poker is both an art and a science. The science part can be learned from reading books posting on forums etc, but the art part is what separates winners and losers, to get this right you must play thousands if not millions of hands to get right, can take some people a lifetime to master just one game, but that's what makes poker so interesting to me.

well i had to quit my job, but im going to nursing school come sept hopefully, so a job would be out the park at that point

you cant play cash games to build a bankroll? remeber im new

What's your bankroll at right now? But cash can definitely build up a bankroll, eventually you should be crushing 2NL, but SNG's are definitely an easy way to build a BR too. It really just depends if which you want to play though since you're not playing to make money.

you can play whatever you like, but from a small bankroll SnG's are considered a faster way to build up, although they have a much higher variance attatched. Id stick with cash until you are comfortable with the basics of the game

I loved Fee's 6 max guide, but I personally wouldn't recommend it to a beginner. It's slightly advanced in my opinion, get your basics down first.

I started with Brunson's Super System, although I'm sure there are better books that other people will recommend. If you can find money for a subscription coaching site like DC or CR, I'm sure the videos you find there under uNL will help a lot.

Problem is if you start with SnGs and switch to cash then youll have to learn cash, the two games play completly different. Start with 2NL, try to start with $50. Less than this will be difficult for a noob to get rolling.

Yeah I wouldn't play 6-max as a noob anyways, you're really required to play a lot more hands and beginners just can't play marginal hands post-flop, especially OOP.

yah youre probably right.

well i started with 10, thinking i could do alright, lost that in no time...

then i put another 10 down thinking, i have learned from my mistakes lmao...and now im down to $4.68.

im assuming by your post, my initial deposit wasnt enough?

oh yeah ive been playing 6-max also. i should switch to full ring? if so what will this promote?

Generally 25 buy-ins for your level is considered the minimum(100 big blinds is a buy-in). So yes you're definitely playing well underrolled. Too much variance in poker, especially since you're just learning the game and you're gonna lose money on both bad beats and from just poor plays(and tilt). So unless you're completely broke 50 is a good starting place for 2NL.

Full Ring allows you to play tighter, and when you're new at poker you really need to play simple ABC TAG poker. 6-max you're gonna have to play a lot more hands to stay alive and post-flop will be a lot more difficult.

Also 6-max has a bit more variance and you definitely won't sustain yourself there on a $10 bankroll. If you re-deposit and study some 6-max stuff then you'll be fine but I'd still recommend FR.

If you are going to be playing for a real long time, come up with a couple of thousand for your first deposit. Start at 25nl or 25 plo or 1-2 limit. Why waste time at 2nl if you don't have to? Just learn to beat those games right off the bat. You will probably lose some money at first, but you will progress as a poker player much faster.

so i just found this thread, cool beans

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/69...y-posts-98125/

also does anyone have any reccomendations on how to do note taking?

so far the books that ive compiled that i might want to get into from reccomendation are

NLHM: theory of practice
theory of poker
HOH
small stakes hold em
super system 1 + 2
zen art of poker
mathematics of poker (if you have anything else to reccomend to do with math whatever it may be please show a brotha the light...ive been itching to brush up on my numbers)

obviously im not trying to buy every poker book, so are these good books for a beginner? anymore book reccomendations?

or any other reccomendations welcome

hmmm...

anyone else care to comment?

Theory Of Poker, HOC(HOH is a tournament book) small stakes holdem, are ones I'd recommend. I haven't read Theory Of Practice but I'd imagine its good. Haven't heard of Zen Art Of Poker. Pass on SS and definitely pass on mathematics of poker. Its a good book but none of the info will be relevant to you for a long time. You can find general odds online and also download http://pokerstove.com/

How much do you have? 25NL is a bit of a jump but if you have money to throw around definitely start at 10NL at least, but wait until you've got starting hands down and some other basic theory.

i can throw down 1k so what would you suggest from their

I'd go 10NL, 250 is good for that. I'd stick with that until you feel you've got a grasp on the game and are crushing it, or at least beating it regularly. 25NL you'll actually have to face real players so its pretty much a baptism by fire. You have the money for it but at least get the basics down first.

Take notes that give you a good idea of how a player differs from the norm at the stakes you are playing at. I.e, you don't need to label every loose passive at micros because most of the players are.

Notes like:
Likes to make big calls
Continues aggression on the turn with draws
Limp reraises trash
etc

Theory of poker is prob a bit advanced for the very beginner. HOC is outdated IIRC, likewise with super system 1+2. Small stakes holdem is a limit book.

Small stakes no limit holdem is probably what you want. Fees 6max guide is good because it is free.

The build a bankroll thread often has listings of peoples AIM addresses (or msn or whatever they use).

Feel free to add mine (mcfals02).

GL at the tables

Small Stakes Holdem is a LIMIT book (and a fine one at that for learning to beat lose passive games).

you'd be better off trying Getting Started In Holdem. I havent read it but im told on good authority that it is great for a 'my first poker book' and that it will help lay down a strong foundation.

Once youve gotten familiar with GSIH the Harrington on Holdem and then NLHE: Theory and Practice are good books already mentioned.

~_~.......

10NL is fine if you're starting out with a thousand, but you shouldn't be grinding out a ton of hands at 10NL before you move up. Play 10,000 to 20,000 hands and if you fell comfy with your basic gameplay move up to 25NL. Eventually if you are going to make any real money at poker you're going to have to learn to beat semi-decent players. You learn to beat them by playing against them, not droolers at 2NL.

OP, are you playing full ring or 6max games ??

If you are a beginner, imo, you don't want to waste time reading books that are over your head and then you will have to back up & go back to the beginning, read the beginner book and then re-read books like "theory & practice", "theory of poker" "mathematics of poker" etc and other books that are not "beginner" books, because you don't know wtf they are talking about because you failed to get the simplest concepts down in the beginning.

start at the very beginning. if you want a book, get the most beginner of book for the game you want to play and take it from there. learn the most basic concepts, understand them and be able to apply them successfully at the table, then move on from there.

As someone who is mostly self taught, I wasted alot of time (over 1 year) trying to decide what game to play, if to play full ring or 6-max, what stakes to play, how to learn to play etc.

Don't make the mistake I initially made, start at the very beginning.

also, i would not be worrying about tracking software just yet. or any kind of software.

you can shoot me a pm if you like.

gl

This is a bad idea.