tourney player looking for advice to start micro stakes 2NL

[anthony c]

Hi there

I have been a tourney micro stakes player for about 18 years(6 years i only played some times like almost never so only 12 year.) 12 years i really didn't have money so i mostly played free rolls but have some money and 2009/2010ish i had my breakthrough years on pokerstars winning a nice some of money in my country and cause of that i withdrew most of my cash. I stopped cause i didn't want to go through the rollercoaster ride of having money and going broke so i have decided to play cash games instead.

I feel i am or was a decent poker player but or some reason i can't play cash. I thought i was very patient/tight agressive type of player but at cash games i am more loose agressive for some reason at the start and then even if i am tight/agressive i keep on loosing and some of it is not just being unlucky so i have some leaks and will post some hands so you guy's may help me if you would be so kind but before that i would like to hear your strategies or give me some stratergies i could learn but most important a youtube channel that doesn't play zoom and rather that teach poker playing 9 handed cash and explain there thinking process or is 6 handed the way to go in cash games.

Problem i have with 6 handed is 2nl is Black Rain a poker coach said that the rake at those levels will eat you up at 6 handed tables. I have his Youtube channel but is there any decent channels teaching 2nl that isn't zoom and playing poker on normal tables??

Also, anyone show me an opening preflop chart of opening at 6 handed and at 9 handed, please?

Any advice how i can play good cash game poker?

I only have $70 and know bankroll management so prob need to start at 2nl but how does one beat 2nl cause there are a bunch of limpers and reg waiting to pounce on you and don't pay me off.

 

[JappsPK]

It's great that you're looking to improve your cash game skills after playing tournaments for so long. It's normal to struggle at first, but with practice and studying, you can definitely become a winning cash game player.

As for strategies, it's important to adjust to the differences between tournaments and cash games. In cash games, you can't just wait for premium hands to play, as the blinds and antes will eat away at your stack. You'll need to be more aggressive and willing to play more hands, especially in position.

As for resources, there are many poker coaches and YouTube channels out there that can help you improve your cash game skills. Some popular channels include Gripsed Poker Training, The Poker Bank, and PokerStrategy.com, Cardschat. Make sure to look for channels that focus on the type of games you want to play, whether that's 6-handed or 9-handed.

In terms of opening charts, there are many available online, but it's important to remember that they're just guidelines and should be adjusted based on table dynamics and opponent tendencies.

Finally, with a $70 bankroll, starting at 2NL is the way to go. It's important to have proper bankroll management and not move up too quickly, as the games can get tougher and the stakes higher. Good luck at the tables!

(If you dont care too much about losing, just go crazy)

 

[Station_Master]

Rake is high at 2NL but not really anymore than 5NL or 10NL. The game is very beatable as there are so many bad players. I would start off at 9 handed tables where you can play a tight and aggressive strategy without the blinds coming too often.

2NL players are very passive and dont like to fold if they have anything, so dont run big bluffs but cbet small very wide. No need to really 3bet bluff or do anything fancy pre, just 3bet your best hands as you will get called a lot.

 

[fundiver199]

At PokerStars the rake is actually lower at 2NL that at any other stakes, at least until you get to something like 100NL or 200NL, where the cap per pot comes into play more often. PokerStars only charge 3,5% rake for 2NL (and 4,15% for 5NL) as opposed to most other sites, that charge 5% or for 888 Poker even more than 6%. So my first suggestion is to play on PokerStars, until you are bankrolled for 10NL. On PokerStars the rake should not be a problem at 2NL and not really at 5NL either.

Next the big difference between tournaments and cash games is, that cash games are typically played with a 100 BB stack, whereas tournaments are played with varying but mostly much shorter stacks. This mean, that the big pots in cash games often happen, when we get to the turn and river (late streets), so its way more important to be able to play those well. This is probably, where most tournament players have their biggest leak, when they move to cash games. For instance with a 30 BB stack we can often stack off an overpair or top pair good kicker and be in fine shape against the opponents range. But with 100 BB stacks we often need to let such hands go, when for instance we face a raise on the turn.

