Differences Between Online Poker vs Live Texas Holdem

Fundamentals of Playing Online Texas Hold'em : By Mike Matteo

The Differences Between Online vs Live Texas Hold’em is an excerpt from the book Fundamentals of Playing Online Texas Hold’em Poker published by Mike Matteo, the Founder and Owner of PlayGreatPoker.com Read More About Fundamentals of Playing Online Texas Hold'em

Chapter 2

Differences Between Online Poker vs Live Texas Holdem

Here are the key differences you will find when you start playing online.

• The first and most obvious difference is that with live poker it requires driving or flying to the nearest casino. The online game is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, while only being a few steps away. You can find a game online day or night and log in from your den, bedroom, or basement dressed in whatever you please.


• Another stark difference is the stakes at which you can play. At most casinos, the minimum table poker games are $1/$2 blinds, whereas online you can play for the smallest stakes imaginable (literally pennies) or even for free. You can find games online with blinds as low as 1/2 cents and going up in stakes to 10/20 cents, to 25/50 cents, continuing to as high as you probably would ever want, like 25/50 dollars.


• Hands per hour -- Online play is much faster than live poker. You can play many more hands per hour online. At a casino, you will be playing 30 to 50 hands per hour. Online the games are much faster and you can easily play 100 hands per hour. You can also play on multiple tables at once. It's common to play 200 to 400 hands in an hour online because you most likely will be playing multiple tables at once.


• Online players are much more skilled even at the lower levels. This is due to a few factors. One is the sheer number of hands online players can play gaining valuable table experience very quickly. Another factor is there are many “regulars” online, so you don't find as many casual players as you do at a casino. When playing at a casino you will find many tourists who rarely have the opportunity to visit a casino and are not very experienced poker players, but just want to play poker at a casino. Once you are playing on an online site you will probably see the same players day after day. In the online world, these regular players are called “Regs”.


• Players online use profiling tools. Most serious online players use one of the poker tracking software applications with built in Heads Up Display, referred to as HUD. HUDs attach to the game and give valuable information on opponents based on a database of hands. These applications are an enormous advantage in decision making. You will need a HUD to even the playing field when playing online.


• Analyzing your play with poker tracking software - If you like stats, trends, and running reports to determine patterns -- you will absolutely love playing online. As you play, you will be building a database of all the hands you played as well as all the hands your opponents played. As your database grows, you can run almost any report imaginable on these hands finding weaknesses in your own game as well as your opponents.


• Logging winning and losing - You can run but you can't hide online. With live poker, you have to log your wins and losses manually. This is easy when you're winning. It’s human nature that it is always much easier to track successes than failures. When people are not successful, they stop keeping track. Just ask anyone who has ever been on a diet. With online poker, your wins and losses can't be cheated. You can’t conveniently forget or just not be in the mood to log your losing sessions. Being online will allow you to absolutely track your total lifetime gain or loss. With Poker tracking software you can run reports on any date range you wish allowing you to see your win \ loss progress much easier.


• Reviewing hand histories - If you are one of the few who writes down your hands to review later in live games, you will love online poker. Since hands are automatically saved to a hand history database, every hand you play is available for review later and can be replayed in a Hand Replayer at any speed you please.


• Rake - Rake structures are generally lower with online poker. Live games have many more expenses due to paying dealers and allocating floor space. An online casino can add another table without any additional costs.


• Tells – With online poker, you can’t look someone in the eyes and get a sense of what they have. You will have to rely on betting patterns and bet timing for online tells.


• Six Max Table -- Playing cash games online has a variety of table options. On many sites, the most popular table is the six-player table known as Six Max Tables. Full ring games are offered as well but don't seem to be as popular with online players.


• Devices - With Online you can play anywhere 24 hours a day, 7 days a week using a PC, Smart Phone, Tablet, iPad. This can be a double-edged sword which will be discussed later.

Another interesting difference may be the demographics of online players. Based on a study by Rutgers University analyzing online players in New Jersey, online poker players were generally younger than live poker players and the high majority were male. The study showed that 92% of players were male and the average age was 35.

Many experienced Poker players use online poker as a training tool. These players know that like with almost everything else you get better with repetition. With online you will see so many more hands than at a casino, so you can improve very quickly. This point was never highlighted more than during the 2017 World Series of Poker. Scott Blumstein an online player from New Jersey won 8.1 million dollars winning the World Series of Poker in 2017. Blumstein who lived in Brigantine New Jersey at the time told reporters after winning the tournament, "The best way to get better at anything is through repetition and practice,”… "When you play online in New Jersey, it's hard for any live pro to see even close to the amount of hands I've probably seen in the last two years."

Summary
At the end of the day, poker is poker. But, as I have highlighted, the online game can have a fair amount of differences from the live games. By knowing some of these differences it will allow you to more smoothly transition into the online world.