightly kidding, but the small stakes games on FTP can be really difficult at times, based on the relatively high percentage of pretty good multi-tablers also getting rakeback. The 6max tables are generally much softer, but your variance goes up when you play short-handed. Whichever route you go, take advantage of the ability to datamine on FTP, and try to be as selective as possible at which tables you sit at.

[Clover362]

I just want to say becareful, becareful if you like playig no limit because imop once you start playing limit you'll never want to play no limit for cash again (the occasional tourny entices me).

[Bob T.]

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were should i start with a 2k bankroll? and not much limit knowledge

[/ QUOTE ]

You know, its still poker. I've been going the other way, moving from limit to NL, and it feels like I've made a lateral move. Online, I play mostly 5-10, and I pretty much started playing 1-2 NL, and feel comfortable at that level. I was going to work my way up, but I got bored. With your bankroll you are adequately funded for the 2-4 to 3-6 range, I would start at the 2-4 level, and adjust according to your results.