It is more difficult to play cash games

jaredrr200

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I am new to poker and have really only played freeroll tournaments, I would like to know your experiences about cash games and if it is more difficult than tournaments.
 
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fundiver199

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As others have said, cash games typically play with deeper stacks, which require you to play turns and rivers more often, and be able to make more big folds. As a simplification if all the money goes into the pot in a cash game, usually one pair is not going to be the best hand, unless its preflop, and you have AA. So to do well in cash games, you have to get really good at 100BB poker including not overplaying a single pair.

To do well in tournaments you need to get reasonably good at playing with multible stack sizes and understand the impact of ICM + bounties, but you can more or less skip stack sizes >50BB by late registering, if you want to. Personally I think, cash games are best for learning the game, and that its easier to transit from cash games to tournaments than the other way around. But maybe that is just because this is, what I did myself :)
 
Huntre

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I think in cash game it's easy to tilt slip and huge part of your stack may dissapear, besides mtt you risk just a buy-in...
 
Colbefc

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I think online poker is easier cos in cash games unless you are used to playing them people can read your tells and
have a big advantage over you.
 
puzzlefish

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Cash games are as easy as the particular table that you are sitting at. MTTs you don't get a choice who you sit at a table with. MTTs you also can't just leave when you don't feel like playing anymore without forfeiting your buy-in.
 
Pokerpoet2

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I am new to poker and have really only played freeroll tournaments, I would like to know your experiences about cash games and if it is more difficult than tournaments.
Honestly, I can do better sometimes playing cash games, but it requires a different mindset than playing Tournament Poker, I find it a lot more aggressive than Ring games and Tournament play, and you need to be prepared to Re-buy more often as sometimes you will bust out with decent holdings, but that's Poker!
Playing in ring games or Tournaments your loss is already determined by the buy-in, You cannot lose any more than that. But at a cash table it is so easy to re-buy again and again, and that is how you lose more than you expect to. If you do not control your emotions it can soon run away with most of your bankroll.
 
tihomir_kula

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Cash games are shorter and I play them when I don`t have enough time.
 
G0930

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I am new to poker and have really only played freeroll tournaments, I would like to know your experiences about cash games and if it is more difficult than tournaments.
It's very different from MTTs .
First of all you don't have to care for ICM since cashgame is SitnGo not thousands of people and prizeranks, you can leave whenever you want .

I consider it more difficult online tbh.
Made a living for a couple of years being a regular at 1€/3€ nlhe tables and 2€/5€ PLO.
But one essential thing for me is missing in cashgames online ...Micro expressions.

Hence why I rarely play cashgame online. .
 
Iryna Stryzheuskaya

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I think you should play the poker you like best. It doesn’t matter if it is easier or more difficult than others. It's important to enjoy the game.
 
A kiravio

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Today I only played cash in a less relaxed mental state, I managed to exhaust the Bankroll again 🙃 on two sites due to big fluctuations, sometimes up and down. I'm not submitting today,but I still have a room where I can melt some more dollars 😀.
It is very clear that there is a big difference between tournaments and cash, the time you are obliged or not to spend in them once registered, and the ratio between buy in and the guaranteed amount up for grabs for paid seats.
 
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For me cash is better, the variance of tournaments is so big
 
hjuosh

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I heard Daniel Negreanu saying that cash games should be the way to restore our bankroll after losses in MTT games. So, I'll try this, and for now, it works.

I mean, I play some cash games very late at night for 2 or 3 hours with a 100bb stack, trying to turn it into at least 300bb. The next day, I play as many freerolls as I can, and in the afternoon, I try to find some MTT tournaments with an $11 to $16 buy-in. But I only enter through satellites with 50¢ and $1 buy-ins, planning to rebuy if necessary. If variance isn't on my side and I lose, I go back to playing cash games to try to restore the bankroll I lost.
 
Aballinamion

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I am new to poker and have really only played freeroll tournaments, I would like to know your experiences about cash games and if it is more difficult than tournaments.
Yes, cash games are way harder than tournaments when it comes to theory understading and application. But it is also easier in some points.
Cash games aren't a roullete game, we must have a clear mind about how the preflop and postflop game works. Cash game is a deep stack game in essence.
We do not have a "push-fold" range, almost never we are going all-in preflop. We want to play as much turns and rivers as possible.
Now the variance on tournaments are much higher than in cash games. Plus we cannot leave the table whenever we want so.
 
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It's a different game, give it a try and see which you prefer. Its arguably harder as you need more theoretical understanding of deep stack play, but then you dont need to learn about ICM and different stack sizes.

I prefer cash. You can just play as long as you want and there is less variance, plus deep stack play is more interesting.
 
WrongUsername

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cash games are more difficult for sure.
 
Gallarado777

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Yes, cash games will be more difficult than tournaments If you are still a new poker user, it's better to get used to tournaments and it will be much easier to play poker there, and you will then be able to learn cash games with the skills if you like them better but still, for me, the tournament is better
 
dreamer13

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The advantage of being in control of your own time is the main reason why you should consider cash games rather than tournament poker.Variance in tournament poker is destructive. You must be very lucky with a huge bankroll to successfully start your career as a tournament player. If this doesn't apply to you, then play cash games.
 
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Yeah cash game is on generally mode more difficult, but you are less dependent from lucky
 
ChubbySin

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I am new to poker and have really only played freeroll tournaments, I would like to know your experiences about cash games and if it is more difficult than tournaments.
Depends on your mindset:

Cash Game good side: Blind levels are fixed, so you don't have time pressure on your shoulders.

Cash Game bad side: You are playing your own money, so if you can't control yourself, mainly against bluffing, you will Tilt and take bad decisions.
 
AdamasDate

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I play abit of tournaments but they have large swings you can have months you win nothing then randomly get a good score then goes back dead again plus you play abit tighter in tournaments cuz of you can't just add chip when you want like cash games

Cash games on the other hand it's a different beast low stakes is a shit show there is still money to be made but players are all over the place so for low stakes tight is right because people don't really understand when u do big bluff what it mean ect you will do better in the long run

Mid and high stakes places to be but there are some sharks that will take you for what it's worth u would have to switch up your play to have a chance of winning

I would say cash game for more consistent winnings

Tournaments for the big score if your patient enough
 
antonis32123

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You can play cash games whenever you want , leave the table whenever you like . The bad thing with tourneys is that you commit a lot of time , many hours , that's boring many times .
 
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