Live poker tournament, is it much different from online poker?

Question

Hi all,

I'm going to a poker tournament at a casino tonight, and will be playing in my first live tournament, I regularly play online but never at casinos. Will it be a lot different? What will I have to look out for? And I suppose the most important thing is.....will I have to wear any sunglasses!?!?! lol.

One last thing, I don't really gamble much, so what casino game can I play that will give me best odds of winning some sort of profit?

Cheers

Answer 1

Live poker is massively different to on-line play.  Not least is the fact that you have to take account of tells and giveaways much more.  If you sweat a bit every time you push all in, it makes no difference in an on-line game.  At a live table, it's a mortal weakness.  Another factor is the table talk - it's very easy to be an internet tough guy, but handling smack talk at a live table is a real test of character, and there are thousands of players out there who make it their business to get under your skin and get you on tilt.

You've got to consider table etiquette (such as avoiding string bets, whether straddles are permitted etc), and you can't sit around and play in your underwear (unless you're an extremely high roller), and you'll probably find live poker far less relaxing than on-line games, but a lot more challenging and exciting.

As for wearing sunglasses, I personally have always regarded them as a ridiculous affectation, the vast majority of tells aren't in the eyes anyway, reading a player is about considering their whole body language, not just staring into their eyes and guessing.  

Answer 2

For the most part poker is poker. Live or online, doesn't matter. You might wanna work on not giving off tells, and you do that by acting the same in every situation. Don't act all excited when you have a good hand, and sad when you have a bad hand. Look at your cards the same way every hand, for the same amount of time, bet your chips the same way every time, regardless of the strength of your hand. This will help you avoid giving off tells. Only some people look for tells, though. Just go and have fun, and stay away from the other games. They're money traps.

Answer 3

Like the previous guy said, it's a lot different. I like casino poker much better. I get bored with online poker.

As for the other part of your question...ALL casino games are statistically in favor of the casino. Some are worse than others. Best bet would probably be Baccarat, but most casinos don't have that anymore. I usually stick with Black Jack (or variations, like Spanish 21) or PaiGow.  

Answer 4

I prefer the live poker tournaments.  It is different than the online tournaments because you can see people's faces and you can also look for tells.  You also need to have table etiquette. I think the play is different as well.  People seem to play tighter in the live tournaments.