Playing multiple tables for the first time can be tricky. For those of you who are new to the concept of “multi-tabling”, like me, it means to have more than one window/game going at once. This is a great way to multiply your chances of winning and also to keep game-play interesting when you come across those boring matches. However, it’s not as easy as it sounds— I recently tried playing multiple tables and it significantly lowered my ability to make better/smarter choices. Gaining leads on people and assessing my hand strength at a moments notice seemed to be my biggest challenges. So, I researched some tips that can help new poker players, such as myself, gain more of an upper hand when playing multi tables.
Keep it as simple
Take advantage of colored decks and rotatable player positions. In the SpadeClub lobby you can go to options on the toolbar at the top of the screen and select colored cards. This allows you to quickly pick up same suits and potential flushes that you might otherwise miss while skimming through hands in multiple windows. Also, use the rotate button at the bottom left of your screen to keep your in game position the same. It makes it easier to flip from table to table.
More tables doesn’t mean more winning
Don’t assume that just because you are opening ten tables that your winnings will increase ten-fold! This seems to be a common mistake for many rookie multi-players as they take on more than they can handle. Most new players take more time when making a decision each turn, and having the pressure of timed decisions can cause you to rush your turn. Start with just two tables, and as you get comfortable and your ability increases, you can continue to add more tables.
Don’t mix your game types when playing multi tables
Since you will be rapidly switching between several games at once it is best to keep the game type the same for all of them so that you are not making silly mistakes. It will allow you to devote more brain power to opening more tables, rather than thinking “oh, so is omaha/no limit?” This is especially important since, like me, you are most likely still grasping all the rules and regulations of different games.
Remove unnecessary distractions
Ok, so I may have made some poor decisions while multi-tabling because of Facebook, twitter, IM, you name it. You are multi-tabling, not multi-tasking. Limit any outside distractions as much as possible so you can focus on one thing—winning! It also may help you to turn off in-game chat so that you do not get focused on one game for the wrong reasons, while neglecting your others. That would completely defeat the purpose of multi-tabling!
Play Tight, Aggressive
You are losing the advantage of realizing trends and making strategic moves against certain players. To make up for this you will need to play only the best cards so that when you go in, you can go in strong. Newer players should especially take advantage of the SpadeClub hand helper to know which pocket hands are the strongest to go in with. With multiple tables you should no longer be going in with marginal hands due to lack of patience.
So hopefully this gives you a foundation for starting in the world of multi-tabling. Just remember to start simple, with just two tables at a time, and increase tables up as your skill improves. Hopefully this will give you better chances at winning some of the great SpadeClub promotions. Check them out if you haven’t already.
TheWize1
Thank You Brit for the excellent advice on multi-tabling; also thank you to others who added their view (i.e. loosejohnny, xxFather, etc)
Very good advice.
I would like to add the use of "ExpressFold" option available at SpadeClub, when playing the early stafes of tourneys.
Regards.. . . The Wize1