Many poker players seem to forget that one of the most important poker strategies is required before you even sit down: table selection.
While most land-based casinos have ushers to direct you to open tables, online casino opearators and poker rooms allow players to pick their own table, which many believe is a crucial decision to the outcome of your game. Online casinos generally do not offer information on individual players, but they do provide general table statistics. These numbers are very important when picking the perfect table.
The first number to take into account is the number of hands dealt per hour. This number indicates how quickly the game is going. The more hands your poker room deals per hour, the faster the pace, the more money you can make each hour.
The second statistic to pay attention to is the percent of players seeing the flop. This tells you how many players are staying in the pot until the first three cards have been revealed. A number over 40% would indicated that the game is too loose, which reduces your chance of making very much money. However, if it’s less than 30%, it means that the table is tight.
Finally, check out the average pot. Many people make the rookie mistake of picking the table with highest average pot, but that is often the wrong decision to make. It takes more examination than looking for the highest number; you have to see how the average pot relates to the number of casino players who are seeing the flop. Tables with pot that isn’t necessarily the highest with less players who see the flop means the table is much more passive. Even if you play a slightly aggressive game, you can make more money from it than you would a lively, fast-paced game.
