Right ive been playing online poker unsuccessfully for a while but I think Im getting the hang of it in some places. Recently Ive been down but got sick of loosing went to the lowest cash table on Interpoker (where i play) and over the past couple of days have won around £30 (from buying in for £6 at the £0.03/£0.06) Now that Im beginning to understand the game a bit more Im wondering how long I should be playing for a day to see a good profit? Ive got college 3 days a week. I get Tuesdays and Fridays off. But I only play poker for a little while. I have a bad habit of going into a cash game and doubling up or winning and then dont want to drop below my double up for example I buy in for £6 double up or reach £12 and dont want to drop below £12 I therefore decide to leave the game earlier than i intended. The real question how long should I be playing for to see a good profit?

Hi ATM – Before replying I have to admit that I am not 100% sure of your question but here goes:

You have been playing losing poker, as I understand it for some time, but recently had a couple of good days where you have made some nice profit. Well done. Now, are you sure you have turned the corner and are playing good, solid, profitable poker or have you just been lucky recently (perhaps benefiting from some + variance)?

Assuming you have been learning as you go and have made some adjustments and you are now a “winner” you need to be properly bankrolled for your level and play good solid poker. Your win rate will be dependent upon your ability over the long term. However, along the way you will have + and – variance and you must accept this.

I know that if you double up at some stage and then lose it, it can be a bit disheartening but that is poker and you can’t get away from it. Just concentrate on good poker and your win/lose rate is going to take care of itself over the long run.

Keep playing and learning, read some good books and post here with any problems and if we can help we will.

I hope this helps and wish you well.

Yeah i think ive changed my playing style quite a bit now. Im at micro limits so i try not get to carried away. before i was limping from 1st 6 handed with stuff like king jack os and 67 suited etc. now Im only playing premium hands from early position raising with my suited connectors from CO and button along with some other hands just to keep people guessing. Im a little better at throwing away hands i used to go broke on aces kings etc. Im trying to incorporate pot odds when im playing but sometimes get confused. most examples are like if theres $300 in pot etc what about if theres £0.56 in the pot and the bet is £0.15 etc. Im almost finished Theory of Poker. Yeah the question is a little obscure but what im really wondering are two things
1. I have this habit of winning money at a table but usually leave if it means i'll go under e.g i'll have £12.09 blinds are £0.03/£0.06 so i'll stay for the BB and SB and for another round then leave before the blinds get back to me. Is this an unusual habit? has anyone else ever done this? How do I stop doing it? or do i just force myself to stay a play
2. How many hours a day/week should I be playing if I want to start seeing a bigger profit. Or is this just to big a question because I know cards,table,villains,variance etc all factor into it

1. It is not unusual. If I am getting ready to leave I will also wait until the blinds get back to me before I leave. Basically you are getting to see your hands free and you may pick up a monster to play. However, I am not leaving because my stack has hit a certain figure. I am leaving because I am leaving anyway.

2. If you are a winning player then the more you play the more you win. I would say at the moment just play for enjoyment and don't let it interfere with the other important things in your life.

ATM, you might want to consider the possibility that it's a good idea for you to leave some of these tables when your stack gets big. Deep-stacked no-limit (say 200 times the big blind or more) is a tougher, more complex game than medium-stacked (100 big blinds) or short-stacked (60 or less).

If you get up to £12, and other people also have this much and play better than you do, it's wise to leave and sit somewhere else with only £6 again.

Do you use any statistical software to keep track of your results? I once did an analysis of my own results which showed, to my great surprise, that my sweet spot for earning money was with around 80 big blinds effective stack. Yes, if you have 200 big blinds you ca win a 400 bb pot, but you can also lose it of course!

A really great book that you should get if you don't already have it is Phil Gordon's Little Green Book. It's helped me a ton since I've started playing, and has helped me solidify my game even more.

QFT

This is what I go by unless there's a player that I know is worse than me with a large stack. If everyone else still has a 100 BB stack, then it's not going to hurt you to stay, it's the same as still playing with $6.

I also don't like to leave as soon as I double up because I don't look at poker in terms of whether or not I won on a table. I look at poker as one big continuous game no matter what session/table I'm playing.

How much to play? As much as possible as long as it doesn't interfere with your other priorities. And this may sound like an oxymoron but I look for reasons to quit: if I'm tired, if I'm bored, if I'm hungry, if the game is no good for my style of play, etc. I take a break.