Hello everyone!
Firstly I'd like to introduce myself:
My name is Henrique and I'm a Brazilian (so, sorry for my english) who has been playing poker for almost 2 years now. I've played every single type of Hold'em. I've constructed my bankroll mostly from SH NL cash-games, but I've concluded that cash games are not for me (the variance is so high and I tilt a lot playing it).
So, these last 5 months I've been playing 5.5$ and 11$ NL MTT with success (and no tilt hehehe), but as you may know MTT needs a lot of time to play, and as I study Computer Engineering at my University and works half time... I can't afford to play 4-5 hours a day. Heads Up always fascinated me, but last week I finally found out husng.com and I'm getting in love w/ this community! ;)
Now that you know me, I'll set my action plan here and I'd love to see your opinions about it!
I've never played HU before, so I've decided to start from the very low stakes ($5.25 at FTP), Last week I played over 50 games w/ a 24% ROI. As I'm playing w/ a very comfortable BR for these limits ($1.9k) my intention is to play 500 games to really learn the game. Next week I'll get the beginner's video pack here and I'll buy the Collin Moshman's book (do you think is a good book??).
As I'm multi tabling in 2 tables I think I can play up to 25 games a day, so I'll try to move up quickly to the 10s and then to the 20s where I'm planning to play more games in the limit (1k+).
So this is it! As I read here around the forum I think my BR management is pretty conservative, but I think playing over-rolled like this I can learn the game without risks. My main doubt is about playing 500 games at the 5s, I think is so many games, don't you think?
Give me your opinion!
Regards,
ratex.
hi, ithink ur plan is good ... moshman's book is alright but the meta game chapter is not big enough ...and in HU metagame is probably the most important thing. just my opinion thou... variance is very huge sometimes in heads up as well.not as much as CG but it can be rude ...
U can lose vs a real fish 5 games in a row ...maybe more..at 5$ stakes u could learn to 4 tables, so ur plan will do quicker with not many risks ...
watch a video everytime before uplay that's help too ...it gives motivation and make u think a lot more about different stuff u could forget during the nite...anyway GL mate!
vulcain666
Variance in sng can actually be higher than in CG. You really not should 4 table even 2 tables r too much. Just 1 table to learn basic of husng and afterwards u can add more tables.
Greetings ratex,
I started out couple of weeks ago myself and we're kind of in the same boat.
Your plan sounds reasonable, but I wouldn't suggest multi-tabling until you're playing stakes that satisfy your income. Multi-tabling really slows down your progress and I assume you want to move up from cheeseburger stakes as quickly as possible.
As for Moshman's book, I don't know. You really don't need it if you're watching the beginner pack first, but I guess you could get it to reinforce your fundamentals.
Also, a good idea is to join a skype/aim group so you have someone to talk hands to. It really speeds up your progress, I've been doing that lately and I can feel getting better and better every day.
As for videos I suggest watching 1 after every game, it has worked really great for me and helps to put new knowledge in to practice. I'm almost done with all the videos here using that method, probably have to/want to re-watch some of them though.
Anyway, welcome to the community.
Wow, nice to see these comments! Thanks! =)
I've just bought the beginner's pack and I've watched Primo's videos... just amazing.
For now I think I'll keep playing two tables... More then that I think I'll make many mistakes and will not be able to observe my opponents properly... and playing just one table I think I'll be bored quickly!
The idea you said about watching one video after every session is great... as I don't have a established routine to study HU SNG yet, this could be a good start.
I'll keep you updated about my progress, and maybe in the future I create a blog... who knows...
ratex
i really think you should one table now to learn the game. i thought i was good when i started and when i went on a downswing, i looked at everything at a new perspective. trust me, you'll go on a downswing worse than you can ever imagine and 2 tabling when starting to learn will only increase the variance. even 2 tabling is really hard to get reads and play your A game.
I suggest focusing on the fundamentals.
Stuff like trying to get more volume in can come in later.
You really need to get used to picking up on opponent styles/habits and dealing with it.
Not saying that you cant do it while 2tabling, but it may not be 100%
A game A profits.
@Rapidload
You were talking about skype/AIM groups... How does one get into these groups? Got any suggestions?
Greetings Ratex,
I haven't posted here for a couple of months but I thought I'd chime in and offer some feedback on my experience getting started with HUSNG's. In my case, I made expensive mistakes (including two reloads) before finding some measure of success. It appears you have a lot of things going for you in terms of bankroll, experience w/other forms of poker, intelligence, and a willingness to ask questions. Ok, here are my suggestions based my own experience with low/mid limit HUSNG poker.
1) Watch videos, multiple times at first, and take copious notes. There are many nuances to HUSNG's that need to be appreciated. In my case, I'm a lifelong winner at ring and a lifelong loser at HUSNG's.
2) Watch Rypac's end game video and Primo's "from scratch" series as a starting point.
3) Related to the above points: you WILL extract value off your full membership fee. If you're serious about a longterm commitment to HUSNG's, get the 3 month membership. This will open up so many learning opportunities. You can find an instructor(s) that suits your needs and focus on their videos.
4) Ask questions on the boards, even 'dumb' ones.
5) I realized this later in my career, but consider finding a poker buddy or group of buddies and make some videos. I had a mentor who explained how to do this, and we developed a mutually beneficial relationship watching each other play and then offering analysis of each others game. All you need is a microphone (I used my an inexpensive webcam mic) and some free software like Camstudio or Camtasia. Then you record your screen and voice as you play. Next you upload the video to a site like Rapidshare and send the link to your poker buddy.
6) Play one table at a time to start. Your primary focus is improving your game and this will let you focus on implementing what you've learned through videos, cohorts, and possibly a coach. Of course, you want to win money, but it's a process and you want to start off working on building a solid foundation.
7) I think a great value is getting a HH review. In fact, I think it's the best bang for your buck. This is a very efficient way of identifying leaks in your game. Also, you can build a relationship with a coach in case you want to explore avenues for learning poker skills.
8) Take notes while playing. Admittedly, this is more difficult if you're multi-tabling, especially at turbos. But you will become more efficient at doing this as you learn how to identify the most meaningful information and how to express it in a concise manner for future recall.
9) As mentioned by other posters, consider watching a video before you start your sessions. Important concepts will be fresh in your mind while you are playing. I've found this an effective means of assimilating new information into my existing poker schema.
I hope my feedback is of some value. Good luck.
Jeffrey
Hey, thanks for this great feedback.
It's always good to read experienced player's advice!
This week has been such a rush here, and I couldn't play a single hand... but today things will change.
After moving up these low limits my intention is to play w/ always more than 100 bi in my br, it's nit I know, but I really play better over rolled like this (I can't reload as well).
So, lets play ;)
Do you think that the 5s and the 10s at FTP has the pretty much difficulty in therms of opponents?
I'm asking this because I'm thinking about play around 250 games at the 5s there, I'm really over rolled (350+ bi).
my advice is dont multitable itll stun your growth and the 5-10-20 are all the same dude , aswell as the 30s so go ahead and pwn it up