Can you progress in poker without betting real money?

[AKQ]

Hi,
I am not a good poker player, but I like the game and want to get better at it. Currently I am playing on free poker apps like WSOP that don't require you to stake actual money, as I just know that I'll probably be a fish as soon as I start playing online tables that bet real money. However, I am noticing that these games are not very satisfying, with there almost always being players that just go all-in preflop and then just buy back in. Is it a realistic goal to try and get good at poker without betting real money, or is it necessary to bet real money to get proper practice as people are actually playing with something to lose? Also curious as to what people think on what the balance should be between studying poker theory, such as calculating outs and pot odds, versus just playing the game to get better.

Studying poker is free.
Playing at the table teaches you little bits here and there.
You can pay to study, which is kool too.
You should just study with the best
For best results

 

[vitas_top]

In my opinion, it's impossible to progress at poker without playing for real money.

 

[Gh0stL]

Hi, I think you need to put in practice the theory and in games without money the behavior of the players is not helpful to improve your skills, for that maybe you can start with freerolls to earn some money, here Cardschat give us opportunity to earn some money and get more experience and improve in poker. You need to be active in Cardschat and be patient.

 

[Pokerpoet2]

Hi,
I am not a good poker player, but I like the game and want to get better at it. Currently I am playing on free poker apps like WSOP that don't require you to stake actual money, as I just know that I'll probably be a fish as soon as I start playing online tables that bet real money. However, I am noticing that these games are not very satisfying, with there almost always being players that just go all-in preflop and then just buy back in. Is it a realistic goal to try and get good at poker without betting real money, or is it necessary to bet real money to get proper practice as people are actually playing with something to lose? Also curious as to what people think on what the balance should be between studying poker theory, such as calculating outs and pot odds, versus just playing the game to get better.

Any practice is always good practice, whether it is for Real money or Fun money, the only difference is you tend to come up against more All-in idiots in fun money games, but once you can avoid these players and concentrate on how you want to play, it is always better than not playing at all.
Freerolls have a similar aspect, because at the end of it, you are not losing anything if you go out in them, but they are a first step towards winning real money without it costing you any cash, I remember my Father teaching me how to swim, He said "the only way to learn is to go and do it" as he threw me into the Canal, Poker is the same the only way to learn is to play, but there is no harm in playing for Fun money.
You will always get the odd player who has no regard for the money they stake to play a game, after all a $10 buy-in to some players is peanuts and they can afford to throw money like that away, but to others it could be a weeks wage to them, depending on where they live in the World.
I saw Bill Perkins (a multi millionaire) playing at The Lodge and he Shoved all-in on a bluff and said to the owner Look after my money for me, I have a flight to catch, and he walked out of the Casino to catch his flight.
His opponent folded the best hand, and everyone fell about laughing when they turned Bill's hand over, a pure bluff and the pot was getting close to a Quarter of a Million Dollars, but he didn't give a damn about the money and left it at the Casino for his next visit.

 

[VVi10]

It is very difficult to evolve in booler without studying the game and without playing real money games because when we have fictitious chips, many players do not play seriously, so it is difficult to train playing with fictitious chips. the most interesting thing is to start in the cheapest tournaments and progress little by little as your stack increases.

 

[BetterThanAvgButNotByMuch]

Have fun, do the playchips and freerolls and actually learn how to beat those folks in the playchip tables or freerolls. I wouldn't be surprised that they're the same type of folks playing the microlim today. Just they have more software and aids than they did in the past, lol. Or they got smart and they're a little nittier.

Learn the basics for free and use the money you were going to deposit into a good solid but entertaining poker book you can learn something from being new to the games or to paid service that can help you understand the importance of keeping stats of your play.

Most it your obsession to understand what folks are trying to do at those tables and beat them. If you can't beat them then it will not get easier playing more advanced players.

A lot of folks do not feel comfortable with the aggressive "donk" play from those tables and feel they might want to avoid them by thinking they can skip them by playing for money or going to a limit game, lol. Thats the wrong attitude.

And I definitely get that but you'll get that from advanced players that can actually spot your tedenicies and they'll will start playing that way while not putting themselves at risk and really tilt or take advantage of you so its better to learn how to deal with those folks for free. They will not go away. I can promise that.

Gl with your journey!

 

[TeUnit]

I think you would be better off using an icm training tool like icmizer than playing play money.

You can look at some of the big winners on a play money site like Replay and many have bad sharkscopes on real money sites.

Its very possible to be good at play money and bad at real money tables.

 

[Alexey Shley]

If you want to progress at poker, stop playing with play money, they're two different things. Start with freerolls, and then you can play at micro stakes as you go bankroll.

 

[valeski 28]

Happily, the first time I played on pokerstars.net I won a ticket to play for real money in a freeroll so , in order to use it I had to download pokerstars.com.That was in 2,010.Thanks to that ticket(won some money),I didn´t have to start with those playmoney games.You should try playing freerolls , especially the CC ones.You won´t regret it ,mate!