 

[dreamer13]

Micro-limits are great to “beat”, but subject to the correct strategy of the game. You should not sit down at the table thinking that you are the best of the best at this table. Overconfidence will lead to a crash at the micros. If you try to win pots against your opponents by presenting sets or trips and find that your opponents are calling your bets with bottom pair before the showdown, you have only yourself to blame.Microstakes players have a poor understanding of the game. So, they can call a pot-sized bet with both a straight draw and a middle pair or a made flush. What's more, when they call your bets with draws, they probably don't care about pot odds.Due to the loose play at the micros, you can see opponents calling all-ins with weak made hands as well as draws. If you enter the table with as many BBs (big blinds) as possible, you will have a great opportunity to win more money.Bet strong hands and fold weak hands. This is a basic Texas Hold'em strategy and works great at the micros. There is no need to try to come up with tricky lines of play and lure opponents into traps. If you have a good hand, you should bet; if you have a bad hand, you should fold. There is no need to be afraid that your opponent will not pay you, because at the micro limits, opponents will call your bets with an absolute majority of their hands.If you only play premium hands and only bet when you're ahead, you have absolutely nothing to worry about other players picking up on your play. Players at the micros only care about their cards and don't care about your lines at all.

 

[anthony c]

It's great that you're looking to improve your cash game skills after playing tournaments for so long. It's normal to struggle at first, but with practice and studying, you can definitely become a winning cash game player.

As for strategies, it's important to adjust to the differences between tournaments and cash games. In cash games, you can't just wait for premium hands to play, as the blinds and antes will eat away at your stack. You'll need to be more aggressive and willing to play more hands, especially in position.

As for resources, there are many poker coaches and YouTube channels out there that can help you improve your cash game skills. Some popular channels include Gripsed Poker Training, The Poker Bank, and PokerStrategy.com, Cardschat. Make sure to look for channels that focus on the type of games you want to play, whether that's 6-handed or 9-handed.

In terms of opening charts, there are many available online, but it's important to remember that they're just guidelines and should be adjusted based on table dynamics and opponent tendencies.

Finally, with a $70 bankroll, starting at 2NL is the way to go. It's important to have proper bankroll management and not move up too quickly, as the games can get tougher and the stakes higher. Good luck at the tables!

(If you dont care too much about losing, just go crazy)

Thanks for the tips and yeah one has to adjust and know your opponents don't have to play so many hands and can also wait for premium hands so i will have to adjust.

I play at 2nl and will have to learn to be more patient and not bluff these players or maybe the regs.

Thanks for the you tube and poker sites and i will check them out.
Thanks again

 

[anthony c]

Rake is high at 2NL but not really anymore than 5NL or 10NL. The game is very beatable as there are so many bad players. I would start off at 9 handed tables where you can play a tight and aggressive strategy without the blinds coming too often.

2NL players are very passive and dont like to fold if they have anything, so dont run big bluffs but cbet small very wide. No need to really 3bet bluff or do anything fancy pre, just 3bet your best hands as you will get called a lot.

Yeah i have noticed not to bluff these dudes at 2NL after a few a attempts so learned the hard way haha.

"2NL players are very passive and dont like to fold if they have anything, so dont run big bluffs but cbet small very wide. No need to really 3bet bluff or do anything fancy pre, just 3bet your best hands as you will get called a lot"

I will do just that.

 

[anthony c]

At PokerStars the rake is actually lower at 2NL that at any other stakes, at least until you get to something like 100NL or 200NL, where the cap per pot comes into play more often. PokerStars only charge 3,5% rake for 2NL (and 4,15% for 5NL) as opposed to most other sites, that charge 5% or for 888 Poker even more than 6%. So my first suggestion is to play on PokerStars, until you are bankrolled for 10NL. On PokerStars the rake should not be a problem at 2NL and not really at 5NL either.

Next the big difference between tournaments and cash games is, that cash games are typically played with a 100 BB stack, whereas tournaments are played with varying but mostly much shorter stacks. This mean, that the big pots in cash games often happen, when we get to the turn and river (late streets), so its way more important to be able to play those well. This is probably, where most tournament players have their biggest leak, when they move to cash games. For instance with a 30 BB stack we can often stack off an overpair or top pair good kicker and be in fine shape against the opponents range. But with 100 BB stacks we often need to let such hands go, when for instance we face a raise on the turn.

See this is why i prefer tournament cause of rake and it's like in the fine print so to speak cause you don't see it while playing. I can't play on pokerstars but i play on black chip poker and there is not a lot of 9 handed tables so i want to play 6 handed but i know i might not be good enough at 6 handed and variance is higher at 6 handed tables. There rake must be through the roof but will find out first.

