Multi-tabling without PT & HUD

[Bullajami]

For you multi-tablers out there, how does not having PT & a HUD impact your ability to multi-table at a site?

[doubleup]

I usually multi-table 3-4 tables and when Poker Office crashes I notice a huge difference in my comfort. With the stats PO provides, it makes my job easy as I can refer to those instead of having to monitor their play which is impossible when multi-tabling. I really don't like multi-tabling when PO crashes as it makes me more vulnerable.

[MrFixxiT]

a bit off topic: does PO crash that often?

I don't multi table yet and play mostly SnG's, but I can really imagine that a HUD is almost mandatory for multi tabling, especially with 4 or more tables.

[nsidestrate]

I play from 2 to 4 tables without real time stats. In some ways I do better, in some ways worse.

[MrFixxiT]

Please explain your 'some ways'.

I can imagine that without realtime stats you have a better chance of improving your skill (at reading and analyzing), but at 4 tables it gets pretty hard, because most people cannot monitor 40 people's actions where 4 actions will be at the same time (generally).

Of course I think a HUD should never be the most important thing to count on, but when you don't have a good read yourself (which will be many times) than it should help.

But then again, I'm just a beginner and don't plan on playing many ring games and haven't yet gotten a decent amount of knowledge about all the important stats.

[Bugsbunny]

Without a HUD I'd just cut back to probably 2 tables (talking 6 max here - full ring I could handle more even without a HUD). Reads can take a bit longer to establish - unless you have specific notes (when playing with a HUD my notes tend to be minimal - just for exceptional players. I put a note on one the other day, the full extent of which says "ka-ching").

When playing fewer tables (either with or without a HUD) I usually can get more creative with my approach to players - although I don't play a strict ABC game even when multi-tabling say 4 tables (still 6 max, or less. I'll often drop a HU table when I have 3 or more other tables going - that just takes too much thinking and tends to make me lose track of what's happening on the other tables - even with a HUD.

With a HUD more tables become playable but creativity goes down and I start to become more exploitable (as well as not being able to exploit others as well) so I have to be.

Full ring games are easier, they're more ABC at all times anyways plus the pace is much slower.

But playing just a few tables, with a HUD, is definitely the way to maximize per table earn. You get the best of all worlds that way.

One thing (referring to a comment Mr Fixitt made). You don't really need to keep track of 40 people. The most important people to your game are the 2 people to your left and the 2 people on your right - if you have a good read on them and can play them accurately just play the rest as "normal" -. Any that are really out of the ordinary (either very good or very bad) will eventually stick out and you can then adjust if needed - but for the most part all you really need a good handle on (for 4 tables, full ring) are 16 people - much different from 40. (With 6 max you need a handle on everyone though - although the people on either side are still the most important).

[nsidestrate]

[PauliF]

mr Shark....

it appears blindingly obvious to me that the only major leak left in your game is that if you concentrated on your games whilst the HUD is on as much as you do when its not then you would be an even better player

get it together man

[the_hawk]

I can 4-table FR without a HUD easily enough, but I also try and 4-table 6-max without a HUD and it's sometimes not pretty. Hence my 6-max at the moment is strictly low limit donking (a couple of limits below my usual FR limit).

[Bullajami]

[nsidestrate]

[MrFixxiT]

Well, these posts gave me some pretty insight. Maybe it's obvious to most, but I still need to learn most of the obvious!

Too bad this discussion is mostly for ring games.

[Scully]

I tried using the HUD for SNGs and I found it more of a hinderence than a help.

The main reason being that the HUD tells you how the player has played before - not how he's playing now. In SNGs any half decent player will be changing gears as the SNG progresses - i.e.: tight early and loosening up in the later stages. If your HUD tells you a guy is tight, when there's 5 players left he should be a whole lot looser so over reliance can give you totally the wrong idea about his range.

Conversely some players are really loose early on to try and get a big stack, and if they fail to do so tighten up. So if you have a guy who's 40/20/5, but has a 1000 chips on level 2, what does he MP open raise mean? Is he still loose or has he tightened up and now has a big hand?

In ring games, esp the low level ones, few players really change gears that much so the HUD can be a massive help in establishing a villain's range, whether he's stealing, etc. In SNGs I find I simply can't rely on them to help me make accurate estimations.

I will use myself as an example. In the first two levels my stats are often around 8/4/4 or something. By bubble time it'll more like 40/30/x (these are off the top of my head but they show the difference). So after 50 hands my average is 20/18/x. What does my UTG bubble raise mean when I have a medium stack?

Hopefully this helps.