Introduction
Online poker offers the possibility to play at multiple tables. You can play at multiple sites and many of them will allow you to play at several tables at the same time. However, sometimes the different softwares might interfere with one another. You will have to find out which sites work best for you.
There are different ways to manage your play at multiple tables:
- You can manually change back and forth between the tables
- You can let the software alert you when it’s time for you to act.
- You can regulate your screen size in order to see all the tables at once.
Money swings
If you play at multiple tables you have to be prepared for greater short-term money swings. Sometimes you will lose at all tables and sometimes you will win at all tables. On the other hand, because you’re able to play more than one hand at once, your long-term variation is likely to be smaller. If you’re a winning player, you will increase hourly winning rate by playing multiple tables. Consequently, if you’re a losing player you will increase your hourly losing rate.
Multiple tables – pros and cons
Pros:
- Playing at multiple tables can make your game more solid. Since you will be playing more hands the risk of getting impatient will be smaller.
- As mentioned, if you’re a winning player you’re likely to improve your hourly winning rate by playing at multiple tables. If you normally make one big bet an hour playing at one table, you will make three big bets an hour at three tables.
Cons:
- It’s harder to keep track of the opponents when playing at multiple tables. Consequently, you may develop a mechanical style of play, where you’re not able to adjust your strategy in accordance with the game.
- You will have less time to make decisions and might make mistakes as a result of this.
- If you experience “bad beats” on several tables at once, the risk on going on “tilt” is greater.
- Occasionally you might hit the raise button when you were supposed to fold and vice versa.
Mistakes like the ones mentioned here will decrease your hourly winning rate. Therefore it’s very important that you’re focused and mentally prepared when you play at multiple tables.
Disadvantages
If you decide to play many tables at once you should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of doing so. Playing multiple tables concurrently increases your likelihood of making mistakes. This is because you will not know your opponents as well and will have less time to make your decisions. Also, there is a greater risk of hitting the wrong button because you are switching back and forth between. tables. Sometimes you might hit the raise button when you were supposed to fold and vice versa. Such mistakes will decrease your earning rate.
Playing in this manner also requires a greater level of concentration, so you should only do it when you feel focused and refreshed. It is quite common to become less focused when playing this way because it is markedly more difficult to follow the play and evaluate the players. Consequently, you may develop a mechanical style of play, where you fail to adjust your strategy in accordance with the game. This can take away some elements that make the game fun and interesting and may contribute to a decreased level of focus.
Advantages
It is possible that playing at multiple tables might make your game more solid. This is because you will be playing more hands, so the risk of growing impatient will be reduced. On the other hand, if you experience “bad beats” on many tables at once, the risk on going on “tilt” is greater.
The greatest advantage to playing multiple tables is the possibility of increasing your overall hourly earning rate. If you are a player who normally makes one big bet an hour at one table, you could expect to win three big bets an hour by playing at three tables. This is true even if you were to only make one half of a big bet an hour because of the aforementioned disadvantages: Your hourly win rate would still have increased to 1.5 big bets an hour compared to 1 big bet an hour when playing a single table.