I will play 9 handed and learn 6 handed so i know how to play 6 handed and then make the switch. I have been playing for a long time even though it's tourneys i still think i can bring those skills to cash games but just need to adjust a little.

So i will be learning hard and learn more than i play atm.

Thanks for your advice

 

[anthony c]

Micro-limits are great to “beat”, but subject to the correct strategy of the game. You should not sit down at the table thinking that you are the best of the best at this table. Overconfidence will lead to a crash at the micros. If you try to win pots against your opponents by presenting sets or trips and find that your opponents are calling your bets with bottom pair before the showdown, you have only yourself to blame.Microstakes players have a poor understanding of the game. So, they can call a pot-sized bet with both a straight draw and a middle pair or a made flush. What's more, when they call your bets with draws, they probably don't care about pot odds.Due to the loose play at the micros, you can see opponents calling all-ins with weak made hands as well as draws. If you enter the table with as many BBs (big blinds) as possible, you will have a great opportunity to win more money.Bet strong hands and fold weak hands. This is a basic Texas Hold'em strategy and works great at the micros. There is no need to try to come up with tricky lines of play and lure opponents into traps. If you have a good hand, you should bet; if you have a bad hand, you should fold. There is no need to be afraid that your opponent will not pay you, because at the micro limits, opponents will call your bets with an absolute majority of their hands.If you only play premium hands and only bet when you're ahead, you have absolutely nothing to worry about other players picking up on your play. Players at the micros only care about their cards and don't care about your lines at all.

Wow great advice and will follow your advice it to the T. Yeah you get those bad players like you said that call 11bb with bottom pair or even ak high on scary boards but you get players that play super tight and my big hands never get payed off so it's best looking foir them on other tables but problem is i can only play on black chip poker so not a lot of 9 handed tables so need to convert to 6 handed. I will open another thread and ask for tips converting froM 9 handed to 6 handed. There are more fish and i am sure if i have good edge on them i could beat it but i need to learn to play 6 handed to get that edge so will do that first.

Thanks

 

[Aballinamion]

Hi there

I have been a tourney micro stakes player for about 18 years(6 years i only played some times like almost never so only 12 year.) 12 years i really didn't have money so i mostly played free rolls but have some money and 2009/2010ish i had my breakthrough years on Pokerstars winning a nice some of money in my country and cause of that i withdrew most of my cash. I stopped cause i didn't want to go through the rollercoaster ride of having money and going broke so i have decided to play cash games instead.

I feel i am or was a decent poker player but or some reason i can't play cash. I thought i was very patient/tight agressive type of player but at cash games i am more loose agressive for some reason at the start and then even if i am tight/agressive i keep on loosing and some of it is not just being unlucky so i have some leaks and will post some hands so you guy's may help me if you would be so kind but before that i would like to hear your strategies or give me some stratergies i could learn but most important a youtube channel that doesn't play zoom and rather that teach poker playing 9 handed cash and explain there thinking process or is 6 handed the way to go in cash games.

Problem i have with 6 handed is 2nl is Black Rain a poker coach said that the rake at those levels will eat you up at 6 handed tables. I have his Youtube channel but is there any decent channels teaching 2nl that isn't zoom and playing poker on normal tables??

Also, anyone show me an opening preflop chart of opening at 6 handed and at 9 handed, please?

Any advice how i can play good cash game poker?

I only have $70 and know bankroll management so prob need to start at 2nl but how does one beat 2nl cause there are a bunch of limpers and reg waiting to pounce on you and don't pay me off.

If you intend to be loose playing cash, you gotta have a lot of emotional fibre and a great bankroll. I would advise at least $ 100 to start playing NLHE 2.
As others have said, in cash tables you will not find a lot of players going all in preflop or postflop having TPTK or simple hands, for the stack strategies are completely different.
Of course there are fishes, but we must look for them and make notes. From time to time we are going all-in having TPTK postflop but it’s not so common as in tournaments.
Maybe you are getting loose because we have to fold a lot playing cash, and this is the way the game is. Many players get bored and begin to play a wider range, because they don’t have the patience or discipline to just seat and wait for the right moment.
Cash is very obvious that can be tedious. Most of players are only putting their stacks with monsters hands, raises on the turn and on the river usually mean the nuts, most of 3-bets and 4-bets preflop are for pure value, so we must choose our opponents carefully.
To play a good and decent cash game you have to play in position versus weaker opponents and try to steal the blinds when BU X SB X BB X CO and vice-versa.
Do not expect too much emotions playing cash games, because there are none. Cash is a more serious game than tournaments.
If you look the cash game threads you will notice I was having problems playing 6-MAX tables, for I have a short bankroll, so I moved to Full-Ring ones.

