Does Playing For Fun Help Or Hinder Progress???

[Hog Boss]

Hi Poker Fans, This is my first post, so please be gentle with me...

My question for the experienced players:

Do you recommend that an unexperienced player goes onto one of the online sites and plays for fun first, or is it better to jump right in on the low end games and play for real money?

The reason I ask is that part of me feels that I won't get a true perspective of how people really play if they have no real money at stake:

eg. Fun players have nothing to lose, so they play every hand, or go all in on hands that are rubbish, simply because it may pay off for them in a fun game, but they wouldn't play that hand if it were their own money at stake.

Therefore, can playng on the fun games give you an incorrect view of the game and be harmfull to players that want to go on and play the real deal, or is it still a good way to start?

I will be playing mainly online poker and not live games if this is relevant.

Thanks for your opinion on this.

Regards Steve.

[Muck]

Your reasoning is correct. My advice is:

1) Join.

2) Use play money table for 20 minutes to learn where the fold, call, check buttons are and how to set the amount you want to raise. I wouldn’t pay attention to the other players what they're doing means almost nothing.

3) Once you know how to used the interface, then hit the micro limit tables and start to play poker.

good luck

[kingetje]

i never played play money in my life.... i advise you do the same

[Hog Boss]

Many Thanks for the quick responses.

One more question if I may:

On the online games, i notice you can watch play at a table before asking to join. Would you advise watching for a while before joining, to see if you can establish the playing styles of others, or just jump right on in?

I appreciate your answers.

Steve.

[aleene]

Watching for a while is advisable.

[MrDarling]

Actually I'm going to disagree with the above statments.

When I just started playing poker, I spent a month on the free tables playing free SNG's.
Sure most of your opponents do not care about game or the results and you will not learn a lot from them. But if you can't beat people who don't care and play bad, how on earth will you ever beat people who do care?

During the first 3 month every time I went bust I came back to the free tables for a short while or the freerolls.

Good luck

Danny

[Muck]

I agree that you must be able to beat play money tables if you hope to beat real money tables. But I found very little strategy that I could migrate over just because you never encounter that concentration of loose players at a real money table.

2p

[golddog]

I'm in the camp with Mr D, but I think a slightly different reason.

The play money tables have some value when you're first getting started for exactly the reason OP states: people play anything and you'll always see the river.

So, you get some experience on seeing how hands develop, why certain starting cards are crap, things like that. It's a good place to get a feel for the game in general.

That being said, you don't gain any experience on betting, controlling the pot size, any of that. That can only come with real money.

So, your experience at play money tables should be pretty short-lived, but I think there's a little start-up value there.

[Jauron]

If you play on the free tables, I wouldn't bluff much or at all. There is no "risk" to free tables so there is no real pressure to apply.

[lwestatbus]

One problem I've noticed with my wife's play at .02/.04 "real money" tables on Stars is that they play almost like play money tables. There is almost no effective risk at those stakes and no science.

But I agree with Muck (I often do it seems) about trying it out and then jumping in. You should consider your first $100 or so as "tuition". Play whater stakes are comfortable for you but I'd recommend nothing lower than .05/.10.