Live Poker Guide: Live Emotion at Your Fingertips

Distinct from online poker and video poker, stars of online casinos, live poker is a relatively young game, born at the turn of the 2000’s. It reproduces online the real conditions of poker in land-based casinos and is now present in more and more online casinos.

Live poker: the same basic principles but a different way of working

The basic rules of live poker don’t really differ from other classic poker modes. It’s still a 52-card deck and game sequences that alternate handing out 5 cards to each player first, then cards on-demand and betting by the players according to the chips at their disposal. The purpose of the game is to win as many chips (and therefore money) as possible by making the best possible combination of five cards or by making the other players give up the move. The mastery of the game and the knowledge of the probabilities remains the same but the mastery of the psychology of the game and its opponents and especially the rhythm of play, the way of distributing the cards, the position of the players or the exposure of the cards and the organization of the bids distinguish live poker from classic online poker or video poker.

Live poker: a game of slower thinking

The main difference between live poker and traditional online poker is that it is slow: you usually play against the same players for several hours, which gives everyone time to work on their game and learn from their opponents’ mistakes. This is important because it is the meticulous observation of the game that usually gives a player the advantage. Unlike online poker games where most players play at multiple tables at once, resulting in a sustained play of more than 80 hands per hour, live poker is played at only one table and it is rare to see more than 30 hands dealt in an hour of play. The dealer is real, it can be seen in the game through a window in the center of the table, where the dealer displays and deals the cards. All the rules of poker are trying to be replicated.

The players are also real, they appear at their spot, on the designated seat, thanks to a photo. Contrary to real poker, the players cannot be seen moving and you cannot read their expression at every moment, nor use intimidation methods such like staring them straight in the eyes, but you can observe their game closely, their reaction time, how they play, how they take their cards, etc. Also, the analysis of the opponent, his habits, his small gestures, his mistakes, often makes the difference in live poker – it is not possible to observe if the opponent is looking at his chips because he has a good hand since we only see a picture, but we can possibly analyze other factors, such as his reaction time; also, it is possible to try to dissuade an opponent by certain methods, by reacting quickly and early for example. Just like in a real casino. In contrast, the faster and less personalized play of classic online poker leaves little or no time for this psychological analysis of the game. As a result, bluffing, which had almost disappeared in online poker, is making a comeback in live poker, and with it, the ability to make larger payouts. Of course, all poker strategies win in live poker.

Choosing the right table, the right seat and the right bonus

Playing on just one table at a time also influences the analysis of the tables and therefore the choice of the table. In online poker, experienced players tend to play at more tables called loose/passive or loose/aggressive tables where, based on the available history on the size of the pot and the number of players who flopped on the last 5, 10 or 20 hands, they can spot the worst players (called “buddies”) and increase their probability of winning. In live poker, there is no such history. This forces the player to enter the game and make this count by himself after the first few games. This again takes more time.

The choice of seat is also very important. It’s quite unimportant in classic online poker because players change regularly and seats are usually allocated according to the remaining seat. In live poker, however, this choice is much more important, according to Rolf “Ace” Slotboom, Dutch professional player and author of “Secrets of Professional Poker“: according to him the best seat is the one that includes weak players on the left and loose or aggressive players on the right. The player’s seat has its influence in cases of antes, i.e. forced bets, which usually follow blinds, placed by the two players to the left of the dealer, whose interest is that they allow the player to ” speak ” last, i.e. to play last, in the first betting round, which therefore also has its influence on the game. This is why if a good seat is not available at the opening of the table, it is not useless to change seats as soon as the chance occurs.

And again, the ability to make larger seizures is not negligible due to the “smoother”, softer tables in live poker, due to the variety of players around the table. In live poker, it is indeed more common to be faced with players who are nervous in their bets and hesitating in their play. These factors have less influence in classic online poker and even less in online video poker.

Bonuses: Experienced live poker players prefer to decline bonuses – they are usually offered at the time of wagering and are not applicable to regular live games – otherwise there is only one requirement for withdrawal, a minimum of €20-30.

Another clarification about live poker games (like all other live online games), whether they are free or not: sometimes the game is disconnected in the middle of a game, either because of a lack of software updates or because of power, battery or network failure. Therefore, we advise you to take screenshots from time to time so that you can claim your winnings in case of disconnection or other bugs.

Live poker: different game strategies

To conclude, live poker, whatever its variants, differs from other poker modes such as classic online poker or video poker in the strategies that pay the most. The games being deeper, more thoughtful, and involving fewer players, all the information available to players in classic online poker or live Bitcoin poker is fake or edited. Ultimately, live poker is closer to the game strategies of real poker, despite some elements – such as talk, unintentional body language – which are not noticeable.