The Need To Adapt

[billy the punter]

Is it necessary? Firstly, I'd like to say that when I've play online tourn's full time I do well. I only play for spells though (not 12 months/year). My first effort during the summer of 2007. I spent around 4 months on Ladbrokes (90% touns). I had success but struggled at certain times, it soon became apparent that my results were less impressive; a) during the day b) at weekends So after the first couple of months I played only Mon-Thu and from 6pm onwards. A lot of the top Laddies tourn players did the same. Late in 2007 I decided to put poker on the back burner, I just felt it was affecting the racing side of things due to time etc - it was aided by the fact that Laddies had planned to scrap their monthly leaderboards which at the time which were an easy £1200+ every month (on top of your winnings). So since then I've come and go with regards to poker, playing live mainly and every now and again on betfair (betfair due to convinience). Usually cash and SnG's as they are ideal when you're not playing extensively. I really believe to make MTT's consistently pay (ie a living) you need to play many tourns a week. However when the snow came the other week I found myself twiddling my thumbs for a few days and started playing MTTs full time on betfair. Until this time I'd not been totally happy with betfair poker (those that play will know why :loon) - but as I'd hoped, as I was playing MTT's for about 6 hours a night, I had great success. So much so, that even after the snow had thawed I continued - I couldn't afford not to! It's been three weeks now and again, despite comfortably making profits, my results are better at certain times. My Saturday night results are terrible - average Saturday winnings are 9% of the average midweek winnings. Quite a difference. Although my Sunday results are slightly better, all winnings were from tourns after 11pm. Daytimes are a similar story, Ladbrokes it was a waste of time and I've only played a handful of daytime tourns - but it's a similar story. I don't want to turn this into a bad beat thread but I jsut want to tell what just happened in the two daytime tourns I played today. a) 2nd level, I make it 175 (BB 50) with KQx UTG+1. BB calls with T3o, flop T3K. Thankfully I manage to survice with 1000 chips left. b) Very next hand (BB now 100), I move in UTG with 88, button cold calls (for half his stack) with 98o and flops a 9. c) Next door, 3rd level or so I call a raise with T9x, we go three handed to the flop. Raiser (with 88) overbets all in on a 34T flop, I call, 3rd player also calls....with A4. Ace river. I know it's boring bad beats but that wasn't the point, I just wanted to explain the level I'm talking about. This is what happens a lot during the day and at weekends. This isn't a rarity. The reason being is the game changes at this time - the players are much, much weaker, once-a-week players and playing total fish (not just fish, absolute mushrooms we're talking about) obviously doesn't suit my tournament style. It's worth noting that the Sunday results improved late at night once the lunatics have gone to bed and finished poker for the week. Obviously you cannot bluff, but bluffing/moving is my edge, any good players edge - so is it any advantage to play against the very worst players? I don't think it is, you want to play against weak/average players - ideally ones that don't know they are bad either! :lol You never want to be against a player who cannot pass. So, I've tried to play ABC, and it still hasn't worked (see above). Is there any way you can adapt and continue to be as successful as you are at other times? Do I want to adap and play a game where showdowns are key? Is it worthwhile? These are questions going on in my head at the moment. My ROI are good enough at other times for me just to forget and give up on weekends. So do you adapt? Or forget the search for perfection and choose just to play at your strengths? What do others think? Do other regular players struggle on certain days (the same as me perhaps)? Do you totally alter your style at said times?

[seanfaz]

Re: The Need To Adapt I think you constantly need to be adapting to opposition, but it is difficult in these kind of games and it can be very boring to just play literally straightforward, transparent poker against players who are completely unpredictable in a bad way. If you want to play these games, you must adapt. If not, why not play on another software at these times?