Choosing A Poker Game And A Seat
Of all the things that a hold 'em player can do to improve his hourly rate, one of the easiest is to give some thought to which game to play in and which seat to take at that table. Picking the right seat in the right game for you can actually mean the difference between winning and losing for that playing session.
Poker Room Selection
If you're lucky enough to have more than one poker room or casino that you can play in frequently, you should take the time to consider which one may be the most profitable for you. Some differences between poker rooms are:
1. Distance from your home. Is the poker room so far away that the extra driving time, both to and from the game, substantially cuts into your playing time? You may decide that the extra time is not worth it and choose to play in a poker room closer to your house.
2. Variety and limits of games offered. The more games they offer that you like, the better for you. When you arrive to play at a room with many games you like, there's a good chance you can get in the game you want sooner. If you do have to wait, there's also a good chance you can play your second choice game while you're moving up the list for the game you prefer.
Often, when there are more than two poker rooms in a city, one of the poker room managers will decide that he wants to differentiate his poker room by spreading games that are not offered in the other poker rooms. If you like to play very high limit or an unusual game like Pineapple hold 'em, look around, because there might be a room for you.
3. Jackpots. Some poker rooms don't have a bad beat jackpot. Among those that do, the requirements to hit the jackpot vary. The jackpot may be very easy or very difficult to hit, depending on the rules. The rules determine the odds that the jackpot will be hit, which in turn determine how often there will be a jackpot payout (and thus how big the payouts will be). I've played in poker rooms where the jackpot was so easy to hit that it never got bigger than a few thousand dollars and was hit once or more every week.
I've also played in poker rooms where the jackpot requirements were exceedingly high. I played in one room where the requirement was that four-of-a-kind must lose to a higher four-of-a-kind, both hole cards in both players' hands must play, and they must beat the board. The jackpot in that poker room was more than $100,000, and it had not been hit in more than three years when it finally was hit. We'll discuss jackpots further in a later chapter.
4. Comps. Some poker rooms will give you a free meal if you play for three hours or more. The Ameristar Casino poker room in Kansas City, where I currently play, offers you credit toward any of the casino restaurants for each hour you play. If those sort of comps appeal to you, you may want to consider which ones a casino offers when choosing your poker room.
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