Table Selection: Most Overlooked Tool In The Box

(Note: In this post I refer to some principles laid out by MyPokerLab.com. This was due to the fact that I was reminded of an article in Bluff Magazine contributed by a player who runs that site. This is NOT an advert for MyPokerLab. I have never subscribed to it nor intend to.)

To my mind, table selection is one of the most neglected aspects of online poker and just like yours truly is the most overlooked tool in the box. In MTTs you do not get this privilege but if you entered a room full of players playing a game for money and there was a spare seat at each table, you'd have a little think where to sit, right?

---------------

Forgive the cliche but the long-term poker player knows that he has to bring all sorts of tools with him from the toolbox to do the job. Some might bring better quality tools than others but it's also how those tools are used that define the player. At MyPokerLab.com these "tools" can be divided under two headings: the "micro-game" and the "macro-game."

Your "micro-game", according to MyPokerLab, refers to the ability to tackle hand to hand combat at the table. This includes many things such as:

1. Hand-reading skills.
2. Understanding position.
3. Bet-sizing considerations.
4. Which action to take according to the table dynamics.
5. Figuring out opponents' skill-level.
etc etc etc

Your "macro-game" consists of the considerations you make away from the table. Again, taking MyPokerLab as a source, this includes things such as:

1. Bankroll Management.
2. Tilt Control.
3. Looking at stats from the tracking software.
4. Studying the game.
5. Table Selection.
etc etc etc

The article that appeared in Bluff Magazine talked about how the quality of tools from your "micro-game toolbox" can mean diddly-squat if you don't use and apply the tools from your "macro-game toolbox" in the right way. To get a better angle on this you can click here.

The point that I'd like to make is that online, judging by the way that people seem to dive head-first onto the first table that becomes available, a large majority of players just don't use the "Table Selection Tool" at all and, hence, they damage their bottom line. Or, to put it bluntly, loads of players just don't care who they play! True, in order to apply the "Table Selection Tool" you do need to possess a certain degree of humilty; a little thing inside that says you just might get outplayed were you to sit down at Table X, but methinks if it were used properly and more often it would save many players a lot of money in the long run.

If more players tapped into their meek and humble side, took the time to work out who the decent players are, avoided sitting at the table with too many of them (you can't avoid them completely) then certain players would save a ton of money. There again, my darkside says, fine, let the dunderheads dive head first into their demise - sod 'em.