[azn624]

About to turn 21 and gonna go play some poker. I've played with friends but at most was 6 people so was wondering what I could expect at table games and any tips.

[ncsubowen]

It's going to be very slow, and there will be a 'drunk' guy there who will probably take all of your money, especially if you're playing on the low stakes table.

[Czu81]

Be very very very patient. (i u played only online before)

[azn624]

Probably will be playing at 1/2 when I play and buying in 200-400. So is playing tight more the way to go or just mix it up and is it different if you have a women at the table like does it make you play differently.

[borednaz]

Never play women differently the good female players use that to their advantage constantly. Not just flirting but letting you push your money around to rebully the guy giving her a hard time so she doesn't have to. The best advice I can offer is being really insanely tight. Your always going to get callers, you can't ever tell if a raise or reraise after a pot is actually something your drawing dead to till you learn what a GAmboooler is & how they act.

Also like nscu said, the maniacs far out weigh the "norms" at low stakes. They will take insane risks because they are there to gamble more than play cards. They want the thrill of bluffing & of taking it all from you when they have the nuts.

[Deep_Rest]

If you buy in 200-400 at 1-2 you will have a monster stack! People buy in for like $40 in those games. As far as stereotypes, women and old people play exceptionally well (TAG). I'd look for middle-aged Asian businessmen. They are horrible and have lots of money. Young Asian or white guys in hoodies you should avoid because they are probably displaced online pros...although you probably wouldn't find anybody like this at your level.

1-2 will give you a good time but understand that a limit that low is virtually impossible to win over the long term because of rake (unless you're playing 1-2 NL then nevermind). Live games take $5 on virtually any sized pot vs $3 online which is killer to the game.

I would recommend playing ABC poker and hope you get good cards. Enjoy your 21st birthday and がんばってね！

[Jimmy Proffett]

I would watch the way the players handle their chips. If they're shuffling the chips smoothly and clicking them around a lot they're more than likely very experienced live players.

Older players tend to be tighter in general. Usually there's no difference between male and female players.

If you play online and you're used to multi-tabling, what I've heard suggested is to take a book or even headphones to keep your mind fresh. With the slow pace of live play, sometimes experienced online people will get fancy b/c they get bored and start to gamble more.

[ddesmara]

Alright!

[Kaladarus]

At most casinos these games are fairly loose. Play very tight, but open your range up a little in later positions. Find out how the table is playing and try to take advantage of weaker players out of position by isolating them. Stereotypes are good in those game, but you should always be careful when you're not sure. Most old people and women play very tight and passive. They are usually very easy to steal from. Also if your table is playing a lot of limped multi-way pots try to get in with lower pocket pairs and suited connectors in late position.

[BeerDog99]

Most of the advice here is pretty good. The key thing I would suggest in addition to above is very obvious but especially important due to the boredom factor vs online, !**pay attention**!

I find at the 1-2nl tables people just do not cover their reactions well and they do not control their betting patterns well (meaning they are very predicable). I see very few squeeze plays. If they have a week-mid hand, they bet small. If they have a monster, they bet big.

Lastly, I generally recomend being friendlier at these tables because you will find people giving you information and sometimes playing softer against you if they like you.

Cheers, good luck and Happy Birthday!

[kidk]

if u go on a good run stop playing !!!!

[oldstylecubsfan]

Lastly, I generally recomend being friendlier at these tables because you will find people giving you information and sometimes playing softer against you if they like you.

This.

At the very least, you wont become a target and make people want to beat you. Plus it makes the game more fun when everyones having a good time.

[azn624]

Thanks for all the comments and advice. Not the type that gets mad at others and start verbally attacking them, so even if a stupid call or bad beat happens I'm gonna get get mad but nothing to wanna verbally or physically attack someone.

[azn624]

if u go on a good run stop playing !!!!

I've thought about this. What do others feel about doing this like and do you stop at a certain point and move to other table or even allow you to? Or do you just stop playing for a while and go/ move on to some other game.

[ncsubowen]

Don't make it obvious or anything but if you hit a big pot or two I would play through 2-3 more rounds of blinds and then excuse yourself.

[borednaz]

Once again NCSU covers the very thing thats on my mind. It's proper live manners to stay & give people the chance to win it back at least a few orbits. Also tipping, a general rule is every decent sized pot tip the dealer. However I'm a bit of a grinch at the low limits because Rake or Per hour seat charge depending on how the house plays it, is pretty steep at low limits. I try to tip if I win 4-5bb or so. I never tip on a stolen blind pot. However I do at the end of my session look at how much I'm up and tip accordingly to make up for me . Say I win 500 dollars, I tip a 50 and leave. Usually on the decent days the dealer averages a few hundred from me total.

[ncsubowen]

I do the same, usually wait to see where I am at the end and give a percent of my winnings in tip.

[tad0matic]

you can't beat SBR for good advice like this. thanks to OP for getting thread out there.

[BeerDog99]

As far as tipping goes, my opinion is that it should be independant of how much you are up or not and independant of the rake.

Every table I have seen for 1-2NL has always been $1 for every pot won. $2 or more for the bigger pots. Dealers make their money on tips just like waiters/waitresses do, therefore it is just a cost of playing poker and winning a pot.

Along with this, if the dealers (as they generally pool the tips) in the session have been generally good and if I am up some money, I give a little bit extra when I am leaving. The amount is generally dependant on how good they were and how much I am up.

Cheers.

[azn624]

How about if you're down or about even, would the tip be given here as well? Also when leaving and you're up a good amount is there like a proper way so you don't seem like an ass or something. What makes a dealer good or bad and is there a sort of time limit for when a player is taking too long to call/raise/fold?

[Kaladarus]

You can tip whatever you want it's completely up to you. You don't have to tip if you don't want. There are several regulars at casinos that don't tip at all. Usually I tip nothing for a small pot, $1 for a medium size pot and if its a large pot maybe $2. Don't get carried away though because you are there to make a profit and rake and tips cut into that.

[azn624]

Well just went to Borgata on Friday and played for a total of about 9 hours and went up about 400 by playing mostly tight and not calling raises when I don't have a great hand. One guy messed me up by talking and making it seem like he got nothing and I called his bet and lost by about 100 there. I actually went to Taj before Borgata and it was much more lively in Borgata even in the middle of the night.

[azn624]

One thing I'm mad about is that I thought dealers in poker shared tips, so I was giving too much to the later dealers even though I won most from an earlier dealer who got some tips but should've gotten more.

[xchungsy]

please tip the dealer