I bought the button on the first hand ($3 dollars) and my buddy said it's better to just wait and post in the CO the next hand ($2 dollars) to save a dollar and to "not put money in out of position". (This casino makes you post on your first hand)

I argued that it's better to buy the button because you're basically paying an extra dollar for two more hands (The small blind and the button).

What are others opinions?

And also is it really a big deal to "put money in out of position" ? I mean yes position is good but having 2 dollars already in doesn't price you into a lot of hands when it's a live game and the raises are bigger. But perhaps I'm just not understanding the point correctly.

Thanks for anyone's input.

I prefer buying the button as you now get to play the button and cutoff free of charge.

I think for NL games, it's about winning stacks, not saving blinds. Buy as the SB.

if it's limit... I think you could argue just posting in CO.

I think it's completely logical to buy the button if you have to post after anyway. An extra $1 not only to see 2 more hands but also to get a hand in position the next hand is worth it.

Tangent: do most rooms make you post in 1-2?

I’ve played 1/2 in maybe 10 rooms and the only place I had to post was Hammond Horseshoe.

It is definitely better to buy the button than to post and surrender if you are already in the game but missed the blinds.

The only thing "definite" on this page is that we're debating something SO insignificant, that even if one choice is superior than the other, the work put into discovering the answer will never be worth the effort spent to find it.

Do it whichever way you like, OP. Tell your nitty friend that he's right, but you like giving up the tiniest amount of EV in history, in exchange for making yourself look fishy. HE'LL LOVE THAT.

In my local room, and since it makes sense I assume other rooms out there should be doing this, a player who table changes must post at his new table and so this is where the relevant spot can come up. Buying it seems way better. You get 2 extra hands for 1 small blind which includes the button. If you are any sort of winning player, then these 2 hands have a value that may easily be more than 1 small blind. Strong SSNL players winning >$1/hand at live poker are definitely a thing. Plus you won't look like a nit trying to save a dollar.

Are there rooms out there that make you post in higher stakes but not 1-2?

I think Horseshoe Hammond is one of the few places that make you post on your very first hand of the day (or at that table after a table change). I've never seen a room with a different policy for low v high stakes.

There are a couple of rooms left where you can only buy the button on your first hand of the day ... and not after a missed BB of any kind.

Unless you're a Pro, putting your chips in EP or LP really doesn't matter in the long run IMO ... just get them in there and take as many hands as you can!!

If you'd really like to announce 'nit' status to the table, then wait those two hands for the BB before 'posting' when you come back from a extended bathroom break. GL

When people consider you a crusher to be winning 10BB/h, the small things still matter.

That philosophy about NL will probably not help you.

right but much of your edge comes from having the button
in a 9 handed game you'll get the button about 3 times an hour

if i can't make more than 1 sb in live poker each time i have the button then i shouldn't be playing

As a new player, posting in the CO is clearly superior to buying the button. As a missed blind player, it doesn't really matter.

As a new player, in most places you don't have to post in the CO.

You get a free ride until your big blind comes around.

i should clarify the places where i play (90 pct of the time)you have to post as a new player.

Yes, a bet saved is a bet earned. Earning 10BB/h, even more reason to put that 0.5BB into the pot and get those extra hands.

Just a guess, but winning players at a 10BB/h rate are probably making up that 0.5BB between the SB and BTN.

Having someone yell at you for wasting an extra dollar and acting like you're a rich bastard who doesn't give a flying **** about money is well worth the fractional dollar you lose.

Posting in the CO will save you a few cents, at the cost of sitting at the table for 5 minutes not playing poker like a guy who wouldn't rather pay $1 for an extra 5 minutes of poker.

I thought you were being dismissive of the argument itself when you said NL is about winning stacks, which I disagree with. I agree that buying the BU is better than posting in the CO.

I suppose you weren't dismissing the value of this argument, but other people definitely are.

Do you have evidence to support that posting is better, or is it just your estimate?

New players have to post at Borgata. Saturday night a guy came and took the 1 seat at my table. Button in the 4 seat, he said he'd wait. Young guy, wouldn't peg him as a nit by appearance, but yeah.

I worked it out for LHE, based on like a ~100k positional winrate set from pre-BF Pokerstars.

I didn't play enough NL to either care or have the data to do it, but the blinds are small relative to action so if someone said that BTN and free CO is greater than the dead SB when buying the button, I wouldn't contest it.

My point is that even if it does cost you a fractional small blind, it's worth it.

You have to pay the same amount. Buying the button gets you an extra hand

I think in most Vegas rooms posting is required in games 5/10 and higher but generally not in smaller games.

The reason for this is simple. You can't allow a player to sit in a few hands and freeroll in a high stakes game. Ie. sit in at a 25/50 game, take a few free hands, shove only if you get dealt AA, and then leave when your BB comes up. At a 1/2 or 1/3 game, this freeroll would be meaningless and I doubt anyone is doing it.

How is this clear? What's your reasoning? I think you're wrong and I posted reasoning as to why the 2 hands extra are worth the $1 for a winning player. You've posted no reasoning.

No, you don't have to pay the same amount. OP specified that he's talking about when you first join a game, not when you have missed the blinds. A new player only has to post the BB, not both blinds.

I prefer posting after btn. We have position and double the amount of forced chips in the pot.