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David G. from Tucson, AZ. posed an interesting question to me in an email. He writes, 'Geno, my friend and I absolutely love poker. We're both 22 and we have been playing at a casino in Tucson for less than a year. We are managing to hold our own with the regular players here and we have a question for you. What gives a relatively new poker player the best chance to win -- cash games or tournaments. David G., Tucson, AZ.'
That's a tough question to answer, David, but I'll give it my best shot.
Let me begin by relating my own experiences to you. I played cash games for years before I entered my first poker tournament. I did it because it takes a lot of practice and experience before you really learn how to play poker to win..
When I first began playing poker in Southern California, the buy-ins for tournaments were small compared to today's buy-ins. You could enter most tournaments for anywhere from $10 to $25. Most of the tournaments were re-buy events. For the buy-in, you were given $100 in tournament chips. If you lost them, you could make re-buys for the first hour and then you could add a final add-on. I remember one tournament where I had to make 10 re-buys! It turned out to be worth it since I won the tournament.
I was always pretty lucky at poker and actually managed to make a living at it for a couple of years while playing in Gardena and Lake Elsinore, CA. I didn't enter my first poker tournament until I had about two years of poker playing experience under my belt. Then I entered a $25 buy-in lowball tournament in Lake Elsinore and surprised myself as well as the tournament promoter by finishing second.
I thought tournaments would be easy. Boy, was I wrong!
I took me about a dozen tournaments before I again finished in the money. I would play well for three-quarters of the tournament and then, just before making the final table, I would do something dumb and get knocked out of the event. My poker playing pals began referring to me as the Bubble Kid.
I think you and your friend should keep playing cash games until you are confident that you know how to win playing for cash. Then and only then should you start playing tournaments.
It takes a different mindset to play a tournament than it does to play for cash. In a cash game, you can try to run over your opposition from the start. If you attempt to do that in a tournament, you are almost destined to fail. There is an old saying that is devastatingly true -- you can't win a poker tournament in the first hour but you can sure lose it, as many fast aggressive players have discovered.
Go shopping at Barnes & Noble or at a discount bookstore. Find out where the gambling books are and then go through them carefully. Pick out some name poker authors who are willing to reveal their playing strategies, invest in the books, and then study them. Take plenty of notes and try to memorize their key points.
Some poker players find that tournaments come naturally to them, while others discover their best talents come alive in cash games. We are all different and there is no way that I can tell if you are meant for tournament or cash play. You will have to discover that on your own.
Keep track of your wins and losses. You may find you are a natural at playing tournament poker. If that is the case, go for it. When you play in a tournament, you need to commit yourself to a minimum of five hours of play and sometimes a lot more. If and when you get knocked out of a tournament, take a break and then sign up for a cash game. Remember Dinah Washington's song, 'What A Difference A Day M.akes' and try again.
I don't know if this advice helped you and your friend. I hope it did. Good luck. Let the games begin.
Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.
(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter and poker player who lives in Phoenx, AZ. He has published 2,000 articles in 50 magazines and 125 newspapers. If you want to share a gambling story or book idea with him, send an email to [email protected] ).