 

[muzenza2012]

Try to play with cards connected in sequence and preferably from the same nipe, of course, and the bigger the card the better, so there are these three factors that will increase the odds

 

[paetel]

Hi there

I have been a tourney micro stakes player for about 18 years(6 years i only played some times like almost never so only 12 year.) 12 years i really didn't have money so i mostly played free rolls but have some money and 2009/2010ish i had my breakthrough years on Pokerstars winning a nice some of money in my country and cause of that i withdrew most of my cash. I stopped cause i didn't want to go through the rollercoaster ride of having money and going broke so i have decided to play cash games instead.

I feel i am or was a decent poker player but or some reason i can't play cash. I thought i was very patient/tight agressive type of player but at cash games i am more loose agressive for some reason at the start and then even if i am tight/agressive i keep on loosing and some of it is not just being unlucky so i have some leaks and will post some hands so you guy's may help me if you would be so kind but before that i would like to hear your strategies or give me some stratergies i could learn but most important a youtube channel that doesn't play zoom and rather that teach poker playing 9 handed cash and explain there thinking process or is 6 handed the way to go in cash games.

Problem i have with 6 handed is 2nl is Black Rain a poker coach said that the rake at those levels will eat you up at 6 handed tables. I have his Youtube channel but is there any decent channels teaching 2nl that isn't zoom and playing poker on normal tables??

Also, anyone show me an opening preflop chart of opening at 6 handed and at 9 handed, please?

I highly recommend this course, which helped me a lot to improve: https://www.udemy.com/course/crush-online-micro-stakes-poker/

I am currently on my way to beat NL2 with an average of 8BB/100 over 40k Hands so far.

 

[hamon08]

Hi there

I have been a tourney micro stakes player for about 18 years(6 years i only played some times like almost never so only 12 year.) 12 years i really didn't have money so i mostly played free rolls but have some money and 2009/2010ish i had my breakthrough years on Pokerstars winning a nice some of money in my country and cause of that i withdrew most of my cash. I stopped cause i didn't want to go through the rollercoaster ride of having money and going broke so i have decided to play cash games instead.

I feel i am or was a decent poker player but or some reason i can't play cash. I thought i was very patient/tight agressive type of player but at cash games i am more loose agressive for some reason at the start and then even if i am tight/agressive i keep on loosing and some of it is not just being unlucky so i have some leaks and will post some hands so you guy's may help me if you would be so kind but before that i would like to hear your strategies or give me some stratergies i could learn but most important a youtube channel that doesn't play zoom and rather that teach poker playing 9 handed cash and explain there thinking process or is 6 handed the way to go in cash games.

Problem i have with 6 handed is 2nl is Black Rain a poker coach said that the rake at those levels will eat you up at 6 handed tables. I have his Youtube channel but is there any decent channels teaching 2nl that isn't zoom and playing poker on normal tables??

Also, anyone show me an opening preflop chart of opening at 6 handed and at 9 handed, please?

Any advice how i can play good cash game poker?

I only have $70 and know bankroll management so prob need to start at 2nl but how does one beat 2nl cause there are a bunch of limpers and reg waiting to pounce on you and don't pay me off.

I highly recommend that you read this book. It helped me a lot when I was just starting to play micro-limits. Now I play NL10 limits and have a small stable income. I think that in a few months I will play NL20 or higher.

 

[gustav197poker]

They have given you good advice to start playing cash games. I just suggest you enjoy whenever you play. Everything is easier when you enjoy what you do.
Don't play automatically. Adapt your game to the table and always look for the fish to beat it.
Greetings.

 

[liuouhgkres]

OP, I suggest you start learning gto from now. You don't need to know GTO to beak NL2, but you need to know theory to beat NL25-50 and you won't be learning it in one day. Also, if you don't study you might be building up bad habits that will be hard to get rid off. At least look up the main lines in single raised pots and 3bet pots.