 

[AKQ]

I studied with the best of the best
I have no bankroll and play freerolls with you all
I created Limpin is Pimpin and GTFO
The very best in the world now use a strategy created by a freeroller right here on Cardschat.com

 

[AKQ]

 

[CataRouillet]

I think it can be improved by playing without real money. But the reality is that the level is going to be very different from the players, because not all take it with the same seriousness if there is no money in between. As there are also many different ones in playing micro/low/medium/high. The level of the players will always improve the more money there is in the middle.

 

[werty328]

I used to be skeptical about this and thought you can’t progress, it turns out you can, I participate in tournaments not replay poker

 

[AKQ]

I did the same move against Perry in the Team league monday game HU

I think it can be improved by playing without real money. But the reality is that the level is going to be very different from the players, because not all take it with the same seriousness if there is no money in between. As there are also many different ones in playing micro/low/medium/high. The level of the players will always improve the more money there is in the middle.

visit our MTT hand analysis section on the forum and you will see

Your opponents will be people of varying skill levels,

You will find skilled aggro players and you will find skilled nits at every level
sitting together

Understanding their range , cbet frequency and tendency's,
is far more important than how big their Bankroll is

Notice the same chips and rules we use in the freerolls
are the same chips and rules as the money MTT's

Many pro players play like freerollers
but they have decent reasoning to back the idiocy moves to make it look smart

 

[Ketoupitou]

I simply don't know. I've always played only playmoney. But I would like to think that I play better from game to game.

I also think we can improve by reading without investing.

 

[Cooking]

I think you need to play real money to improve your game. That doesn't mean you need to deposit money to play. You can start playing freerolls, but the level of players would be very similar to play money games - lot of all in with any 2 cards. You can also try to be silver or platinum level here and play in the silver/platinum tournaments, which would make you to improve your game because the level of players is definitely better and you wouldn't need to risk your own money.

 

[AKQ]

I think you need to play real money to improve your game. That doesn't mean you need to deposit money to play. You can start playing freerolls, but the level of players would be very similar to play money games - lot of all in with any 2 cards. You can also try to be silver or platinum level here and play in the silver/platinum tournaments, which would make you to improve your game because the level of players is definitely better and you wouldn't need to risk your own money.

better players lol
Like nick airball and rampage punter lmao

level of players is better?
better means what ?
aggressive?
or is +ev overall?

are they better players if they never 3 bet jam K5s?
or is that a GTO approved move at the highest level

You cannot understand a spot or learn from the spot
unless you study it off the table
what some say is a loose freeroll play,
GTO players will do the same, but with reasoning

study off the table for
learning player types and ranges
or creating advanced game theory against them


You don't need real money to become great
You need Great Peers and a willingness to study hard

 

[AKQ]

 

[CataRouillet]

I did the same move against Perry in the Team league monday game HU

visit our MTT hand analysis section on the forum and you will see

Your opponents will be people of varying skill levels,

You will find skilled aggro players and you will find skilled nits at every level
sitting together

Understanding their range , cbet frequency and tendency's,
is far more important than how big their Bankroll is

Notice the same chips and rules we use in the freerolls
are the same chips and rules as the money MTT's

Many pro players play like freerollers
but they have decent reasoning to back the idiocy moves to make it look smart

Yes, we agree, what I was referring to is that the bigger the bankroll, the more people study the game and they don't make as many random decisions. Decisions are usually more analyzed.

 

[Newzooozooo]

Hi.
I think that for development and improvement it is important to play for real money at least from time to time. But you don't have to invest your own money, because you can always build a decent bankroll by playing freerolls, especially our CardsChat freerolls.
Good luck.

 

[martinoni]

Yeah I think it's totally possible... Choose a good mentor and focus in his videos from whatever platform, like youtube, discord, online free mentorships and let it be your guide to start...

From profit to profit start to invest in better mentors and you start to see upgrading your level...

Don't rush, but do yout best, mostly with the financial managent in your way...

 

[Recreationalplayer]

If you play sincerely with play money, your game will improve.
I think one should use play money initially to practice before using real money..

 

[greenlarrow]

This is how poker can progress. Now there are a lot of different promotions, freerolls where you can play for bankroll

 

[Ruslan L]

You can develop your skills by playing regular slow tournaments. Developing skills playing in hyper tournaments is quite difficult. Most freerolls are turbo or hyper tournaments, but our daily freerolls are different because in our freerolls the blinds increase every 10 minutes.

 

[Fepitaph]

I think yes, if you build up a good bankroll by playing only freerolls, the attitude towards this money will be absolutely the same as for deposit money, at least for me. because you spent a lot of your time on this, and sometimes time has more weight than money. besides, during this time you will gain experience